Anna and the Apocalypse directed by John McPhail, and written by Alan McDonald and Ryan McHenry, takes a group of soon-to-be graduating high schoolers and opens up their inner-diaries to share the woes of teenage life in the small town of Little Haven.
This zombie-comedy, affectionately coined as a “zom-com” is full of surprises and if being a teenager wasn’t hard enough, we add in a zombie infestation to shake things up a bit and get to know the characters a little more as they have to fight together to survive.
With nods to Buffy The Vampire Slayer, The Breakfast Club, Shaun of the Dead and many others, it was really creatively done.
You can’t have a good musical with sub-par choreography, and so Steph (Sarah Swire) who also stars in the movie, did an amazing job juggling both roles.
Anna, played by Ella Hunt, was perfect for her role. She was able to break away from the stereotypical female needing to be saved, while showing bravery and kicking some zombie brains.
Socially awkward best friend, John (Malcolm Cumming) is another good character. We feel his pain through song, as he deals with unrequited love for Anna but we also see him grow separate from the anguish, just like any best friend would.
Another stand out performance was the eccentric Headmaster, Arthur Savage (Paul Kaye). He took that creepiness level and cranked it all the way up in the best way possible.
There are so many wonderful songs too, written by Roddy Hart in collaboration with Tommy Reilly.
🎶Break Away had my eyes wide open because I wasn’t expecting something so emotional right off the bat. With its poignant lyrics, I was just awe-struck.
🎶Hollywood Ending. Believe me when I tell you that you will be singing this song in the shower, in the car and in your sleep! It is so ridiculously catchy. The song tells us what we already know, but are sometimes too afraid to face. While we deal with the harsh realities of life, we will still be okay without perfection.
🎶Turning My Life Around is another great song with upbeat music and some fun dance sequences. It also holds a special nod in a way to a certain Shaun of the Dead scene where we are oblivious to the chaos that is going on around us. It has a comedic yet disturbing undertone.
Overall, I think this movie is really fun to watch and holds a lot of meaning beyond what is on the surface. Sure, it’s a little gross at times (okay... a lot) but this is definitely an infectious one to add to your holiday list!
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