At least one more. Wyrmwood is it.
Spoilers abound. Read at your own peril.
It's fun, it's loud, it's gory, it's funny, it's violent. The budget might be low, but you wouldn't know it to watch the film. The cast does a great job with what they've been given, and even the more mediocre performances were leavened by great lines.
The movie is not without its flaws, but they're easily overlooked. A big example is the roving experiment truck: if the zombie apocalypse just occurred, how did they get up and running so quickly?
Brooke was a frightening character from beginning to end: physically strong, mentally tough, clever. The filmmakers were smart, however, by not making her a woman who acts like a man to survive.
Barry did fine; if you're looking for a lot of character depth in a zombie apocalypse film, you're likely going to be disappointed. Still, he pulled off his role without flaw.
As is usually the case in films like this, the best, most interesting characters never survive; it's how we are made to feel bad about their exit from the film. Benny was a worthy comedic character, though his delivery at times seemed a little flat. Frank elicited pathos just before his end, which worked.
The two most interesting concepts: zombies as petrol and Brooke's ability to control zombies, were weird but somehow fit, probably because it's Australia and we automatically assume that an Aussie film is going to have its own brand of strangeness.
Compare this movie to The Walking Dead, with its endless, heavy, humorless drumbeat of loss and despair and interpersonal conflict. I'd rather watch a zombie apocalypse show like Wyrmwood that doesn't take itself quite as seriously and includes some fantastical elements.
Four out of five stars.
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