The Dead Don’t Die Review by Michael Winkler 🧟♂️🧟♀️
June 28, 2019 7:48 am |
“The Dead Don’t Die” is not the average zombie horror movie. If you’re expecting zombies that are over the top scary and aggressive, then maybe The Dead Don’t Die isn’t the best choice. Jim Jarmusch directs this quirky horror comedy, which follows a set of police officers during an “undead outbreak”. Chief Cliff Robertson (Bill Murray) along with Officers Ronnie Peterson (Adam Driver) and Mindy Morrison (Chloe Sevigny) must try and figure out what has turned their small town “Centerville” upside down. Driver and Murray have both worked with Jarmusch in the past, and it shows in how comfortable the duo is on screen. The Dead Don’t Die is a movie that’s very self-aware and doesn’t shy away from the jokes. Unfortunately, it seems as if Jarmusch treated this as a chance to make an art project rather than a great zombie movie.
In “The Dead Don’t Die”, the reason for the resurrection of the undead is tied to polar fracking and its effect on the vibrations of the earth. A very odd reason, but a reason nonetheless. Driver and Murray do a phenomenal job as partners and their chemistry is truly something special. A lot of the humor in this film is quite dry, but Bill Murray doesn’t disappoint and lands the majority of the jokes. Adam Driver is also quite funny. His character’s nonchalant approach to the events taking place and overall awkwardness add a nice tone to a lot of his scenes. Chloe Sevigny does a very good job of playing Officer Morrison, who seems to be the only person in the entire town who is remotely alarmed by the dead rising.
As the film progresses and more dead occupy the small town, we are treated with some very funny scenarios and equally dull storylines that eventually amount to nothing. There are two different sets of teenagers that we follow from the beginning. One group is of juvenile delinquents in a center and the other is a group of traveling teenagers, which includes Zoe (Selena Gomez). Let’s just say, both of these groups stories lead to absolutely nothing and could’ve been left on the cutting room floor. This film is chock full of cameo appearances by actors such as Steve Buscemi, Eszter Balint, Danny Glover, Maya Delmont, Tilda Swinton, and many more. The variety of cliché small town characters makes for some funny dialogue and outrageous moments throughout the film.
Jim Jarmusch took too many liberties in an attempt to try and make this film quirky. The film almost became confusing at times when characters were self-aware of the fact that they were in a movie. The characters never broke the fourth wall, but many times referred to “the script” or “the theme song”. While Murray, Driver, and Sevigny all did a great job with the acting, we were left with too many awkward plot points and unexplained events. “The Dead Don’t Die” has some great aspects to it. The acting is great, the comedy is well executed, the makeup is fantastic, the color palate is beautiful, and the filming locations are just perfect. The negatives include lousy sub-plots, confusing characters, oddly worded and lengthy dialogue, and slow and drawn out pacing. Jarmusch delivers an overall good viewing experience. This movie is not for everyone. If you’re someone that values good acting, oddball humor, decent makeup effects, odd plot points, good score, and far off twists, “The Dead Don’t Die” is well worth seeing.
PCL Rating: Taste It
Rotten Tomatoes Rating: FRESH 🍅
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Tags: Jim Jarmusch, pop culture leftovers, The Dead Don't Die
Categorised in: Movie Reviews
This post was written by Leftover Brian
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