Warm Bodies

We found love in a pulseless place

Between all the vampire, werewolf, and undead-human love stories that have plagued box offices in the past couple years, it’s hard to believe this trope hasn’t been beaten to death. But just when audiences thought they’d seen it all, “Warm Bodies” brings them a touching tale from the undead’s point of view. 

Adapted from the book of the same name, the movie opens by placing the viewer inside the head of R (Nicholas Hoult), a unique zombie who spends his time wandering about the airport, grunting at his zombie cohorts, and taking a very long time to walk anywhere. While out on a hunt with his undead “friends,” he sees Julie (Teresa Palmer) with her human team and falls instantly in love. He does what any infatuated boy would do: eat her boyfriend’s brains and take her back to his house to show her his record collection. 

But the more time he spends with her, the more human he begins to feel. 

There’s an obvious “Romeo and Juliet” analogy, and the movie isn’t the least bit subtle about it. (R and Julie? Nobody had to think too hard on that one.) It’s no secret in the movie that human affection is the catalyst for zombies’ regeneration. 

Watching the film, it’s hard to care about its predictability, though, because there’s so much wit and charm behind this tale of undead affection. “Warm Bodies” is yet more proof that it doesn’t matter if the story’s been done before; the right team can always breathe fresh life into it. 

Purists out there should be warned that it defies basically every zombie “rule” ever passed down from the horror of old: It’s seemingly pretty easy for the zombies to develop affection and stay vegetarian. But R’s inner monologue is so zesty it’s hard to believe no one has tried listening to a zombie’s thoughts before. 

The movie is certainly a light-hearted zombie flick, and while some moments might give a jump, they wouldn’t be described as scary. This has a lot to do with the film’s charming lead ensemble. Hoult is more lively as a zombie than Keanu Reeves has been in any role in his career. He is enjoyable to watch no matter how dead he is. Palmer gives Julie heart along with a fair amount of grit. 

Julie’s zombie-hating, military-commander dad is played by John Malkovich, and although “Warm Bodies” doesn’t give him much to work with, Malkovich manages to bring believability to the role. Analeigh Tipton and Rob Corddry, as the comedic sidekicks to the lovebirds, balance out Malkovich’s stoic father-figure role.

There’s perhaps not much to be said for the film beyond its amusement factor and quality soundtrack. The movie’s theme is a bit heavy-handed, but that doesn’t get in the way of its cleverness. “Warm Bodies” manages to get the stale horror tropes walking, and it does so with humor to boot. 

The verdict: Cute and witty, “Warm Bodies” reanimates both the zombie genre and date-night movies everywhere.