Warm Bodies Review

Warm Bodies

3 stars out of 4

By Brett Takeshita

Stop rolling your eyes, and stop feeling the need to puke because Warm Bodies is not your typical supernatural romance film. It's a surprisingly smart and charming flick that -- pardon the pun -- breathes new life into a dead genre.

Warm Bodies flips zombie movies on their heads by turning the tables and telling the story from the zombie's point of view. We are introduced to R (Nicholas Hoult), a young adult with surprising insight. He seeks to understand the world around him and the people and entities that inhabit it. The only problem is that he's dead. He doesn't have a heartbeat and is incapable of remembering his human life prior to becoming a zombie. He doesn't want to eat humans but must do so in order to survive. One thrill that he gets is eating human brains because he gains access to the human's memories and sees how they lived. For an introspective fellow without memories and dreams, this is pretty awesome. On one fateful day while on the hunt for food, he encounters Julie (Teresa Palmer), a stunning young lady who is both brave and smart. R can't bring himself to eat Julie. In fact, he feels the need to protect her. Thus begins an unusual bond between a zombie boy and a human girl, as they seek refuge for survival. R must protect Julie from both regular zombies and the dark "bonies," which are advanced and dangerous zombies that kill humans without mercy. R must also avoid the threat of human attack and help mend the gap between zombies and humans. In doing so, he would make the world a better and more harmonious place. But of course, not everything is as simple and easy as it seems.

Warm Bodies is an admirable film for successfully attempting to appeal to a rather scattered and divided audience. Of course, teenage girls are eating this movie up for obvious reasons. Nice romance? Check. A couple worth rooting for? Check. Cool girl? Check. Cute British guy? Double check. Everything is here. However, it's great that zombie fanboys are finding themselves drawn towards this film as well -- even if they don't like to admit it. Warm Bodies mixes teen romance with the zombie apocalypse and actually throws in quite a bit of comedy for good measure -- and the humor is light and funny. Surprisingly, every element in this film works. This strange concoction is actually pretty tasty. 

So, as a side note, for you guys out there who aren't big rom-com fans -- myself included -- don't fear because Warm Bodies is a great choice for date night. Come for the zombie action and stay for the fun journey that ensues.

Why does Warm Bodies work as well as it does? Because of writer-director Jonathan Levine. He does a fine job of balancing all of these seemingly contrasting elements and makes one coherent piece of cinema. Setting a romantic comedy amidst the zombie apocalypse seems like it would be a disaster, but it isn't. Levine stages the zombie attack sequences in a way that is convincing and exciting. However, he really directs the romantic elements wonderfully. We truly care about R and Julie, and their relationship that unfolds is genuinely sweet. Even though the romance does feel cutesy at times, it's never cloying. That's partially due to the well-written script. R's voice-over is always insightful and entertaining without being too on-the-nose. The actual spoken dialogue is quite minimal -- because R has difficulties speaking as a zombie -- but it is engaging and natural. Warm Bodies is successful because it is well-written and finely-directed.

We are drawn into the strange world of Warm Bodies because of the winning performances. Nicholas Hoult gives it his all as this human-like zombie and nails the difficult physicality required of acting as one of the undead -- his awkward, sluggish movement is fantastic. And because he can't say much, he must emote nearly everything with his facial expressions and eyes. Fortunately, Hoult is always spot-on, nailing R's complexity and emotion. Teresa Palmer is great, staying tough while maintaining a sense of girlish-ness. She's convincing as an action chick with brawn but really sells the romantic depths of her character. She's not your typical damsel in distress, and I liked that. The chemistry between Hoult and Palmer is excellent. The wrong actors might have made this relationship just plain creepy and weird, but in the hands of these talented young actors, R and Julie make up one of the most likable and charming cinematic couples in quite some time.

While it is a little predictable and left me with a couple of questions, Warm Bodies is a great, crowd-pleasing romantic comedy with a twist. It's original, fun, and well-executed. It's a film that is hard not to enjoy just because it hits every bell and whistle that a moviegoer could possibly want. It's sure to put a smile on your face and keep you in a good mood for the rest of the day. At a time when so many dark movies leave you feeling sad and empty, it's such a breath of fresh air to see an optimistic and happy film that leaves you feeling good. And all of this coming from a zombie movie? Who would've guessed? Three stars out of four.