Review of Wasting Away (2007) by James C — 17 Jun 2013

When a group of four friends come into contact with a dumped barrel containing a failed military experiment to create super-soldiers their lives change forever.

Here we have a zombie film that tries to do things a little differently, and succeeds quite well. The beginning of the story uses every cliche in the book for deliberate effect, but things are turned on their heads very quickly and the viewer is presented with a unique point of view for the rest of the movie. The plot moves along at a very good pace and the addition of comedy and a bit pathos makes for a fun watch, but the story does run out of steam a little towards the end. The small cast all play their roles with glee, and the dual interpretation of the events gives them a chance to actually act which is unusual for actors that take on zombie roles. The special effects are well handled, but there a re a couple of dodgy CGI shots in places. The gore is minimal, and what is seen is handled more for comedy effect. All in all this is a great little movie, that takes the well-worn genre in a new direction and gives it a breath of life.