Maggie

(2015)

I agree with nearly all of the points that Crystal made about this film in her review. After his daughter was infected by the zombie bug, Schwarzenegger is instructed to say his goodbyes to her while she is held in quarantine. Anyone who’s seen Commando knows that trying to separate him from his daughter is a big no-no. Arnold breaks her free and takes her home so that she may spend the rest of her days in peace, surrounded by family and loved ones.

Before long it becomes clear that the film is actually a drama about how to cope with terminally ill child disguised as a zombie movie. It’s an interesting idea that is well executed and it shows just how far zombie movies have come in the past decade and a half. The Romero zombie canon is taken as a given so we’re spared the typical tired expressions such as “you’ve gotta shoot it in the head!” The only difference I could identify between the rules in Maggie and Dawn of the Dead is the time it takes a human to change into a zombie. Instead of minutes it can take up to several weeks. I understand this choice because it allows everyone more time for closure and Maggie has time to go through several stages of terminal illness from denial to acceptance. But damn, it’s easily the most agonizing “transition” I’ve seen in a zombie flick.

Also I love that this takes place at the point in the zombie apocalypse timeline where human civilization is still intact (as opposed to 99% of all zombie movies ever made that take place after the zombies have taken over). Sure it’s a mass epidemic but it’s still under control. It breathes new life into the genre and I hope other zombie projects follow suit.