This is actually a straight-ahead zombie invasion movie with strong, character-driven subplots. The flick is as much about xenophobic intolerance in modern, small-town society as it is about a living dead apocalypse. Religious persecution of a pair of homosexuals, (as well as imagined intolerance from old-fashioned types,) and discrimination and distrust of a Middle Eastern man and his daughter are executed by somewhat cartoony antagonists set the dynamics of the living, while the living dead act as a catalyst forcing them together... Or apart.
A young man returns to his hometown of Port Gamble, Oregon along with his boyfriend, the intention of telling his mother that he is gay. A young Iranian-American girl returns home to Port Gamble from college only to find bigoted neighbors trying to disprove or justify their bigotry. A fire and brimstone preacher, an old-world Muslim merchant and the slacker who works for him, the ultra-liberal, hippie schoolteacher, the stiffly conservative mayor with a secret: These characters all go about their own story lines while the zombie epidemic unfolds. The characters you're supposed to root for are clearly likable, while the characters you are supposed to dislike possess more blatant personality flaws. (Who gets eaten and who doesn't is not much of a surprise here.)
Sure, there is humor, (you can't justify blatant stereotypes without some chuckles!) but it is subtle mostly, overt occasionally, but never diminishes the sense of danger. The zombie effects are good, with some great zombie kills and attacks to score this entry into the genre with a solid 3.125 on the ol' Zombie Movie Rubric.
The high production value also contributes to an easy-to-watch experience.
A number of good trailers exist on YouTube. Here is one of my faves: ZMD: Zombies of Mass Destruction
ZMD: Zombies of Mass Destruction is occasional billed as a "Political Zombedy," But don't believe it. There are no real politics aside from racial discrimination and homophobic civic authorities. Just a fun, and fun to watch zombie movie. Definitely worth looking for.
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