Netflix's Army of the Dead (Exclusive Mini Review Series)

Army of the Dead (Exclusive Series)

Initial release date: May 21, 2021

Studios: Netflix The Stone Quarry

Tagline: Survivors Take All

Plot: From filmmaker Zack Snyder, ‘Army of the Dead’ takes place following a zombie outbreak that has left Las Vegas in ruins and walled off from the rest of the world. When Scott Ward, a displaced Vegas local, former zombie war hero who’s now flipping burgers on the outskirts of the town he now calls home, is approached by casino boss Bly Tanaka, it’s with the ultimate proposition - break into the zombie-infested quarantine zone to retrieve $200 million sitting in a vault beneath the strip before the city is nuked by the government in 32 hours. Driven by the hope that the payoff could help pave the way to a reconciliation with his estranged daughter Kate, Ward takes on the challenge, assembling a ragtag team of experts for the heist. Scott finds an unexpected emotional hurdle when Kate joins the expedition to search for Geeta, a mother who’s gone missing inside the city. With a ticking clock, a notoriously impenetrable vault, and a smarter, faster gorde of Alpha zombies closing in, only one thing’s for certain in the greatest heist ever attempted: survivor takes all.

Cast

Dave Bautista (My Spy) - Scott Ward

Ella Purnell (Home for Peculiar Children) - Kate Ward

Omari Hardwick (Nobody’s Fool) - Vanderohe

Ana de la Reguera (Amazon’s Goliath) - Maria Cruz

Theo Rossi - Burt Cummings

Matthias Schweighofer - DIeter

Nora Arnezeder - Lilly (The Coyote)

Hiroyuki Servade (Mortal Kombat) - Bly Tanaka

Garret Dillahunt (AMCs Fear the Walking Dead) - Martin

Tig Notaro - Marianne Peters

Raul Castillo (Wrath of Man) - Mikey Guzman

Huma Qureshi - Geeta

Samantha Win (Zack Snyder’s Justice League) - Chambers

Richard Cetrone - Zeus

Michael Cassidy (Batman v Superman) - Sgt. Kelly

Writers: Zack Snyder (300: Rise of an Empire)

Shay Hatten (John Wick 3)

Joby Harold (King Arthur: Legend of the Sword)

Director: Zack Snyder (Justice League - Snyder Cut)

Rated R for strong bloody violence, gore and language throughout, some sexual content and brief nudity/graphic nudity (148 min)

‘Army of the Dead’ is an extremely entertaining Netflix Original that is a guaranteed good time! This Zack Snyder directed feature delivers a little bit of everything - zombie scares, drama, some laughs and a zombie tiger. Yes, you read that right! A zombie tiger!

The movie is really action-packed and can be fast-paced most of the time (which is good since the movie is 2.5 hours). The Marianne Peters character serves as the movie’s comic relief and does a great job providing some of the laughs.

Most of the zombie sequences are very entertaining and intense. Snyder knows how to make some great zombie action since he did that for the 2004 re-imagining of ‘Dawn of the Dead.’ Sure, Zack Snyder had a couple movies that can be both decisive or just okay. But, after watching this and ‘Zack Snyder’s Justice League’, Snyder still has what it takes to make an entertaining movie.

So, if you’re scrolling thru Netflix one day and in a mood for an action-packed gory zombie flick, check out ‘Army of the Dead’ - definitely one of the best Netflix Original movies the streaming service has released.

Here are some interesting tidbits about Netflix’s ‘Army of the Dead:’

• Netflix took over the project from Warner Brothers. Filming began in the summer of 2019 with a budget of up to $90 million.

• Comedian Chris D’Ella filmed his role along with the cast. In the summer of 2020, stories broke about him pursuing underage girls for sex and sexually harassing women. Zack Snyder hired comedian Tig Notaro to replace D’Ella. Notaro was filmed alone and inserted into the film for all of the scenes D’Ella was in via green screen and other special effects.

• Zack Snyder’s second zombie apocalypse horror project since 2004s ‘Dawn of the Dead,’ his directorial debut.

• Snyder’s second film for a streaming service, after his cut of ‘Justice League.’

• Filming also took place at the Atlantic City Casino Hotel in Atlantic City, NJ, which had been closed since 2014.

• The movie will also play in about 330 Cinemark theaters and 270 iter locations the week prior to its digital release, just the second time Netflix allowed one of its films to be played in a chain theater following ‘The Christmas Chronicles 2.’