Zombie Movies Reached New Heights 17 Years Ago, With a Film That’s Still One of the Genre’s Best

It has been 17 years since a new zombie movie helped revitalize the genre, and it remains one of the best zombie releases to this day. In 1968, George A. Romero created the modern-day zombie with his masterpiece Night of the Living Dead, and for the next three-plus decades, the slow-moving, terrifying zombies ruled the genre. Along the way, there were some outliers, such as Return of the Living Dead, that added comedy and zombies that didn’t just lumber around, but it was still mostly movies based on Romero’s vision. That changed in 2002 with the release of 28 Days Later, which popularized fast zombies, and then in 2004 when Shaun of the Dead created the perfect comedy version of Romero’s classic. In 2009, a new movie took both ideas and created a masterpiece in itself.

On October 2, 2009, Zombieland hit theaters in the United States and delivered one of the best comedy zombie films in history. Directed by Ruben Fleischer, Zombieland follows a group of four survivors who are trying to get through the zombie apocalypse while also trying not to kill each other.

Zombieland Mastered the Zombie Genre One Year Before The Walking Dead Premiered

While it isn’t anywhere near as good as Shaun of the Dead, Zombieland brought enough fresh material to the zombie genre to stand well on its own as at least the second-best zombie comedy of the 21st century. The movie starts off with a series of scenes that show that this is unlike any other zombie comedy in history. There are the opening title credits with Metallica’s “For Whom the Bell Tolls” playing over some of the funniest and goriest zombie carnage imaginable. The opening of the film introduces the audience to Jesse Eisenberg’s Columbus, who catches everyone up to speed on what is going on.

Columbus explains what happened to the world (Mad Cow Disease caused the zombie apocalypse), and then he reveals some of the rules he lives by to survive. Brilliantly, these rules are actually written down in a notebook, and he has specific reasons for every rule in his book based on past experience surviving zombie attacks. “Cardio” is to outrun the zombies and escape; “Double-tap” is to ensure that the zombie really is dead, as one shot could leave a person open to more; and “Beware of bathrooms” is shown in detail when a zombie comes through the stall door. Other rules like “Don’t be a hero” and “Shoot first” are shown to be bad advice by the end of the movie.

The movie’s plot is straightforward, with Columbus meeting Tallahassee (Woody Harrelson), another survivor who agrees to drive him to his home. These names are based on the towns where they come from because another rule in society is not to use real names so you don’t get connected with others who could die or betray you. This is shown when the two meet Wichita (Emma Stone) and Little Rock (Abigail Breslin), who con them and then steal their truck and weapons. Of course, all four get back together down the line and continue on their journey to Pacific Playland, which is supposed to be a zombie-free area.

Zombieland Thrives Thanks to Its Surprising Moments

When the opening credits start with Metallica and absurdly hilarious zombie kills, it sets the tone for a movie that never takes itself seriously. The zombie kills throughout the movie are all creatively done and stand out, with one example being killing a zombie at a trading post, which doesn’t play out how anyone might have expected. There is also the most famous scene in the movie where the four meet Bill Murray, playing a fictional version of himself. He is still alive but is enjoying dressing up like a zombie to goof around. Sadly, and hilariously, this is where one of Columbus’ rules goes awry. There is also Columbus’ fear of clowns, which pays off in a perfect moment in the end.

These surprising, shocking, and often very funny moments are what really elevate Zombieland above almost every other zombie comedy in existence. While it doesn’t have the heart of Shaun of the Dead, it matches it in laugh-out-loud moments, which is even more impressive considering this was Ruben Fleischer’s feature directorial debut. However, add in screenwriters Rhett Reese and Paul Wernick, who also wrote the Deadpool movies, and it was clear why Zombieland turned out as good as it did and remains one of the best zombie movies of all time.

22 Years Ago Today, A Zombie Movie That Even George A. Romero Loved Premiered: “An Absolute Blast”