Better Off Zed

Moviecut—Better Off Zed

All the zombie movies are very similar. The zombies are dumb and slow, and in every movie they look the same. But, the first thing I asked myself was - why don't the main characters get into a car and drive off somewhere where it is supposed to be safe? The guy ends up enjoying the apocalypse. They have electricity, water, food. No more getting up early, wearing suits, meeting boring clients, paying bills, morgage, etc. Kind of reminded me of the global lockdown during Covid - we all spent a lot of time at home and had a lot more free time than usual... We tried to discover our inner talents, so the guy, for example, wanted to paint. So, while the woman wants to get out, the man seems to enjoy it. Of course, as the electricity and water become unavailable, and as there is less food, it becomes harder to live, and as the number of zombies increases, it makes it harder to leave. I am not going to say how it ends. Compared to all the zombie movies out there, this one at least gives a different approach to the situation. So, I thought it was actually an interesting movie. If you like zombie movies, this one is no better and no worse than the rest of them. But, it gives a different view of how this situation could be handled.

At the time of writing this review, we're in the midst of the covid-19 pandemic and this movie - released a year earlier - perfectly portrayed the very different ways people have reacted to the current pandemic; some people are climbing the walls because their routine has come to a screeching halt, others are just happy they can hang around the house and not wear pants. A year ago I would've thought this movie to be unrealistic, but today I'm not so sure. This is definitely a refreshing change from the usual zombie apocalypse movies. I'm guessing this had a minuscule budget, and if so then kudos for the excellent zombie cosmetics and acting. The two main stars are also great in this. My only real complaint is the story, as it had me screaming at the screen because Guy is just so dumb. Great idea with tying up the hands of the zombies to get the wine, but why are they untied later? Why carry the wine back over the fence when you can just push it through? And he was using a broom only a second ago, why not try using it to reach the wine? And finally, did Guy honestly think that he could just live in his house forever without ever needing to get more supplies? He'd run out of paint eventually, then what? Plot holes aside, it was fun. I feel like everyone had fun making this movie, and I had fun watching it.

I stumbled upon the 2018 movie "Better Off Zed" here in 2021, by sheer random chance. And with it being a zombie movie, of course I needed no persuasion to sit down and watch it. And while "Better Off Zed" was watchable, it was by no accounts a particularly outstanding into the zombie genre, not even for a horror comedy. So why was that the case? Well, the storyline was just too mundane and uneventful. Very little happened throughout the course of the movie. And the characters in the movie weren't all that well-written or detailed. So writer Amy Tofte just didn't really bring much of anything to the game. So it was somewhat of a prolonged ordeal to sit through "Better Off Zed", yet I managed to do so. I wanted to see if the movie got better, or if director Travis Stevens opted to make the movie more interesting. That is a big, fat no to both those things. "Better Off Zed" is a zombie movie that came and went without as much as a groan, much less pack any bite. So don't get your hopes up for this particular 2018 movie, should you happen to sit down to watch it. My rating of "Better Off Zed" lands on a less than mediocre four out of ten stars.

This is peak lazy character creation: manchild who avoids real world, and harpy wife who constantly nags him. There was nothing comedic about this, and it only barely qualified as horror. I'll give it points for being less "everything about our local infrastructure fell apart immediately" than most other zombie movie I've ever seen, at least.

Lazy and laidback thirtysomething slacker Guy is perfectly content to spend all his time sitting around his house doing as little as possible in the wake of a zombie outbreak due to the fact that he's got a fence around his home to keep the undead out. However, his nagging fed-up wife Paige isn't too keen with this idea. Director Travis Stevens relates the enjoyable story at a brisk pace, maintains a deliciously dry'n'deadpan tone throughout, and delivers some neat bits of gore. Amy Tofte's witty script nicely captures the overwhelming blend of tedium and frustration the main couple feel about their hopeless situation as well as points out the more positive aspects of a zombie pandemic (no more debt or student loan worries, for example). Moreover, Christine Woods and Graham Sibley make for sturdy and appealing leads; their constant bickering is often funny while the mutual affection they have for one another adds a good deal of depth and poignancy. The surprise bummer ending packs a jolting punch. A total hoot.

I was looking forward for almost the entire movie of them trying to escape. But only Paige is trying. And all I could think of is what a manipulative a-hole her husband was. The movie should have ended when she left the house, or him getting bitten by his friend. I would have rated it lower, but besides the fact that I hated the story and main character I did like the acting, choreography and makeup.

This movie gets a couple of points just for breaking the z-mould. It's minimalistic and relies heavily on the story, witch is, thankfully, sufficiently engaging (perhaps not so for the younger audience). In a nutshell, in this study of character, two main protagonists try to make best of living through the zombie infestation. They do not necessarily share the vision of what constitutes the successful outcome (cue in The Clash with "Should I Stay or Should I Go"). Suffice it to say, things don't go as planned. Enjoyable watch with few chuckles and a moderate gore, and somewhat expected ending. 7/10.

The movie is good and makes you think about life, if you can relate to the movie's characters. I guess it can be more appreciated by people in the appropriate age range, about 25-45 years old, who are at a similar stage in life and going through similar challenges and feelings as the characters in the movie. There is some depth in the movie and it has some messages or even lessons to learn, as it is based on novel.

Not scary, not funny, just annoying. Skip this one unless you want to torture yourself.