Film fanatic and critic Gary DeWaard keeps readers connected with trending Hollywood news and upcoming or current releases worth seeing in theaters. Here, he shares his opinion of the much-anticipated sequel to Ruben Fleischer’s 2009 film Zombieland in theaters today.
The zombie craze is slowly dying out, but franchises like The Walking Dead and Zombieland continue to find new ways to breathe life into the genre. Gary DeWaard recently sat down to watch Zombieland 2: Double Tap, and he shares what he thought of the sequel with readers below.
“Fans of the first movie won’t be disappointed since all the same actors are back from the original and the styling (as far as action and comedy go) are essentially the same,” says Gary DeWaard. “In this one, though, the creators brought in a lot of big-name actors to expand the story and flesh out the apocalyptic world they inhabit.”
In the original film, the story focused on the four protagonists as they survived hordes of zombies, with a surprise cameo by Bill Murray. This time, Murray makes it into an extended scene during the credits, but the original cast has expanded to include many new faces (to the franchise). Zombieland 2: Double Tap stars Woody Harrelson, Jesse Eisenberg, Emma Stone, Abigail Breslin, Zoey Deutch, Avan Jogia, Rosario Dawson, Luke Wilson, and Thomas Middleditch to name a few.
“It’s been ten years since the last Zombieland film hit theaters, and the story in the sequel plays into this with ten years passing since we last left the gang,” says Gary DeWaard. “Everyone’s grown a bit, but they’re still the same loveable, optimistic survivors making the most of the end of the world.”
One of the main focuses of the sequel is on personal relationships as the group struggles with the peaceful existence they’ve created while crashing at the abandoned White House. Abigail Breslin’s character Little Rock, who’s finally coming of age, is struggling with not having friends her own age around, and especially a boyfriend. Emma stone’s character Wichita worries over a proposal and the two women decide to split from the guys, which launches a plot that explores plenty of new locations and characters across the country.
“There’s definitely more drama in this film than in the first, which may throw some people, but the creators have done a pretty great job at balancing it out with new sources of comedy,” says Gary DeWaard. “For instance, Zoey Deutch’s character Madison hangs around the group like a mosquito without having much to offer in terms of survival––but somehow, she keeps escaping danger and showing up. It’s a riot. Overall, it keeps true to the original film while infusing it with enough creativity and solid humor that it doesn’t feel like a repeat effort.”
Zombieland 2: Double Tap is directed by Ruben Fleischer, and is in theaters today with a runtime of just an hour and a half.
