The Girl With All The Gifts is a solid zombie flick with some cool surprises, fresh perspectives and the guts to think about the big questions in it’s closing twist.
Based on the best selling novel by M.R. Carey, The Girl With All The Gifts is directed by TV heavyweight Colm McCarthy, who is responsible for solid thrills and drama in series like Peaky Blinders and Black Mirror. So there’s a definite lo-fi quality but the strength of the plot and the little differences to usual zombie horror thrillers kept me watching past the low budget feel of some of the sequences.
Also keeping me watching was the superb effort of Sennia Nanua who makes performance choices well beyond her years and is incredibly enthralling to watch. Gemma Arterton, Paddy Considine (a particular One Take Kate fave actor!) and Glenn Close also star alongside a slew of depraved zombie “Hungries” and a troupe of tortured, mysterious children.
It’s a gritty, industrial look and feel for a zombie film with definite reminiscences to Danny Boyle‘s classic 28 Days Later but seriously don’t let that sway you from enjoying what The Girl With All The Gifts has to offer. With it’s moody but well selected score, economical but interesting cinematography – you’ll be enjoying where you’re taken on this ride and I think ultimately enjoy the broader questions that are asked about humanity, science, faith and playing god…just as all good sci-fi and horror should have you pondering.
It’s a no frills Blu Ray / DVD with no Special Features or deleted scenes to pick through; just a good, enjoyable movie-night-at-home zombie flick to get you hungry for more.
The Girl With All The Gifts is R16 and available now on Blu Ray and DVD.
Hit me up in the comments and tell me: What’s your favourite Zombie movie?
