World War Z

This week's movie rental was World War Z ...

a 2013 British-American apocalyptic film ... based on the 2006 novel of the same name by Max Brooks. The film stars Brad Pitt as Gerry Lane, a former United Nations investigator who must travel the world to find a way to stop a zombie-like pandemic.

I tried to read the novel a couple of years ago but didn't like it enough to stick with it. The movie is quite different than the book - much better, I think. I have to admit, I haven't seen every zombie movie that's come out ;) but this is the best of all I've seen. The acting was good and there were some interesting actors in the cast, the characters were likeable, the special effects were fine, we got to visit lots of interesting places (South Korea, Israel, Wales), and I found it actually scary (hey, this could happen: read up on zombie ants ;). Also, rated PG13, it's not a gore fest. You can read The New York Times review here.

Our hero, Gerry, is married with two kids and has quit his job as a UN investigator to stay at home with his family ...



When the zombie infestation begins, his former boss at the UN asks him to try to find the cause so they can figure out a cure ...



His first stop is South Korea but when that doesn't pan out, he goes on to Israel, one of the few places that's managed to fight off the zombie hordes. Things go badly, though, and he has to escape with the help of a female Israeli soldier ....



Gerry and the soldier catch a plane which sadly crashes, especially sad as there's a little dog on board ...



But they eventually make their way to a WHO facility in Cardiff, where Gerry puts to the test his theory of how to save humanity, while a hungry zombie looks on ...



Here's a trailer ...