the audience applauded

Highly Overrated But Still Good

Great example of an old-fashioned, pure-at-heart escapist event movie that doesn't pretend to be anything that it's not and has boat loads of fun being its own ludicrous self.

Just intense enough to provide a much-needed diversion, just lightweight enough to make you forget about it soon after it’s over. It’s not exactly “good,” per se, but it does what it sets out to do in terms of putting us on edge, which makes it … successful?

A24 is an amazing film company that has released some of the best indie films in years, but they don't always stick the landing. Such is the case for Life After Beth. Zach (Dane DeHaan) is heartbroken after his girlfriend Beth (the lovely Aubrey Plaza) dies as the result of a snake bite. Some time later, she has inexplicably come back to life, and her parents (John C. Reilly and Molly Shannon) are trying to hide her from the outside world. As Zach tries to do everything he didn't do when Beth was still "alive", he notices that she has become more irritable, hyperactive and even more possessive of him. Could she be a zombie? Life After Beth tries to be a romantic comedy and a zombie horror flick and fails at both. The writing is bland, with a premise that at first seems like a good opportunity to be a deconstruction of the zombie movie flick, but it wears off quickly. The characters are beyond annoying. There is always two, three or more people yelling at each other about something. The film never thinks to slow down or take a break. I didn't laugh once. I don't think the movie even tried to be funny, and it just got more depressing as it went on. The acting is passable, but it is Aubrey Plaza who stands out the most. You can tell she believed in this story, and her manic energy was what kept me watching. In the end, Life After Beth just didn't do it for me, and at this point the zombie genre is barely breathing.

Taking a look at a thread on IMDb's Classic Film board for the best titles of 2015,I spotted a fellow IMDber mention a zombie Romantic Comedy.With a friend being a fan of the Zom-Rom-Com Shaun of the Dead,I decided that it was time to meet Beth.The plot:A week after his girlfriend Beth Slocum has died from a snakebite, Zach Orfman helps Beth's parents Maury & Geenie to put her items away.Walking back home,Zach spots a strange object walking round the Slocum household.Knocking on the door,Zach is shocked to discover that Beth has come back from the dead! Whilst Beth's parents celebrate her "resurrection",Zach begins to fear that his girlfriend's return will cause the world to end.View on the film:Chewing the zombie scenery around them, John C. Reilly, Molly Shannon, Paul Reiser & Cheryl Hines each give wonderful performances as the parents of Zach and Beth,with their improv backgrounds giving the parents a jazzy edge as they search after logic for Beth's zombie return.Going from mourning to dating the dead, Dane DeHaan gives a very good performance as Zach,who DeHaan shows to be more anxious over knocking on the Slocum door than he is taking his zombie girlfriend out for a date. Caked in flaky zombie make up,the cute Aubrey Plaza gives a great performance as Beth,thanks to Plaza giving Beth a dead-pan comedic bite,which is joined by a zombie rage that Plaza puts an explosive amount of energy in.Inspired by the TV Comedy show that some of the cast have starred in,writer/director Jeff Baena gives the title a slick mock-doc appearance.Largely keeping away from "shaky-cam" Baena uses the fake doc look to give the film a frantic atmosphere,as punch lines dart across the screen whilst the dead walk the earth.For the screenplay,Baena gives the romance between Beth & Zach a sweet sincerity,with the comedic one-liners being wrapped in a breezy atmosphere which folds out in the films surprisingly melancholy final notes,as Zach begins to wonder if he has to get set (again!) for life after Beth.

In my opinion Dane DeHaan is an amazing actor. Even though I have vowed to never see a found footage movie again, I did struggle through the entirety of Chronicle which was to no one's surprise...a found footage quality movie.But then I saw DeHaan in Amazing Spiderman 2 where he successfully helped the audience understand why he is so angry and why he has reason to be a villain. So similarly, in this movie he conveys realism under surealistic situations.If zombies were real... this is how it would go down. I am trying to understand why I loved this movie but it all comes down to one fact. Real characters.I keep mentioning again and again how some movies kill off characters and sad music is playing and you are supposed to feel sad yet...you feel nothing at all. And all the Hans Zimmer in the world wont make you cry.But then, there are movies whose plot revolves around a robot with scissors for hands, or a kid that grows up after a wish, or a dude who lost his volleyball in the ocean.And this is a movie with real characters for whom you care. Realistic dialogue, awesome situations. Truly a one of a kind movie. Neither a horror nor a comedy flick...not even a romantic one.Just a story of how it would go down with a little bit of silliness in it.Beth's parents are in denial about their daughter which is only natural. Dehaan's reaction after finding out Beth is still alive and how he goes temporarily insane and re falls in love with her. How Beth loses touch with her humanity gradually and how a zombie uprising is about to occur are all awesome elements.I loved watching this movie. The cast is wonderful and Audrey Plaza earns my respect as someone who is not afraid of destroying her image. I have reached a point in my life where I am bored as hell of watching clichés and formulas. Every alien movie needs a "bomb" the mothership ending. Every possession movie needs a girl acting silly and talking in voices. Every zombie movie needs people barricading themselves in malls. Every disaster movie needs explosions and footage of the Aiffel tower and the Acropolis getting destroyed.Not Von Trier's Melancholia that had a different approach to destruction movies.Nor Jeff Baena's Life After Beth that had a different approach to zombie movies.If you want the same old sith,a typical zombie movie ...go for Land of the Dead [2005]. If you want a different approach...Life After Beth is excellent.I wish the audience was a little bit more supportive to movies like this.I know that a 9 score is reserved for super awesome movies that are classics and that will stand the test of time, with awesome acting, photography, story telling techniques, music and the whole package.Regardless, I am going to give this movie a 9 because I loved watching it and given the ridiculous material they had to work with (a dude in love with a zombie) they did an excellent job.

Yes, it's another zombie film. There are so many these day that they kind of all merge into one, therefore anything that actually stands out among the B-movies that have gone straight to DVD is actually quite rare. 'Life After Beth' is okay. Nothing more. However, when compared to its current crop of rivals, it's actually not all that bad.Zach's girlfriend, Beth, dies and he's naturally heartbroken. Although, it's not all bad as she comes back. She's welcomed back by her grieving parents who are quite happy to put aside the 'hows and the whys' of her resurrection, just so long as they've got their child back. But, as you probably can guess, having a reanimated corpse as a close family member is a recipe for disaster.Yes, she starts out okay to begin with – her slight loss of memory surrounding her untimely demise can easily be blagged. But it doesn't take too long before she's pulling apart small buildings and getting hungrier and hungrier for... well, what do zombies normally eat? If you've seemed 'Warm Bodies' then you probably know the sort of genre we're talking about here. It's a kind of love story for teenagers, but with the undead thrown in. Personally, I preferred 'Warm Bodies' as it was bigger budget and had more to it. Life After Beth is like its poorer cousin. Like I say, it's not a bad film. It has enough black comedy moments to amuse, but there aren't really enough to make it a straight comedy. Nor is there enough gore to class it as a horror. You've basically got a teen romance story which borrows from a few other genres.It doesn't have to be watched by teens. I think it's adult enough to be watched by anyone who's sort of into zombies/horror/black comedy. Just don't expect too much. Everyone plays their part as well as can be expected. Bottom line: if you enjoyed Warm Bodies and are happy to sit through – yet another – zombie film, you might like this. If nothing else it's quite short!