Melanie: apocalipsis zombie

Let me say first that I am not a fan of zombie movies. Since George Romero's "Night of the Living Dead", most have been derivative. There have been some better than others (so I've been told) but none that really stand out from the pack. I think, though, that "The Girl with All the GIfts" is one that does stand out in this genre. I read about it and decided to take a chance on it...I figured if I didn't like it that I would just fast forward it and be done with it in about 15 minutes. So I took it out from my local library. Well, I got hooked from the beginning. I would recommend that if you want an interesting, unexpectedly well done movie then give this movie a chance

Before The Waking Dead came along, people thought the zombie subgenre was dead in the water. The zombie films for the most part just weren't able to capture the right tone and essence. So even though there's been a million of them and most of them are much of the same thing, I always appreciate the ones that bring something new and fresh to the genre. The Girl With All the Gifts does just that.

The British post-apocalyptic film takes place after most of the world has been decimated to due to an unknown fungal disease, with only a few military bases left. The twist here is that on this military base is a group of second generation children who are infected with the disease but are under control of their senses for the most part. That is, when they aren't smelling human flesh.

After several life threatening sequences, a few soldiers, a teacher, and one of those second generation children (named Melanie) embark on a trek to get to the next safe zone, with their base being overrun by zombies (or hungries as they call them). Melanie, a seemingly more intelligent and aware child, forms a special bond with the teacher, named Helen Justineau and played by Gemma Arterton. This is the one human connection that I think is worth caring about. Since you don't get much backstory on the soldiers, including one played well by Paddy Considine, you are almost forced into caring for the two. And that's the one thing I was constantly hoping we would get more of, character depth and backstory. It just becomes difficult to figure out who you're going to root for when you don't have much in way of their backstory to think about.

With that said, I appreciated that this film involved a different approach to the zombie genre. Yes, there is the subplot involving someone looking for a cure (which is always something that comes up) but the more calculated approach to the pacing, and reserved display of gore, The Girl With All the Gifts feels like a fresh entry into the genre. Heck, have we ever had our lead character be an second generation infected child? Just by those standards this was something original.

7.1/10

The opening scenes of The Girl with all the Gifts throw you if you know little about the film. Melanie (Sennia Nanua) is a young polite girl in a room that looks like a cell. In the morning she manacles herself into a wheel chair while armed soldiers push her to her classroom lessons along with other children in a similar state. Melanie remains unfailingly polite and we also realise she is clever.

Are these children gifted? Part of some experiment? Why are the soldiers armed and remain vigilant?

We soon find out when one soldier bursts in and rubs his arm with his spit. It looks like these children have cannibalistic tendencies, we already see Melanie given food which consisted of worms.

The film is a take on the Zombie movie, society has collapsed because of a fungal infection of the brain turning people into zombies and it is evolving. These children were rescued from a hospital as babies and raised by the army. Dr Caroline Caldwell (Glenn Close) is the scientist who sees Melanie and others to be experimented so she can find a cure for this fungus.

Helen Justineau (Gemma Arterton) is the teacher who wants to protect Melanie from the soldiers and Dr Caldwell. She seems to have bonded with Melanie and even Melanie shows a protective attitude towards her even when she needs to feed.

When the army base is in invaded by the zombies this three along with some soldiers escape and head for safety to another mobile unit. However it is clear society has broken down, the zombies are going through an evolution process and Dr Caldwell might be too late to develop a vaccine.

This is probably the most striking British zombie film since 28 Days Later. It is a low budget film shot mainly in and around the Midlands. Director Colm McCarthy makes an interesting opening to this film and best use of the small budget for some special effects shots. He keeps the story human, the development of the relationship between Melanie and Justineau. Dr Caldwell supplies the scientific explanations but the story dos slow down in parts over halfway through.

A wonderful central performance from Sennia Nanua who shows she is a talent to watch.

As a prolific reviewer, you tend to often discuss a film in terms of traditional arcs, and riffs off those same arcs.

Which is why it is always a treat when a film comes along that throws the script template out the window and forges its own path.

This is such a film. It reminded me of THE INCREDIBLE SHRINKING MAN 1957, the first legitimate A-list sci-fi that, like this film, started off in what seemed a traditional manner -- and then went down a plot superhiway that no one had ever seen before.

It is not a perfect film. It has some flaws. For example, the first 30 minutes are better (more impact, more empathy, more entertaining) than the last 60 minutes. Which is not to suggest that the last hour is bad, merely that the first half-hour is drop-dead stunning and unforgettable.

And the director often seems confused about who the real star is? Ditto for the PR dept of the studio. If you check the IMDb reference, you will see that the young girl so brilliantly played by Sennia Nanua is given billing lower down on the cast list. That's an error. Sennia IS the film -- she practically picks it up and carries it to the finish line. The scenes without her are weak, the scenes with her are wonderful.

Nice iteration of a "really smart" zombie film. Recommended.

I'm really aggravated by people who think this was a "boring zombie movie" that "wasn't scary." Look... the movie is called THE GIRL WITH ALL THE GIFTS. It's a movie about a girl... who happens to be a zombie... and her desire to come to terms with who she is, and her right to live in spite of it. NO it's not full of scares and gory zombie kills... that's not what it's about. If you can appreciate a good story about a little girl who happens to be a zombie then you'll see the beauty in this film. There still GREAT zombie action though... It was very well done, had an excellent cast, and Sennia Nanua shined.

Full commentary WITH spoilers on YouTube/Twitter @moviebuffchick1

https://youtu.be/wwm1nWFOwBI