World Ends at Camp Z

I could barely make it through this movie because despite the plot (middling), the actors were SO BAD. I'm literally typing in other words just so that IMDB will let me tell you how bad the acting was.

Plot

During the pandemic, the present camp owner is forced to entertain the new buyer then learns of his evil intentions towards the land. In order to stop the sale he has tricks up his sleeve but a zombie uprising was never one of them.

Cast

Not familiar with anyone involved and nobody stood out.

Verdict

I was alarmed at the low rating before I even pressed play, I've had a lot of instances of this recently and to be fair to the IMDB community there tended to be a reason! But what could it be here? I assumed it was another instance of the spoiled viewers expecting a blockbuster and being frustrated with a low budget effort, that may be partially true.

You see straight away you notice everything looks fine, everything is competent, it develops very slowly but that's okay and I was engaged with the film and the story they were trying to tell. I scratched my head confused at the low rating and then it happened, the first "Action" sequence. You see when the zombie appear (No spoilers here it's a zombie movie!) there are two major problems. First of all the zombies look naff, visually everything in film looks great but the zombies are simply not on the same level so that's a real shame. Second, whenever action occurs they implement a filter that I can only describe as 5fps where everything slows, gets jittery and just looks positively awful.

So I found myself dreading the zombie sequences because they ruined what was otherwise a passable enough film, yes it's slow but it was competent. The rest of the film once everything goes to hell, is cliched, generic and ugly and that's such as shame because I found myself really wanting to like it.

Rants

What were they thinking with that filter/effect? It really is the absolute pits. I'm sure they felt like they had to counter the lack of budget but ironically it made the movie look and feel even more cheap. Night filters are common and dreadful, this right here SO much worse. Without that the zombies still would have looked terrible, but the film would have been a lot more tolerable!

The Good

Surprisingly well made initially Passable cast

The Bad

Zombies are very cheaply made That darn filter!

Very slow burner Falls on too many uninspired cliches.

With all the constraints that this movie has it could have been a lot worse.

The acting and direction is bad. However, the basic story and set up is done quite well. There are some good drone shots and effective lighting. The zombie slo mo is overdone thesedays.

For a film budget of just over half a million (CA) dollars, Worlds End at Camp Z by Diane Janna is a fine example of what a decent script can get you. This was more than an enjoyable film.

The film itself was a nice mixture of camp, corporate, and living dead apocalypse, with news reports and the corporate jerks adding extra spice to the buildup as you wait eagerly for the living dead to attack Camp La Tuque.

There were many fine performances throughout, Dean Person (Julien), playing the irritated and frustrated camp worker, Anne-Carolyne Binette (Vanessa), the business representative of the potential buyers, and. Michael Czemerys (Aaron), a spoilt and obnoxious rich boy who has come to buy the camp, pushing fake pretence to get the deal done. Not forgetting Osawa Muskwa, AKA. Clay.

So to reiterate, World Ends at Camp Z is a delightful zombie film, a nice addition to the genre, and one that will not disappoint you at any point throughout its ninety minutes.

Arriving at the facility one last time, the owners of a summer camp preparing to sell it to a local businessman which is soon revealed to be harboring evil intentions towards the camp, but their loyalties are divided further when a zombie outbreak in the community spreads forcing them to get away alive.

Overall, there's a lot to like with this one. Among the better features on display is the somewhat simple-minded storyline here that's far more detailed and effective than what should be the case for this kind of film. Given that there's far more going on beyond just the whole concept of cleaning up the camp but also managing to work together into several solid side-stories involving the love triangle that the majority of this one focuses on, the first half to this one comes across with a lot more heart and emotional attachment to their plight which goes directly alongside their whole quest to save the camp from the investor once his plans are revealed. It makes the series of intentional sabotage attempts once the out-of-place guests arrive feel far more earned than they should with this background in place. This leads the films' selling point in the rather fun and over-the-top zombie outbreak that arrives at the camp. While nothing new in the grand scheme of the genre, the outbreak scenes of the infected running wild in the camp and ripping people to pieces while forcing the survivors into an appropriate and believable state of panic and chaos. The action involved here isn't bad and really drives this one along, especially once the incumbent military help arrives to further the idea of futility present which goes a long way to making this one likable, much like the early scenes involving the release of the virus and how it parallels the modern world. It's a clever enough tactic that is eerily topical and relevant and added on top of the fantastic practical gore and make-up effects here really makes this stand out nicely. That said, there are a few minor issues with the film. The main drawback is the films' reliance in the first half on characters over action, detailing the exploits of the workers at the camp trying to ensure the new owner doesn't overtake the facility and turn it into a hotspot for city-dwellers that the camp was set up as an escape from. While all of this effectively sets up the characters and their motivations, hardly any of these features any kind of zombie action makes it feel slightly too long to get to the creatures when they finally make their way to the area. That's the other small issue here in that the zombies feel more like an afterthought at the expense of an indie drama about the workers at this campsite ting to prevent it from being sold since they come out of nowhere and feel at odds with the rest of the storyline previously like this was several films edited together such is the rapid shift from indie drama to genre thrills. It's not deal-breaking but it is a factor.

Rated Unrated/R: Graphic Language and Graphic Violence.