The "Zombies" Don't Offer Much for the Parent Viewer, Except for the Incredible Dancing
/My daughter has recently gotten very much into a trilogy of movies called "Zombies". I have had the great pleasure of watching two of them this past weekend. We had planned on watching all three but we couldn't find the time. Let’s discuss.
These movies are by no means bad, but they are not great either. There is some stuff to like and some stuff I would give a hard pass to. I think the actors do a fine job with the poor material they are given. The plot is a very thinly veiled attempt at desegregation. The actors are much older, for the most part, than the characters they are playing. The acting can be hammy in spots but decent in others. The movies are clearly made for kids. These are definitely just for kids. There is really nothing here that is for the parents that are watching along. But my daughter loves them and I love spending time with her doing things she likes.
During my time watching the first two movies something struck me though that I really do appreciate though. There are dance numbers galore in these movies. These are pretty much musicals for all intents and purposes. The soundtrack for each movie may be more important than the movies themselves. And the dance numbers are integral to what happens with the plot. It is like a music video with each new song. A lot of the actors are singers or have singing in their background. They are also dancers or trained in dancing at some point. That much is blatantly obvious. But these dance numbers, they are a spectacle. They are big and bold and boisterous. They are fun. I find myself tapping along and singing with some of the songs. I watch the actors dance and am endlessly impressed by what I am seeing.
I guess, what I am trying to say is, the dance numbers in these movies make them worth a watch if you are a parent. While watching the second movie over the weekend there was this very intricate cheerleading dance number and I said to my wife, she was watching with us, how impressed I was with the whole sequence. There was a humongous stage. The actors were lock and step with one another. No mistakes came across on camera. Some of the actors were doing some highly acrobatic things that had me sit up in my seat. The way they bounced on wires and made wall climbing look balletic was so cool. I was extremely interested in how all of it came together and how well everyone was doing. I cannot fathom how many takes it took to get it all, but they got what they wanted and it looks wonderful on film. I read, as stated above, that a lot of the actors come from musical backgrounds, but what they are doing in these movies is amazing. Like, this is close to Olympic level gymnastics they are doing here. And the dancing is so damn good. I like when the zombies dance. They look like zombies but they all have really good moves. The werewolves in the second movie dance even better than the zombies or humans in the first one. The humans, namely the cheerleaders, are highly impressive. I was blown away by what I saw. There is a scene in the first one where the main human goes to zombie land and does a full on dance number with all the zombies and it is great. It looks like a steampunk arena and the dance moves are awesome. The school president scene in the second movie is dope as well. I don't know, I am just intrigued by what I watched when it was a dance number in these movies. I like that they are able to do these highly athletic things.
It is these dance scenes that make these movies watchable for me. My daughter loves it all, from start to finish. And while I may not be into the movie much, the dance numbers are worth the 80 minutes each movie lasts. They are that enjoyable.
Ty
Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast.
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