Maggie

Veteran star Arnold Schwarzenegger shows some real depth and emotion in this decent horror drama that stresses something not always seen in a zombie feature film: the human element. Arnold plays Wade Vogel, a farmer struggling to cope with a fairly apocalyptic future. Many people are succumbing to what the makers of this film call "Necroambulist Virus"; in other words, zombification. Among them is Wades' teen aged daughter Maggie (Abigail Breslin). He is determined to spend all the quality time with her that he can, while she can still appreciate it.

"The turn" into a zombie is a slow and drawn out process in this narrative, written by John Scott 3 and directed by Henry Hobson. It's painful for the loved ones of the victims to have to watch as the humanity steadily drains away. The story can be seen as a metaphor for any number of diseases, or even just the aging process itself. Ultimately, it's a yarn about learning to let go, which people like Wade find very hard to do. Some of his neighbors will go so far as to run contrary to common sense or the afflicted persons' best interests.

Suffice it to say, this is for people who want to see Arnold take on a different kind of challenge. It is nice, after all this time, to see him take more chances and grow as an actor. This isn't for fans who want to see him do bad ass things, which are few and far between. You don't even see very many zombies, or much gore, for that matter.

Set in the Midwest, but shot in Louisiana, this makes decent use of its locations, has a fine music score by David Wingo, and an appropriately drab picture quality.

Arnold does a creditable job as the star. Breslin does elicit quite a bit of sympathy. Joely Richardson rounds out the trio of Hollywood names as Wades' second wife, who is able to accept things that Wade cannot.

Arnold was also one of the many producers on this thing.

Seven out of 10.

A beautiful film in regards to its humanity as shared through the film's characters.

A family is confronted by their teenage daughter Maggie (Abigail Breslin) who is contaminated with a dreadful disease which is Zombieism. She did not catch it inadvertently but caught it by having been bitten while out in an escapade on a night out when the town was invaded by zombies when she new it was forbidden to go. Teenage rebellion against the family like the two brats in the movie 28 weeks later that caused the destruction of London and Paris.

Now, this movie depicts what it would be like if a member of a family would be confronted with a contagious disease which is irreversible and that only the death of the infected one can preserve the safety of the others.

Indeed, the movie goes on a step by step development of the contagion of Maggi and the results on her environment such as family, friends and other members such as the police, doctor which will lead her at the end to commit suicide.

The only problem I have with the movie is this: Can life continue as usual with an extreme infected member of the family? Further more, with such an infection in this case Zombieism, at what moment does Maggie lose her humanity since all along the movie it is said that she should be quarantined ipso facto. A reference to the Anne Frank Diaries is a must to understand life as usual in extreme conditions.

In fact, all along the movie she shows no loss of her humanity. We can clearly see this in the scene where Wade Voegel (Arnold Schwarzenegger) is sleeping on a sofa and Maggie approaches and smells him. Her transformation to a complete zombie has not yet peaked to the irreversible.

However, if the doctor and police insist she be put away, have they lost their humanity knowing there is nothing that can be done and to save the rest of the population Maggie must be killed? Who is truly human here?

We can also ask, how far will a family go in denial or semi-denial? Does denial mean keeping one eye open while sleeping?

At the end, she commits the inevitable by putting an end to her life.

I ask myself this question: Was she dead at the moment she was bitten and her loving family going into denial or did slowly die as to have a family act in a way to have her live live as long as possible with them showing the last of their humanity as they know it when she dies.

As Hamlet would state it: To kill her immediately or not to kill her immediately, that is the question.

I think one of the reasons this film has a fairly low score is that a lot of people are seeing Arnie/zombies and thinking they are going to be watching a big budget blockbuster with Arnie running around blowing heads off. This, for me, was much better. It was slow moving, thoughtful and Arnie's performance as Wade in it was a revelation to someone who has never been a huge fan. Breslin's depiction of a troubled teen, Maggie, facing her own mortality and horrific end was subtle but effective. A lot of people have been questioning why make it a zombie film and not just any infection but without Maggie's disease making her ultimately dangerous, Wade would not have had to wrestle with his conscience in what he had to do, making the whole film pointless. If you preferred The Road to The Walking Dead then this is the film for you. If you're an Arnie fan expecting the usual fodder then I would suggest skipping this and digging out your Terminator box-set.

Maggie is the film that finally shows an emotional side to zombie films. This movie is not about killing all the infected people in sight. I think that Maggie has a least four excellent performances. The best is definitely Abigail Breslin. It is Arnold Schwarzenegger who is going to bring people to the theatre to see this movie but it really is Breslin's film, she is really the star. Schwarzenegger however is not his normal self. The man can act, and I'm sure that this film will never receive the credit it should because Schwarzenegger is in it and people are too quick to judge it by its cover. Maggie is slow but the performances managed to keep me interested. The film is also dark which perfectly captures its tone. I think that people need to go into this movie with an unbiased mind and it could really be enjoyed.

'MAGGIE': Four Stars (Out of Five)

An indie zombie flick, made on a budget of just $4 million, starring Arnold Schwarzenegger and Abigail Breslin! It was directed by first time feature filmmaker Henry Hobson and written by first time feature film writer John Scott 3. The movie is actually more of a dramatic character study, than an action or horror film, dealing with the relationship between a teenage girl, in the Midwest, and her loving father. The catch is that the girl is infected with a deadly zombie virus. It's definitely not the type of movie that a lot of Schwarzenegger fans are expecting, but I really liked it.

The story is set in a small Midwest town, where a virus, called the necroambulist virus, has broken out. It slowly turns it's victims into zombies and the government deals with the problem by throwing 'the infected' into isolation wards. Maggie (Breslin) is a young teenage girl, who was recently infected by the disease. Her father, Wade (Schwarzenegger), must do his best to care for her, in her last days, and also come to terms with what must be done, when she finally changes.

I wasn't sure what exactly to expect, going into this movie. The premise, and idea of Arnold Schwarzenegger starring in a low-budget zombie drama flick, were both very intriguing to me. I am a little disappointed it doesn't have more action, and gruesome thrills, but it is a very well made drama film. Arnold gives, arguably, his best performance to date, and Breslin is pretty impressive as well. I wish there would have been a little more to the story, than just another drama flick about a terminally ill teen, and her relationship with her friends and family. It's almost like a zombie version of 'MY SISTER'S KEEPER' or 'THE FAULT IN OUR STARS', except with a little Schwarzenegger thrown in as well. I think he's making a lot of wise career choices lately, and he's starting to resemble Clint Eastwood, more and more, with each movie. This isn't a great film but it is a nice entry in Arnold's impressively expanding resume.

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