XYZ recently released a trailer for the new Zombie flick Wyrmwood: Apocalypse and I was fortunate enough that they sent me a screener of the whole film. Let me start by saying this.
I am a huge zombie fan. I’ve watched tons of series and films but never did come across the film that came before this, Wyrmwood: Road of the Dead (2014) both of which were directed by Kiah Roache-Turner and written by Kiah and his brother Tristan Roache-Turner.
This Australian filmmaking duo has come up with a new type of zombie lore that really makes sense. If you are like me and watching this newest film before the first one, just know this is a whole different type of zombie film. I was really drawn into the different aspects of the storyline that have this different type of zombie and infection pushing us forward along with our main characters’ motivation. The plot isn’t too heavy and is easy to follow which leaves room for all the violent kills you hope for in a horror film. They are not stingy on the blood and violence in this film, it’s a full-throttle blast.
The zombies seem more animalistic to me, almost reptilian with a dinosaur roar. Not sure if this is fully explained in the first film, but I really loved the unique look and feel of these zombies. They also emit some type of yellow gas from their mouths, oh, and there are hybrids! Yeah, they have to drink some substance to keep them out of zombie mode. I’m sure much of this is explained in the first one, but I completely enjoyed the film even without the back story. That’s a good sign from a film if the audience can still get what’s going on, even if they haven’t seen the first one. It does look like the first Wyrmwood is available to rent or buy on a few platforms if you want to watch the first one and not go in blind as I did.
Right off the bat, from the very first scene, we are on a bloody and fast trip. The post-apocalyptic setting and look of this film gave me strong Mad Max vibes. I thought it was well shot and loved the characters. We don’t get a ton of character development due to the pace and action sequences but we get enough to where I cared about them. Shantae Barnes-Cowan as Maxi, and Tasia Zalar as Grace, gave impressive performances. The whole cast did. Honestly, it’s one of the better films overall that I have seen come out this year, no matter the genre.
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I can find no fault in this wildly fun and very bloody horror film. It shows what more can still be done within the sub-genre of zombie films, instead of sticking with the same old types of undead.
Rating; 5/5
