Review of Cargo (2017) by Gbg_Jason — 26 May 2018

Thanks to the success of The Walking Dead, we've been inundated with zombie movies the past few years. We've gotten movies with slow zombies, fast zombies, stripper zombies; the list goes on and on. While there are many examples of great films that feature the lumbering walking dead, many fall flat due to the market’s oversaturation. In order to be successful nowadays, the film needs to have something to set it apart from the cookie cutter format, which the newly released Cargo does damn well. Based on the short film of the same name, which you can view on YouTube here, the feature length film follows Andy, played by Martin Freeman (The Hobbit, Sherlock) who is trying to keep his wife and daughter safe during a zombie outbreak in the Australian wilderness.

The film begins an unknown time after the outbreak took place, with the family taking shelter in a houseboat. Running low on supplies, the parents take turns scavenging wherever they can to feed the family. After a poor decision resulting in the mother being bitten, causing her to attack Andy, he is left with 48 hours to find someone or some place to safely leave his baby daughter. Along his journey, he comes across a staggering number of other survivors in a short amount of time - some are friendly and empathetic to his situation while others are more sadistic. Much like The Walking Dead, the zombies prove to be much less of a threat than the other survivors.

The zombies featured in the film are fairly unique, albeit a bit dumb at times, even by zombie standards. The film’s version of the disease turns the victim into a mindless creature that appears to be prone to what appears to be seizures and slamming their heads into walls, as well as taking on the appearance of someone who violently face planted into a bee hive, with chunks of who knows what and a thick honey-like goo leaking from their eyes. The results are simply terrifying, despite most of the violence and gore taking place tastefully off screen or out of focus.

Since we know of Andy's inevitable fate, there is a true sense of dread that lingers throughout most of the film. Since we know early into the film that his ending will not be a happy one, most viewers will hold out hope that his daughter will find safe haven. This makes every set back even more devastating. Keeping in mind the child is a baby, who could go into a random screaming fit at any time, you'll likely be on the edge of your seat throughout. I found it mildly hilarious that he was able to find a sitter multiple times throughout the movie while he went out performing various tasks during the zombie apocalypse; meanwhile, I am begging people to watch my kid so I can go out to a movie. I'd make another The Walking Dead comparison here, but I think I am beating that into the ground.

The biggest issue with the story is the cheesy villain, who holds almost comic book super villain aspirations. While others are seeking out food and essentials for survival, he's hunting the zombies for their valuables, hoarding items and non-essential supplies. This is coupled with an obvious physical trait makes it fairly easy to avoid him, which I will withhold to avoid spoilers. He doesn't hold a candle to any of The Walking Dead's rogue gallery. And that’s counting the stupid emo kid who ate people and lasted half of a season.

While there are a number of zombie flicks you can devote your time too, Cargo is well worth the time invested. It does not reinvent the genre the way The Dawn of the Dead remake or 28 Days Later did, but it does add something different to the genre.