“Warm Bodies” is not your average zombie thriller. Think Romeo and Juliet, plus some zombies, with more romantic comedy than romantic tragedy. It’s your good ol’ upbeat, post-apocalyptic fairy tale. Director Jonathan Levine (“50/50”) did justice to the novel by Isaac Marion, on which the movie was based, appropriately inserting humor and creativity into the theme, which questions life and what’s worth living for.
The movie follows R (Nicholas Hoult), a zombie who can say very little but starts the film with colorful narration, letting the audience know that while he may be dead on the outside, he is very alive within. On a human-hunting raid in the city, R encounters Perry (Dave Franco) and his girlfriend Julie (Teresa Palmer). After attacking the human pack, R finds himself infatuated with Julie and takes her back to the zombie lair — the airport.
What follows is a love story: as R and Julie get to know each other, he and some of his zombie cohorts begin to change, becoming more coherent and human-like. As they struggle to overcome opposition, they begin a journey of discovery, suggesting that death isn’t inevitable and the apocalyptic world isn’t nearly as hopeless as they originally thought.
While “Warm Bodies” started out a little slow (and how could it not — they are dead, sluggish zombies after all), it managed to pick up speed toward the middle by combining a bit more action with a fantastic soundtrack. While the film definitely has its serious thought-provoking moments, the humor is well placed, mixing R’s adorable awkwardness with his friend, M’s (Rob Corddry), foul-mouthed sass.
Despite the fact that Hoult doesn’t have much on-screen dialogue, his narration is performed brilliantly, successfully giving the necessary backstory while portraying his hidden quirky personality. Palmer, an Australian with an iffy American accent, was decent in her “tough girl” role but, in the end, any gal in her early-20s could have taken the part.
But if you can get past some slight cheesiness and the stereotypical zombie affiliation, “Warm Bodies” is an entertaining movie that will have you considering the zombie’s perspective next time you encounter an undead villain.
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