Review of Maggie (2015) by Tanya C — 11 May 2015

In 1977, Arnold Schwarzenegger won a Golden Globe for acting. Yes, it happened. Look it up. Since then, he has had a string of commercial and far less critically acclaimed performances. Granted, heâ??s had his moments, but nothing overtly worthy of critical praise. Thirty-eight years later, heâ??s back.

Now for those who enjoy playing first-person shooters and movies of the same ilk, Schwarzeneggerâ??s latest film, â??Maggieâ??, is not for you. Yes, the walking dead are central to the plot. Yes, there are shotguns and flesh-eating. But with a genre so exploited weâ??ve had numberless parodies and love stories (and even Brad Pitt halfhearted attempt to prologue his effort into a plea for social responsibility), zombie films have become a tired yet relentless genre that, like its antagonists, just wonâ??t die.

â??Maggieâ?? takes a different turn. This is a love story, but it is about a fatherly love for his daughter who is slowly succumbing to the disease that will eventually and inevitably have her become one of the undead. It is a sad, pensive look at how disease in general sometimes forces to let go of the ones we love. Schwarzenegger, with his admittedly limited range, pulls out all the stops to deliver a warm and compelling performance as Maggieâ??s father while Abigail Breslin delivers as the teen girl slowly surrendering to her fate. Itâ??s definitely worth the ninety-five minutes, that is, as long as youâ??re not looking for something to hold you over until season 6 of The Walking Dead.