The Dead Don't Die (2019)

'The Dead Don't Die' is the new film from eccentric writer/director Jim Jarmusch and stars too many people to list here so let's just say Bill Murray, Adam Driver, Chloë Sevign, and Tilda Swinton. As for the story, it's pretty simple: zombies rampage a small town full of strange people. The usual horror comedy tropes are thrown in for good measure and overall the film is fun but a little unbalanced. As good as the cast is it's simply too big for a 90 minute movie. The poster lists 14 big names but there's a couple more in the film and this becomes a issue, especially towards the final act. Characters that have been introduced and followed throughout will sometimes have no closure and some characters are used for no more than quick gags or seemingly to eat up the running time. 

To counterpoint the main three or four we do follow throughout the majority of 'The Dead Don't Die' are funny and likeable with Adam Driver of 'Star Wars' fame being the standout performance. He frequently breaks the fourth wall and his dry humor greatly compliments Bill Murray's and I hope to see Driver in more comedies like this down the road. Danny Glover and Caleb Landry Jones are given less screen time but their personalities and development is enough for us to root for them once the zombies start attacking. I personally have to have a soft spot for Caleb Jones' character is a horror movie nut with lots of useless movie trivia (that sounds familiar...). The title of the film is revealed to be based upon a real song of the same name and as such, it is frequently used for gags which is the one bit I got pretty tired of by the end. 

Speaking of repetitive, I will commend Mr. Jarmusch for making a zombie movie have meaning and wanting to say something like the good old days of George Romero but the issue here is that he really just copies Romero's allegories and overall message. And whether this was the studio or Jarmusch himself I can't say but we have an old hermit named Bob played by Tom Waits who only seems to be there to give exposition and tell the audience what the movie is about. I really get turned off when a film treats the audience like it's ignorant or we can't figure out the overall message so they straight up tell you through dialogue. I think the message of commercialism, materialism, obsession, and people essentially being zombies thanks to their iPhones are universal themes that everyone is smart enough to understand. Overall 'The Dead Don't Die' has the same bizarre fun you'd expect from Jim Jarmusch with a strong cast to compliment an overall good but not great script. I recommend it if you like horror comedies and definitely recommend it to those who are looking to check out the director's work but don't know where to start. It's an easy watch for a general audience and it's kind of a shame it wasn't more widely released.

8/10