The undead seem to be hip nowadays, with shows like “The Walking Dead” and “True Blood” drawing huge crowds, and movies like “Zombieland,” “Resident Evil” and “Shaun of the Dead” making a few bucks. Cashing in on this apocalypse lovefest, this week’s new release, “Warm Bodies,” adds a new twist to zombieland and expands into the romcom market. That’s right … a zombie romantic comedy, and surprisingly, I liked it!
In “Warm Bodies,” a zombie infection has wreaked havoc on the world, leaving the zombies, skeletons called “boneys” and humans sequestered in a walled-off city expertly guarded by General Grigio (John Malkovich from “Con Air”). The main “man” in “Warm Bodies” is not the general, but a young zombie named R (Nicholas Hoult). R lives in a plane and spends his days shuffling around an airport and having grunted conversations with his best zombie bud (Rob Corddry). When R gets famished he grunts “hun…gry,” to which his friend replies “ci…ty.”
When R and zombie gang happen upon a group of humans scavenging for medical supplies, R grabs a human and begins to chow down. When he looks up, R sees Julie (Teresa Palmer) and something inside of him skips a beat. Julie is a cute girl around R’s age who happens to be the General’s daughter. Before Julie is eaten, R jumps up from his manwich and, in kind of a creepy way, takes Julie back to his plane. The more time R spends with Julie, the warmer his body becomes––ahh shucks, the power of love! Granted, R devoured Julie’s boyfriend; nonetheless, R and Julie’s odd relationship blossoms and sends a ripple warming effect throughout the zombie world.
For sure, “Warm Bodies” is a stretch even for a zombie movie, and drags a bit at times. But I found this quirky zombie romance to be cute and quite funny. The comedic gem in “Warm Bodies” is Rob Corddry, of “Hot Tub Time Machine” fame. Corddry only says a few words and offers lots of grunts, but becomes funnier and funnier as he is touched by the budding relationship between R and Julie, and fights off the skeletons to help them change the world. If you are looking for a cute chick flick with some bite, “Warm Bodies” offers laughs with a hint of violence and blood. Not a bad date night movie!
