A sequel to Zombieland is not exactly the worst idea Hollywood had had In recent years, although the first film certainly worked well enough on its own, if the idea was strong enough and the cast brought their A-game then at the least it would be a worthy follow up. However, with what seems to be a rushed script with even less of an interesting idea, Zombieland 2 feels like a film from over a decade ago in all the worst ways.

Set ten years on from the events of the first film, our four leads seem to have mastered surviving in the Zombie world, as they move from location to location creating a home of sorts before they either get bored or forced out from the ever-expanding Zombie horde. However, relationships begin to crack between the group, and once the now young adult Little Rock (Abigail Breslin) runs off to live out her life, the remaining three must set out to find her and ensure her safety. The premise is pretty weak, with much of the character development feeling extremely forced and contrived, most of which is completely negated by the climax of the film, as if the entire journey was completely pointless for the characters as well as the viewer.

This time around we have a far bigger cast than that of the first, with Zoey Deutch as Madison, the extremely clichéd ‘dumb blonde’ feeling like a character ripped out of the early 2000s. Her performance will either give you some chuckles or irritate you greatly, for me it met somewhere in the middle. As for the rest of the cast they do a decent enough job, the film doesn’t have the same heart-warming moments that the original had. We still have the same themes of family, and what it means to be an outcast, but they feel far more shoehorned in this time, with Jesse Eisenberg’s narration coming often feeling out of place and redundant.

It’s not all bad however, the film changes location often enough to keep things fresh and the new interactions with the characters are somewhat enjoyable, and due to the talent of the main cast it is hard not to find their performances enjoyable, despite being given little to do. An action set-piece set in an Elvis museum is a highlight, especially when compared to the incredibly dull climax. With almost twice the budget of the first film, somehow things come out looking worse. The first had a gritty style, which complemented the interesting ‘rule-breaking’ elements with the constant cutaways and overlaying text. Some scenes are a clear CGI mess, with awful greenscreen it loses the brave realness found within the first feature.

Zombieland 2 is by no means the worst sequel we could have got, it is just a waste of some great potential from a great cast and what once was a refreshing take on the redundant zombie genre.

Director: Ruben Fleischer
Writers: Dave Callaham (screenplay), Rhett Reese (screenplay)
Stars: Woody Harrelson, Jesse Eisenberg, Emma Stone
Kyle Gaffney
Latest posts by Kyle Gaffney (see all)