Darkest Day, (2015)

     A young man wakes up on a beach and wanders into a town in the midst of some sort of an  apocalypse: No people, traffic, or signs of civilization. Worse, he has no recollection of where the world went.

He soon encounters a small group of survivors who explain to him about this “neurological virus,” and how they believed themselves immune. Their days are now filled with avoiding the infected, and apparently, the military, who seem to be doing a sweep & clear of all civilians, both attacking or not.

When not out scavenging, the collection of youngish survivors share a home. It is run-down and lived-in looking and confined, and some of the group’s interactions feel a little “Big Brother”-esque, (not unlike those of Dead Set!) albeit, set in a grungy, post-apocalyptic sort of habitat, not a mansion.  Some of the characters display some occasionally less-than-likeable traits, but are, in general, root-for enough to make one invested in their survival.

       The infected, (not called “zombies,” except in the closing credits!) are of the ’28 Days/Weeks Later’ variety. Not dead, not shambling, and not dropped only with a head-shot. They are alive, but in more of a  rabid state. They yell, attack, and, yes, they will eat you. Although I have repeatedly said that I dislike running zombies, this ‘infected’ loophole clears that problem and provides more logic to it. I need my logic.

Also, despite the filmmakers’ claims in the “making of” that the Special Effects were bodgey, (“bodgey?” Clearly a Britishism,) I found the make-up and general look of the infected quite convincing. Perhaps the shaky camera shooting allowed for a bit more forgiveness.

On this: Although NOT a “found footage,” or first person shoot, hand-held cameras were employed for this film. I understand that these hand-helds assist to impart a sense of frenetic chaos, and make the panicky tensions of the characters translate to the viewer, and it does so, and effectively,  but I also found it a little disorienting at times, too. 

Back to the zomb… I mean, infected. They are fast and brutal. And bring some real scares, too. Plus, this being set in Britain, the shortage of gun availability means dispatching the infected is a bit more up-close and personal. Therefore, the chances of being overrun while fighting with them are much, much greater. And swarming scenes here are tense and exciting affairs!

And then there is the presence of the military. There is a less obvious reason for their involvement, which, without giving any spoilers, brings in more of the backstory. And this aspect not only gives Darkest Day a little more depth, but another point or two on its final score, too!

Which, according to the ol’ Zombie Movie Rubric, Darkest Day rings in with a respectable 2.86 out of a possible 4. This puts it in the ‘Recommended’ category with a good chance of a repeated viewing.And, of course, that ol’ YouTube carries a decent trailer  (DARKEST DAY)  for your enjoyment.

Pretty cool cover art, too.

      I am told that the forthcoming U.S. release of the DVD will, among other extras, include the “Making Of” featurette. This is good, because this is a very entertaining 30 or so-minute long piece which showed even more of the story, and how the film was made. I was very impressed after knowing how much went into the movie in lieu of a budget. 

    (For some idea of this, I read some people were comparing  Darkest Day  to 28 Days Later. And that the latter was considered to be a small budget film. But that movie’s budget was approximately 5000 times more than Darkest Day. So, well, there you go.)