Zombies Ate My Brains
I just watched Pride and Prejudice and Zombies (PPZ) and it felt like zombies were slowly eating my brains as I sat in the cinema. I tried to look for some positives about the movie and the only one that seemed to be worth mentioning is leading actress Lily James who portrayed Elizabeth Bennet in this Mashup of the Jane Austen classic and the Zombie Apocalypse.
PPZ is a parody written by Seth Grahame-Smith. The same guy that brought us Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter. Personally, I liked the literary mashup concept of PPZ, putting the characters like the Bennet sisters in an alternate universe regency era England where fighting Zombies was a norm. I had some high hopes that we will be getting a lot of awesome, zombie ass-kicking action from the Bennet sisters as portrayed in the trailer.
Unfortunately that was the only scene where all the Bennet sisters were seen fighting zombies. Most of the movie delved into Mrs. Bennet trying to find suitable husbands for her daughters and toyed with the idea of a “smarter” more “human” kind of zombie that can think and execute plans of attack against the human race. I thought that the “smarter” zombies was a great plot twist but they resolved it in the movie too easily that I felt they wasted a great opportunity in the story line.
I think the best part of the movie was Lily James portrayal of the protagonist Elizabeth Bennet. In Jane Austen’s unadulterated version of Pride and Prejudice, Elizabeth is an intelligent, quick-witter, playful good-natured girl who wants to marry for love and not for convenience or economic security. Lily James fits the role to a tee and then easily transitions into a zombie killing machine on cue. She will make you fall in love with her while mercilessly chopping a zombie’s head off.
If PPZ was Lily James’ audition to be the next action heroine then I think she nailed it. While this movie will definitely not become a giant blockbuster hit it will definitely open doors for Lily James for other potential action-based roles.
I give PPZ a 2.5 star rating out of 5. I was really looking forward to getting my fill of zombie action from PPZ but unfortunately it did not satisfy my cravings. Oh well, I guess I’ll just have to rely on The Walking Dead for my zombie fix.
Note: There is a prequel and a sequel to the PPZ novel written by a different author (Steve Hockensmith). I am not sure as to how the storylines go but I would find a movie prequel to PPZ intriguing. If ever they are able to make one I hope it doesn’t disappoint.
