The Girl With All The Gifts is meatier than your average zombie tell-all. Much like how 28 Days Later brought a militant, survivalist perspective to infection-based terror, director Colm McCarthy does cinematic justice to Mike Carey’s novel of the same name. This isn’t an “Omg we’re trapped and have to survive” horror flick (not totally). Jump scares play second-fiddle to a child, her volatile situation and McCarthy’s building towards something bigger. Enjoy a genre watch that has more to offer than decapitations, gore and petty exploitation. This is undead drama with the heartbreak to sustain. Coming-of-age meets flesh-tearing monsters. Why the hell is this being buried in late February?

Young Sennia Nanua stars as Melanie, said girl with said “gifts.” Civilization has been crippled by a fungal disease that turns people into cannibalistic drones (aka zombies), but Melanie represents hope. She’s a hybrid child who harbors infection,...