Zombie movies just refuse to die.
The resurgence of these films, however bland, in the past few years is a testament to that fact.
Thankfully, writer and actor Simon Pegg, who stars as Shaun in the limey spoof "Shaun of the Dead," has delivered a wonderful shotgun blast of dark comedy into the otherwise stale head of the zombie genre.
"Shaun" is quite possibly the funniest movie of the year, with its dry British wit, over-the-top gore and adorable accents. You'll go from a slight chuckle to rolling on the floor faster than you can say "reanimated corpse."
The film is all about the hapless Shaun, a 29-year-old with a job that's going nowhere, a relationship on the rocks and an obnoxious friend who can't help but exacerbate the situation.
One day they wake up, and, with no explanation whatsoever, they find that the population of the United Kingdom has started turning into street-roaming zombies.
When our hero sets out to save his girlfriend -- and their relationship - along with his best friend and his mum, hilarity ensues.
The zombies in the film are more of a throwback to the George Romero age of horror flicks, as opposed to the frenetic undead of the "Dawn of the Dead" remake or "28 Days Later." Theirs are slow, stupid, lumbering bodies that come toward our heroes with a pace that allows them to stop and have a nice, long group huddle to figure out the best course of action.
And speaking of our group of heroes, the characters are quite well-developed, especially for those in a zombie-horror satire.
The roles don't necessarily resemble archetypes of horror-film characters, but rather the protagonists one would find in a romantic comedy: The lovable but slovenly best friend, the completely oblivious mother and the over-bearing, cantankerous step-father, played masterfully by Bill Nighy.
Nighy, by the way, is recognizable as the washed-up rock star Billy Mack from "Love Actually."
One particularly keen aspect of the film is the way it paces itself. Unlike other horror flicks, which spend their first hour on normal occurrences with tense music attempting to set up an uneasy atmosphere, "Shaun of the Dead" simply begins as a comedy and never forgets that.
It's only fair that audiences be warned up front that this is a spectacularly gory film. Not so much in the realistic, nail-biting sense, but more in a ridiculous, "Evil Dead 2" sense. If entrails and dismembered limbs particularly bother you, this is not your film.
Also, if you don't enjoy British humo(u)r, this could be hit-or-miss for you. Fans of the genre and of U.K. comedy will adore this film.
If you were the kid who skipped over the BBC comedy shows, there's a chance you'll enjoy this, but a greater chance you won't.
This is a wonderfully violent and funny film that you'll be quoting with your mates for days on end. "Shaun of the Dead" is destined to be the cult classic/sleeper hit of 2004.
Contact the A&E Editor at artsdesk@unc.edu.
