Monday, April 30, 2012

Last Day: Z

April just went like water through my fingers and here we are now, facing the Z challenge. Unbelievable. I had a blast and hope you did, too. To all my new followers, I hope you continue to find interesting things among the many thoughts that compel me to write in this blog and I'll do my best to give you just that. To all the new friendships and bonds that the challenge gave me, I cherish you all. Thanks for extending me your virtual hand in a gesture of true kindness.

Movie.

Zombieland (2009)
Directed by Ruben Fleischer.

Plot: In the early twenty-first century when zombies have taken over America, a shy, inexperienced college student in Texas has survived by following his 30 rules. He then decides to travel to Ohio to see if his parents are alive. He gets a ride with a boisterous zombie-hating good-old boy headed for Florida, and soon they confront a young woman and her little sister who have survived by conning other survivors out of their food of getaway cars. An unlikely group, circumstances band them together in search of an LA amusement park they've heard is zombie free.

Review: This movie is neither small nor unknown but do forgive me, Z was an extremely difficult letter and my brain is not cooperating after a month long of heavy thinking. Zombie comedies are difficult to execute and hardly ever worth watching but Zombieland is one of those great exceptions. Part hilarious part scary, the movie has a touching backstory that makes sense and is developed with extreme subtleness but to great effect. The acting is superb and the dialogs are just brilliant. This move is up there with Shawn of the Dead and should not be missed.

Book.

World War Z by Max Brooks.
Published By Crown in 2006.

Blurb: The Zombie War came unthinkably close to eradicating humanity. Max Brooks, driven by the urgency of preserving the acid-etched first-hand experiences of the survivors from those apocalyptic years, traveled across the United States of America and throughout the world, from decimated cities that once teemed with upwards of thirty million souls to the most remote and inhospitable areas of the planet. He recorded the testimony of men, women, and sometimes children who came face-to-face with the living, or at least the undead, hell of that dreadful time.World War Z is the result. Never before have we had access to a document that so powerfully conveys the depth of fear and horror, and also the ineradicable spirit of resistance, that gripped human society through the plague years.
Ranging from the now infamous village of New Dachang in the United Federation of China, where the epidemiological trail began with the twelve-year-old Patient Zero, to the unnamed northern forests where untold numbers sought a terrible and temporary refuge in the cold, to the United States of Southern Africa, where the Redeker Plan provided hope for humanity at an unspeakable price, to the west-of-the-Rockies redoubt where the North American tide finally started to turn, this invaluable chronicle reflects the full scope and duration of the Zombie War.
Most of all, the book captures with haunting immediacy the human dimension of this epochal event. Facing the often raw and vivid nature of these personal accounts requires a degree of courage on the part of the reader, but the effort is invaluable because, as Mr. Brooks says in his introduction, “By excluding the human factor, aren’t we risking the kind of personal detachment from history that may, heaven forbid, lead us one day to repeat it? And in the end, isn’t the human factor the only true difference between us and the enemy we now refer to as ‘the living dead’?”
Note: Some of the numerical and factual material contained in this edition was previously published under the auspices of the United Nations Postwar Commission.

Review: I decided to go with this huge blurb because it depicts to perfection the style, voice, and mind behind the book. Narrated as a series of first person interviews, the book contains a hundred individual stories that paint a perfectly clear image of what it was to almost loose the war against zombies. I previously did an extended review of this book for Dark River Press, but suffice it to say it will hunt your dreams. World War Z is a tour-de-force that revived the zombie mythos in 2006, when it was dead and buried. Really zombies-que to bring them back like this, don't you think?

11 comments:

Nicole said...

Congrats on making it to the end! ;)

StratPlayerCJF said...

"Revived the zombie mythos when it was dead and buried"

Those dang zombies just REFUSE to stay buried! lol!

Great job seeing the A-to-Z madness through to the end, Gina! Congratulations on an excellent month of alphabetical horror-ific fun!

Jocelyn Rish said...

I love how many of us posted about zombies today. I think it's because after a month of posts, we all feel like zombies now!

Congrats on completing the A to Z challenge!
Jocelyn

Georgina Morales said...

Thanks to all for your comment.

Nicole, it felt like boot camp but it was fun. Thanks!

Chris, thanks so much for all your cheering and comments through out the month. The best of the challenge is the closeness to other authors and I think I have a lot to learn from you. Looking forward to keep in contact!

Jocelyn, I do feel like a zombie today. I guess we need a huge break now. Congrats to you, too!

Unknown said...

Zombieland was a great movie and I've been meaning read Wold War Z for awhile now. I'm very curious about the upcoming movie.

Christie Wright Wild said...

Ever play the computer game Plants vs. Zombies? Lots of fun!!! Congratulations on the A-Z blogging challenge.

StratPlayerCJF said...

Hey, one more thing: I'm nominating you for a Liebster Blogging Award -- you have an awesome site and totally deserve it!!!

Stop by my blog is you'd like to accept:

http://stratplayercjf.blogspot.com/2012/05/loose-ends-thanks-and-liebster.html

James R Tate said...

Great Job! I didn't quite make it to the end. Making a living got in the way. For the letter Q you visited my blog and answered a few questions. I offered a free copy of my book and would like to extend that offer to you. BLOOD BIAS is a murder mystery. So far the reviews have been great. I can gift you a copy for Kindle or paperback on Amazon, or mail you a signed copy. If you're not interested, Maybe you know someone that reads this type of book. Let me know. Thanks again for visiting-Tate's Other Side

Georgina Morales said...

I'm also very curious about the movie, Michael, though a little scared too. Since Brad Pitt is playing on it, I don't think he will take a small part but there aren't any big ones, so I'm scared Hollywood will mess it up with a horrible adaptation. We'll see.

Christie, I haven't played Plants vs Zombies. I usually try to stray clear of video games because I don't want to get addictive, but I might try this one. =)

Aw Chris!! You are so nice! Thanks so much. I'll check out your blog right away. You're the best!

M.C.V. EGAN said...

Zombies are a great fave in this household (teenage son) maybe I am about to aquire a taste for the scary....:)
Well put Gina!

Georgina Morales said...

Thanks Catalina. I have faith that inside that sweet, innocent facade lies a horror lover screaming to be let out. ;)