By Jackson Weaver
Staff Writer
“Scouts Guide to the Zombie Apocalypse” provides a new, comedic take on the zombie apocalypse but fails to live up to expectations due to a sloppy and highly immature plot, resulting in another unoriginal zombie comedy thriller.
Director Christopher Landon’s “Scouts Guide to the Zombie Apocalypse” lacks a true plot, becoming solely based on raunchy sexual humor and cliche jump scare laughs. However, specific actors shine in their roles, providing some excitement in an otherwise bland film.
While attending an abandoned strip club, three of the Boy Scouts finest are put the test when they discover that their town has been overrun by flesh eating zombies. The wimpy high school trio of Ben (Tye Sheridan), Carter (Logan Miller) and Augie (Joey Morgan) must overcome their fears with the help of a cowardless strip club waitress, Denise (Sarah Dumont), to survive the zombie apocalypse.
The only small glimmer of talent procured from the long list of no name actors and actresses came from Sarah Dumont and her role as the brutish strip club waitress. Dumont’s undaunted task of leading the trio of boy scouts with her sharp shooting aim and training with melee weaponry is the complete opposite of expectations for a female in a zombie apocalypse. Her role clearly changes the perspective of many viewers displaying both physical and mental toughness.
The film dives into an apocalyptic scenario from the very beginning and lacks basic yet necessary background information about each character. The three main characters seem to be combined into one and their roles become unimportant as individuals as the film instead focuses them as a group. This creates confusion to even identify which character is which, taking away character depth and a sense of individuality along the way.
The sexual jokes become old very fast, yet Landon continuously slips into this mediocre humor resulting in fewer and fewer laughs towards the end. For example, when a female zombie is caught in fence and her shirt rips revealing her cleavage, Carter runs back only to take a selfie with her breasts. This is a classic example of Landon’s overused sense of humor, both immature and too unrealistic in the scenario.
Another negative aspect of the film is the setting, that takes place in one of the dullest of areas in Southern California. California, is often associated with the sleepless streets of Los Angeles and movie entertainment in Hollywood, and an ideal spot for shooting a film would be by the beaches or popular neighborhoods. However, the combination of cheap props and choosing to set his film in rural, underdeveloped area in Seal Beach is puzzling.
Since the beginning of the 21st century zombie apocalyptic films and television shows have quickly become a hot topic. However, Landon’s film lacks originality and seems to merely emulate ideas from other zombie comedy thrillers such as “Shaun of the Dead” and “Zombieland”. In addition to lack of originality, Landon’s film is significantly worse in comparison with its cheap, gimmicky humor and jumbled plot.
Unfortunately, Sarah Dumont’s strong acting is unable to make up for the rest of the juvenile Boy Scout actors. “Scouts Guide to the Zombie Apocalypse” raunchy humor and sexual nuances become repetitive and creepy towards the end, and the film’s lack of originality makes it appear childish compared to other zombie comedy thrillers.
“Scouts Guide to the Zombie Apocalypse” is rated R and is playing in theaters nationwide
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