The random perk of working odd days and hours from most people is you end up seeing things on tv you would have normally never seen. That is, if you are watching tv at some point during those non-working hours when it seems most everybody else is slaving away…
Today I saw a movie on tv called The Returned. I have noooo idea why I decided to watch it, it is a zombie movie and that isn’t really my thing, ya know? That and I had other things I should be doing…theoretically…
I figured I’d watch a bit at the beginning, it would prove to be dumb and not hold my interest, and I’d go back to my book buuuut that didn’t happen…
Two hours later I am staring at the screen in horror, but not scared horror, in anger horror, emotional horror, life is unfair horror, and amazed at how good a zombie movie could be when it doesn’t focus on gore, or violence, or any of the standard zombie movie cliches.
Probably people who love traditional zombie movies don’t like this one as much, so maybe that is why I liked this one, because it is different?
Without giving away any spoilers, in case you decide to go watch it, in this movie people who get infected and get the zombie virus can take a once daily injection to hold off turning in to the stereotypical zombie. They are called “The Returned” because they returned from the horrible fate that awaited them if they hadn’t gotten the medication and responded to it…that fate of course being a transition into a traditional zombie and then a bullet to the head.
The main characters are a married couple, he is a “Returned”, she is not. They face a crisis, as does the rest of the world, when the medication needed to keep all the “Returned” as humans is running out.
It is one of those great movies that lets you analyze a situation that is happening in the world and debate what you would do, what would those you know do, what do you believe should be done by the government, the military, the medical professionals, all without making you feel threatened because it is just about zombies not something real, like say, an outbreak of Ebola, or Avian Flu, or H1N1…you know, those pesky outbreaks that had people freaking out about closing borders and not sending aide to other countries for fear of the disease then being brought back.
Sorta like how District 9 could inspire conversations that in actuality were about how to treat refugees, but since in the movie the refugees were aliens there was less chance of people freaking out about having a conversation around the rights that are awarded to refugees because it is just aliens, right? 😉
I love movies like that, movies that can open dialogue about topics usually shunned because they are uncomfortable to talk about.
In case you hadn’t gathered by now, I liked the movie, I even recommend the movie…just don’t go in to it expecting all the normal zombie movie stuff or you’ll be disappointed. Go in to it expecting some zombie gore type scenes, but mostly expecting a drama about relationships, a movie that will make you question what could cause you to change your views on how to treat your fellow man, how much do you think society should do to care for those who have un-treatable illnesses that could spread and kill quickly, how long do you think your humanity would last when faced with unbearable decisions?
Ooooh, look how quickly a zombie movie got deep and thoughtful! 😉
The Amazing Shrinking Woman 
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