Zombieland

In this slapstick teen romance/horror satire, America is ravaged by virus-infected, flesh-hungry undead, so survival strategies are paramount, according to narrator Columbus (Jesse Eisenberg), who is picked up by post-apocalyptic, Twinkie-chasing, zombie-blasting road warrior Tallahassee (Woody Harrelson), who believes that people should go by place names to avoid emotional attachments. Soon after the two pair up, they're hoodwinked and then joined by a couple of clever con-artist sisters, seductive Wichita (Emma Stone) and 12-year-old Little Rock (Abigail Breslin), who are en route to California's fabled Pacific Playland, a supposed zombie-free zone (where Tallahassee might also be able to find an edible Twinkie). But before the resilient foursome reaches their destination for a climactic theme park finale, Tallahassee's agenda calls for a detour—to the Beverly Hills mansion of Bill Murray, who makes an extended cameo. Screenwriters Rhett Reese and Paul Wernick, aided and abetted by first-time feature director Ruben Fleischer, fire smarmy gags like a blast of buckshot; some land, some don't. The most imaginative involves a scam with Wichita buying gas at a service station and “losing” her engagement ring; the least funny is when the quartet gleefully destroys a Native American curio shop. A strong optional purchase. [Note: DVD/Blu-ray extras include audio commentary (with costars Woody Harrelson and Jesse Eisenberg, director Ruben Fleischer, and writers Rhett Reese and Paul Wernick), an “In Search of Zombieland” behind-the-scenes featurette (16 min.), a “Zombieland is Your Land” set design featurette on the zombification of the United States (12 min.), deleted scenes (6 min.), “Visual Effects Progression Scenes” (2 min.), and trailers. Exclusive to the Blu-ray version is a “Beyond the Graveyard” picture-in-picture track, the BD-Live “movieIQ” trivia function, and a bonus digital copy of the film. Bottom line: a solid extras package for a hit-and-miss zom-com.] (S. Granger)