Review: Dead Snow 2

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So tonight I wanted to watch me some zombie flick, and after looking at what options I had, I decided it would either be Dead Snow 2 or The Dead 2. I was honestly more excited about The Dead 2, but since it wasn't on Netflix, Dead Snow 2 it was.

The flick was a lot like the first installment, filled with pretty big positives and a fair number of negatives, but overall a fun way to spend 90 minutes on a Saturday night. Just like the first film, it's zombie gore at its very best and bloodiest, and the film possesses a tone that doesn't take itself too seriously.

Of course, like most sequels, it's not quite as good as the original. I think the main difference is that it doesn't have the darkness to it that the first film had. The first film was solidly in the black comedy genre, with a number of moments that were truly terrifying or disturbing. The second film tries, but it's really just a straight up comedy, even as the film is killing off children, the elderly, priests, etc.

The killing actually was my major complaint. Maybe I'm just getting old and boring, but I felt like the film was trying too hard to be "edgy" by killing off children in a sandbox, two people in wheelchairs, and two women with their infants in strollers. At first it was kind of funny that they were not holding anything back. A scene early on depicts a young boy being killed in a way that is legitimately both awful and completely hilarious, but from there some of the kills just seem like they're trying way too hard to be "shocking", and it distracts from the film.

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That said, the gore was visually very strong. For a movie that doesn't have an enormously large budget, they do a good job of being inventive with their gore and also making things look realistic. Like in the first film, most of the characters are bathed in a delightful coat of blood and dirt for the majority of the film which gives the film a strong aesthetic. You can't hate too much on a movie in which a Nazi zombie uses a dead man's intestines to siphon gas out of a tour bus and into a World War 2 era tank. I mean...that's just damn good cinema.

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The acting is probably a little better in this sequel than in the original, but it's hard to compare the two since the sequel is in English and the original has subtitles. I was worried about this decision, but it was fine. Much like the original film, however, the actors were all kind of strangely cast. I feel like many of the characters were too old for the characters they were portraying, and the two female American zombie nerds seemed extremely fake and were honestly pretty annoying. I love Star Wars as much as the next girl, but the one character's constant references to Star Wars seemed out of place, inauthentic, and distracted from the rest of the film. The local gay guy in the film was funny and endearing, but they made too big of a deal about him being gay. Maybe it's a bigger deal to be gay in Norway, but him trying to hide it seems a little silly and played for a film released in 2014.

Other than that though, the writing was probably one of the major strengths of the film. There are some witty moments, and the plot is interesting and original. Most of the characters have entertaining lines and deliver them well. The cinematography, like the original, is also pretty good and enhances the comedy of a lot of the scenes.

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The ending of the film is a bit rushed, but the final battle is well executed and fulfilling. The very last moments of the film are kind of bizarre, but not horrible, especially considering how poorly most movies seem to end nowadays.

So, should you watch it? Totally. Don't expect to be laughing out loud, but it will give you some genuine chuckles and will keep you engaged for an hour and a half. Go in just expecting a fun little indie movie, and you'll be pleased. Just remember that, like the original, this is film is very loosely defined as a zombie flick. These zombies talk and use weapons. They're more like corporeal ghosts in a lot of ways except that their look is very "zombie", so if you are a zombie purist, I suggest that you stay away.