Zombieland: Double Tap Review

It's been 10 years since "Zombieland" was released in theaters and finally the world has received the sequel that they've been requesting for so long. I will admit that I did not see "Zombieland" in theaters. It came out in 2009 and that was one of the years where I was M.I.A. from the world of modern media due to me serving a mission for my church. There's a lot of movies released in 2009 that I still haven't seen. But I did eventually see "Zombieland." I don't know when that was (it was at least a few years ago) and it was only once, so I'm no "Zombieland" aficionado, nor have I been a part of the loud group demanding a sequel. But when I watched it, I thoroughly enjoyed it. It's one of those movies where you sit back, relax, and enjoy a silly, self-aware zombie movie that spends most of the time making fun of the genre in a "Deadpool" sort of way. Non-coincidentally, the writers for "Zombieland," Rhett Reese and Paul Wernick, went onto write "Deadpool" and "Deadpool 2." And they're back penning the screenplay for this sequel, along with EVERYONE else, cast and crew alike. So yeah, I was totally down for a return to "Zombieland." All things considered, I figured it would take a disaster of epic proportions for me to be physically upset at a "Zombieland" movie. 

In short, said disaster did NOT happen. "Double Tap" was a fun sequel that I'm certain "Zombieland" fans should enjoy. We start out 10 years later with Jesse Eisenberg thanking everyone for choosing to come back and join them despite there being so much zombie stuff. Then they make fun of the fact that a lot of the other zombie refuse to use the word zombie and then we're into the story. Honestly speaking, said story doesn't matter. Nevertheless, we start with the four of our main characters chilling out in the White House, because that's where they've established as their home. But in said home, Little Rock (Abagail Breslin) has become a little restless. She acts like a rebellious teenager wanting to break out. So one night, her and Wichita (Emma Stone) ditch the guys as Wichita got a bit spooked by Columbus' (Jesse Eisenberg) marriage proposal. So to commiserate, Columbus and Tallahassee (Woody Harrelson) head over to the empty mall where they meet Madison (Zoey Deutch), the dumbest dumb blonde that you'll ever meet. Columbus uses her as a rebound when Wichita awkwardly shows back up. What's happened? Well, Little Rock ditched her and ran off with a hippie and now the group of them needs to go rescue her due to the T-800 zombies. 

I think the most amusing thing here is the fact that everyone decided to get back together for one more ride. Back in 2009, Emma Stone and Jesse Eisenberg were certainly on the map in terms of their acting careers, but in the 10 years since, both have developed into prestigious Oscar-nominated actors, with Emma Stone having won an Oscar. Woody Harrelson already had an Oscar nomination under his belt before "Zombieland," but since then he's become even more wildly known thanks to "The Hunger Games" and most recently got another Oscar nomination for "Three Billboards." Abigail Breslin is the only one who hasn't soared into superstardom since "Zombieland" as her moment of fame came right before "Zombieland" as she picked up an Oscar nomination for "Little Miss Sunshine" in 2007 while also being well known for "Signs" in 2002. But still, she's picked up some nice roles along the way. Yet despite all this fame, these four were willing to step back down to Earth a bit and jump back into their "Zombieland" roles, making for a nice family reunion. Because it wouldn't be "Zombieland" without these four. Personally I wouldn't have been that interested in following different characters in another part of this world. I wanted our main crew.

Even though the story wasn't always progressing, it was still fun seeing our main crew together. Like the first "Zombieland," this was episodic for much of it and I was fine with it. Yes, we had our main through arc that I detailed, but I mentioned that said story doesn't really matter because it wasn't the big focus. Rescuing Abigail Breslin wasn't of the utmost importance. Chilling out and hanging with the cast as they went on all their little adventures along the way was what really mattered. I could tell that the cast a had a lot of fun with all of this and that was quite infectious. Woody Harrelson felt like he wasn't even given a script to work with and I mean that in a positive way because it looked like he was being himself and goofing off the whole time. When he was geeking out about how great Elvis is or when he was talking about driving off on his own, I felt like that was Woody Harrelson. Jesse Eisenberg also seems to relish in the roles where he's allowed to sound nerdy and smart as he speaks in his super fast way, constantly rattling off his memorized list of rules. Emma Stone felt like the most serious of the bunch, but that provided a good contrast in the group. She also felt like she enjoyed grabbing some guns and shooting zombies.

The zombies don't always show up in this movie, but when they do, the scenes are rather entertaining as this group has developed the perfect system in attacking given that they've been together for 10 years now. And they do up the ante by bringing in the T-800 zombies. That of course is a "Terminator" reference as these zombies have evolved into stronger and faster zombies that are much more difficult to kill. Those zombies are quite intense, giving the movie an occasional touch of actual horror, even though the movie is mostly just a comedy. Our main characters were so good at killing zombies that I was never super worried about their survival, but when the T-800s came in, I actually wasn't 100 percent sure exactly what was going to happen. I may have been 98 percent sure, but there was a part of me that got a bit nervous when the T-800s caught our main characters by surprise, almost causing them to not know what to do while increasing their desire to actually go find Little Rock so she doesn't get mauled by the evolved zombies that she's not ready for. And when the T-800s started swarming together, suddenly I got a flashes of "World War Z." It's those super fast zombies that scare me the most because those things are vicious. The slow zombies are mostly boring.

Ultimately I think the best comparison here is the "Fast and Furious" franchise. There's a whole heck of a lot more "Fast and Furious" movies than "Zombieland" movies, but both are franchises are centered around the idea of chilling out and having fun. Believe it or not, I'm perfectly willing to shut off my brain and enjoy some mindless fun. As I say, there are times to sit and deeply analyze a film. There are times where I require a great story and emotional character arcs. Then there's a time to watch "Zombieland" and "Fast and Furious." Expectations are different. You just want to be entertained. And if you are, then you walk out satisfied. I didn't even care what the Rotten Tomatoes score was going to be. There's one YouTube critic that I follow who said this was an entertaining movie that fans of "Zombieland" should enjoy. That was all I needed. I don't even care why the movie ended up in the 60 percent range. Too many people overthinking things. Which is the same thing when people give a negative review to a "Fast and Furious" movie. I mean, what were you expecting? An Oscar-caliber film? If so, you purchased a ticket to the wrong film. "Double Tap" isn't going to win any Oscars. But if life is stressing you out, it's going to provide you some solid escapism.

Also like the "Fast and Furious" movies, "Double Tap" wound up having a lot of heart with their focus on family. Relationships were a bit rocky along the way, but this crew is a like a family in this movie and ultimately they learn family is what matters most. I thought that was a nice touch. Now the next movie I'm going to review is a much different experience that requires a lot more brain power. And that's a type of movie that I also really enjoy. But sometimes you just need a "Zombieland" in your life. That's all there is to it with this. That's why it's made this review a bit tough to write because the idea here is a lot more simple. I could've made this a two paragraph review or something that is only 100-200 words, but I decided to make it the length of a normal review for me and that was a bit challenging because there's not much to say here. It's a chill adventure with the characters you love who are going around and killing zombies. The writers, the director, the cast, and the other crew members all came together to make something that was simple and enjoyable. The last thing I'll say here is STAY FOR ALL OF THE CREDITS. Both mid credits and end credits. One of the best end credits scenes I've seen. And on that note, I'm going to give "Zombieland: Double Tap" an 8/10.