Zombieland: Double Tap (2019)

  

Streaming Service: STARZ

Movie Name/Year: Zombieland: Double Tap (2019)

Genre: Action, Horror, Comedy

Length:  1h 39min

Rating: R

Production/Distribution: Columbia Pictures, Pariah, Columbia Pictures Corporation, Sony Pictures Entertainment, Sony Pictures Filmverleih, Sony Pictures Releasing, United International Pictures (UIP), Universal Pictures International (UPI)

Director: Ruben Fleischer

Writers: Dave Callaham, Rhett Reese, Paul Wernick

Actors: Emma Stone, Abigail Breslin, Zoey Deutch, Bill Murray, Rosario Dawson, Woody Harrelson, Thomas Middleditch, Dan Aykroyd, Jesse Eisenberg, Luke Wilson, Avan Jogia, Victor Rivera, Victoria Hall

 

IMDb Blurb: Columbus, Tallahasse, Wichita, and Little Rock move to the American heartland as they face off against evolved zombies, fellow survivors, and the growing pains of the snarky makeshift family.

 

 

Cat’s Point of View:

I absolutely loved Zombieland (2009). Everything about it was glorious. It was one of those rare blends of horror comedy that just worked. It also had a little of the feeling that it was a graphic novel come to life. It took a whole decade for the sequel to release, but it was well worth the wait.  When we put together our Top 20 article for October 2019, this movie was near or at the top of the list for both Selina and I. 

Zombieland: Double Tap is one of the good examples of what a sequel should strive to be. It honored the original and expanded the story without being redundant or phoning it in order to cash out. 

 

We got to see all of the primary characters again with their roles reprised by Woody Harrelson (True Detective, Midway, The Man from Toronto), Jesse Eisenberg (Now You See Me, American Ultra, Vivarium), Emma Stone (The Croods, La La Land, Cruella), and Abigail Breslin (Final Girl, Scream Queens, Stillwater). This is, in fact, my favorite of Harrelson’s. 

Zombieland: Double Tap also introduced new characters played by Zoey Deutch (Why Him?, Rebel in the Rye, The Outfit), Avan Jogia (A Midsummer Night's Dream, Shaft, Resident Evil: Welcome to Raccoon City), and the kickass Rosario Dawson (Luke Cage, The Mandalorian, Clerks III) among others. 

There were callbacks to the first movie that fans would definitely appreciate and get a kick out of, and the story stayed true to the themes established in the first Zombieland. Though, it brought a fresh perspective with more information on the zombies and insight into the characters. It gave us a what came next perspective that everyone craves from a sequel. 

I was also glad to see that Zombieland: Double Tap retained its devil-may-care attitude about how the characters moved through the apocalyptic landscape. The dark and twisted hilarity laced throughout and it didn’t take itself too seriously. I also really appreciated the little homages here and there to other staples of zombie cinema. Zombieland was inspired by Shaun of the Dead (2004), after all. 

 

This is exactly the sort of movie that probably makes critics pull out their hair and roll their eyes. However, from an audience fan perspective, Zombieland: Double Tap was just a fun ride from beginning to end. It was one of the few movies where I barely even noticed the passing of time and wasn’t even tempted to fidget on my phone while I was watching. 

I would recommend Zombieland: Double Tap to anyone who enjoyed the first movie. If you haven’t watched the first one yet - my suggestion would be to do that first. These 2 films would make a great double-feature movie event with friends. I know I’ll enjoy watching these movies for years to come. My family and I have already watched them both several times. 

 

Rotten Tomatoes Critic Score – 68%

Rotten Tomatoes Audience Score – 88%

Metascore – 55%

Metacritic User Score – 6.5/10

IMDB Score – 6.7/10

 

Trust the Dice: Cat’s Rating – 5/5

P.S. - There is a special modification to the Columbia Pictures intro to the movie as well as a post-credits scene.

 

Movie Trailer: