THE CRAZIES is the best zombie film since 28 DAYS LATER

Rating:

Let's get this out of the way: if you hate zombies, apocalypses, or horror, you will not enjoy The Crazies. This film does not redefine the plot structure of its genre. It's no Citizen Kane. We still have an infection of sorts, a hero trying to escape, a partner who is contaminated, a military intervention, shocking camera cuts, and lots of people walking alone in the dark. If these genre staples bother you, well, this ain't the movie for you. If you're up for a good time though, The Crazies is one of my favorite films of the year, so far.

Our story starts in the quaint little Iowa town. (Doesn't it always?) During a public baseball game, a man stumbles onto the outfield with a shotgun and a drunken demeaner. He seems lost, and not right in the head. Sheriff Dick Dutton (played by Timothy Olyphant, pronounced ol-ooh-funt), tries to talk some sense into the double-barreled man. It doesn't work. The man fires, but Dutton is a faster draw, killing him instantly with a bullet to the head. This is the first of a few odd incidents. It seems something is driving the villagers mad. What it is, exactly, we don't know. Nor do we know how or if it can spread. Bottom line: the infected have no desire to bite you, they just want you dead. It's best if you shoot first.

The first act of The Crazies is like watching someone play an early Resident Evil game. We have no idea what's happening to the villagers, and people keep roaming into barns and other dark, dangerous places with no company and nothing but a flashlight to protect them. We know they're going to die, but we don't know how. There are plenty of quick fast cuts. You know, when the camera suddenly flashes to a shocking new shot, usually of impending death. (For a lesson in fast cuts, watch Requiem for a Dream.) If director Breck Eisner had kept this up throughout the film, I wouldn't be too happy. Fortunately, he shifts gears as the military comes in to clean up the mess. 

The Crazies sticks to its genre staples (see the first paragraph of this article), but has a level of competence behind it few zombie-ish films do. The film is a remake of a 1973 George Romero movie of the same name, but unlike the original, there are no main characters on the side of the Gov't and military. Eisner keeps the military as yet another force of nature that Dutton and his wife Judy (Radha Mitchell) must overcome. 

Speaking of Dutton, he is the Batman of small town police Marshalls, in a good way. He doesn't bend the laws of physics or have a billion dollars, but he is the first intelligent zombie-film main character I've seen in some time. He figures out what's causing the mess in record time and takes appropriate action to stop it. He even makes a couple Batman-ish vanishing exits. Timothy Olyphant has been in many films, but really comes into his own here. He's moved into the list of actors whose names I actually remember. 

The Crazies is a movie best seen in a theater. It's loud and fun. In a way, it reminds me of films like Live Free or Die Hard, which coincidently also stars Timothy Olyphant. It is ridiculous and there are only so many ways a film like this can end, but there are a lot of creative setups for horror and exhilarating scenes sprinkled throughout. There are even a few scary moments borrowed from The Strangers, another film I highly recommend. If you like zombie films, you'll have a hard time explaining to me why you don't like The Crazies.