Film Review: Shaun of the Dead
Shaun of the Dead isn't just for fans of zombie flicks; it's for everyone who likes to laugh.
As the Blur album title suggests, "modern life is rubbish." It's true that we are a culture numbed by the increasing influence of all things impersonal, technological advances that add convenience while callously dispensing with the human touch. We become passive facilitators instead of active initiators. Our everyday activities become a repetitive bore, devoid of any real spontaneity. We do have our inspired moments where we break free of these imposed shackles, but these are now the exception instead of the rule. For those of you who agree with this evaluation, meet Shaun. Shaun, your viewing audience.
Shaun (Simon Pegg, in a performance that won't garner nominations from anyone but certainly deserves to), is stuck in a dreary existence, sharing a South London flat with his best mate, the oafish Ed (Nick Frost) - whose most substantial employment was selling a bag of pot to Shaun while they were in college - and the overdriven, career-oriented Pete (Peter Serafinowicz), who resents the both of them for being so complacent and unmotivated. Shaun rides public transportation every day to his assistant manager's position at an electronics shop, much to the chagrin of his girlfriend Liz (Kate Ashfield), who resents him for his general lack of urgency and responsibility, as well as the fact that they've never eaten anywhere other than his beloved local tavern, the Winchester. His mother (Penelope Wilton) loves him all the same, but his stepfather of 17 years (Bill Nighy) retains his own blithe skepticism. Shaun, quite obviously, is stuck. A victim of his own comforts and vices, defaulted to his undeserving friends, he is unwilling to step outside of his comfort zone to reap the rewards that would come with such a risk. His life isn't bad, but it's not great, either.
That is, until, all hell breaks loose. Quite literally. His boss harangues him for leaving the shop door unlocked. Ed neglects to take down important phone messages. Shaun forgets to set up a dinner date for himself and Liz. The flowers that he offers to Liz as a token of apology contain a note intended for his mother. Liz dumps him. His mother gets no flowers. He gets drunk. Pete throws his favorite record out the back door. He wakes up with a hangover. Zombies descend on his flat.
Wait, what was that last one?
Zombies descend on his flat. Right, that's the way it always works. Silly me.
Not having been able to discern between the same mindless drones that populate his everyday life and the zombies, Shaun and Ed remain oblivious to the undead status of those wandering through their living room and backyard, until the wall-to-wall news coverage finally cuts through their fog to send a loud, distinct message... These blank-faced, moaning vagrants milling through the streets aren't just drunken Oasis fans. They're a big problem. "Remove the head or destroy the brain," says the stunned newsman.
Shaun and Ed, in all of their bumbling glory, devise a foolproof plan - albeit after multiple attempts - to save Shaun's mum, Liz and her roommates, kill his assumedly-zombiefied stepdad, and hang out until the zombie invasion blows over. Like our imperfect heroes, this plan has its flaws, which are both fortunately remedied by the presence of Shaun’s sturdy cricket bat, an arsenal of other blunt objects, and the disposable records from Shaun's vaunted collection, seemingly the only precious thing in his life.
The remainder of Shaun of the Dead follows very much the same pattern, lacing its gruesome gore and decapitations with a wonderfully clever and keen sense of humor. The script, co-written by director Wright and star Pegg, is of no less than laugh-a-minute status, often creating jokes that are funny on multiple levels at once. Folks who don't get the veiled pop culture reference or embedded joke will often laugh at what's occurring on the surface. Coldplay even makes a brief appearance, sending up their own status as celebrity activists. Pegg spends a good part of his screen time slack-jawed, in constant bewilderment or incredulous reaction to his latest personal catastrophe, while the portly Frost serves as his brilliantly dullard comic foil. The Abbott and Costello parallel is not lost with these two.
Wright and Pegg serve up a pitch-perfect homage to first-generation zombie flicks, such as those classic examples by George Romero, while making it accessible to an audience that is just there to have a good time, those who couldn't care less if it's a genre spoof or not. Shaun of the Dead isn't just for fans of zombie flicks; it's for everyone who likes to laugh. You need no zombie cinema affinity to enjoy it.
Simply put, Shaun of the Dead is bloody brilliant. In equal doses. Run, don’t walk.
SHAUN OF THE DEAD
Directed by: Edgar Wright
Cast: Simon Pegg, Nick Frost, Kate Ashfield, Bill Nighy