Os Mortos Não Morrem

If you read that Jim Jarmusch made a new movie and you read the list of involved actors/musicians the expectation of course just explodes. And if you like zombie movies with comedy elements your expectations hit the Milky Way. Sadly, The Dead Don't Die just don't delivers. Compared with other zombie comedies of high rank, most of the comical or fun moments of The Dead Don't Die just don't work too good. The horror elements are also just rather mediocre and just feel like necessary additions because of the genre. So what's left!? Some reviewers say that there is some references to other movies or the movie business to detect, and/or there is some commentaries on our today's society. That all may be right, but mostly the movie is just very slow and won't satisfy neither the horror nor the comedy audience. On top, even as an arthouse or artsy whatever movie The Dead Don't Dies is rather a weak endeavor. Of course, the actors are not bad and still there is here and there a little shiny moment. My rate is 5 but that's already the highest rate that I can give - and in my view this movie is a great missed opportunity to make something great, especially for the genre.

It's his dry and sober way of filming. But on the other hand, it was funny at several points. There were scenes, I did really laugh out hard and for quiete some time. If there weren't so many traces between the funny or laughing moments, it would have get a higher rating by me. A very ironical view on the zombie genre. Well, I was entertained and even though this movie is no real burner, I think it's still ok to watch. Bill Murray is great as ever. In my opinion the movie is better than most people rated.

All the ingredients to produce a masterpiece are present: 1) A director I love, Jim Jarmusch, due to the excellent Paterson (2016) and Flores Partidas (2005). 2) A to-die-for cast, with Bill Murray in particular. 3) A sens of humor that regularly flirts with the absurd, including wacky and irreverent dialogues like « a black coffee please, but not too black » for instance. 4) The mesmerizing voice of Tom Waits. 5) A slight criticism of our society, especially the progressive global warming because of a strong procrastination with regard to the respect of our environment, and, albeit to a lesser extent, consumerism. 6) Zombies! I may confess that I have a crush on zombies. 7) ...

So, all the ingredients are lumped together but, it's quite strange and even weird, the recipe is rather unsuccessful: the atmosphere is sometimes cutesy or even insipid, the characters are usually devoid of enthusiasm and quite often apathetic, and the final scene rhymes with bitterness and bewilderment.

Although the film is not completely lousy thanks to a few successful scenes, I was globally bored and disappointed. In my humble opinion, this movie is a non-event and, as an echo with itself, should be buried alive, from now on until the end of the world. And even longer!

In Centerville, the undead rise when there is a shift in the axis of rotation of Earth. "The Dead Don't Die" is the slow development of this storyline following several dwellers of this town. Films by Jim Jarmusch are usually cult and slow paced. His navigation through the zombie genre is an uneven film, with at least a good surprise like the flying saucer scene and many boring and unfunny moments. The cast composed by many veteran actors and actresses is a plus but the final result is neither cult nor worthwhile spending 1h 44 min watching. My vote is five.

Title (Brazil): "Os Mortos Não Morrem" ("The Dead Don't Die")

Typical Jarmush. Is it slow paced? Check. Is it dialogue heavy? Check. Is it absurd at times? Check. To the people that complain it's not action packed enough I would reply it's as action packed as Ghost Dog: The Way of the Samurai.

Also I think because this movie has zombies in it people give it lots of low reviews, because it's a case of missed expectations.

There's a simple filter you can use to decide whether to watch it. If you enjoyed any of the previous Jarmush movies you won't be heavily disappointed. While not an instant classic it's true to his style. If not, maybe start with one of his earlier movies (Broken Flowers, Night on Earth, Ghost Dog, Dead Man) to get a taste of Jarmush first.