Army of the Dead (2021) User Reviews

Falls way short of its awesome potential

[RavingJinn · 6/10 · 21 May 2021]

A number of reviewers have already taken shots at the huge plot holes and ridiculous setup of this movie; I share in both their criticism and disappointment. If you happen to care about such lofty things like coherent storytelling or character development, I'd wait to watch this lazy entry into the zombie genre until you're either drunk or stoned to overlook its many problems.

And while Zack may have gotten some kind of personal thrill out of manning every major job in this project, the outcome has clearly suffered as a result. What could have been an otherwise outstanding zombie action flick, given proper attention to detail and an avoidance of lazy tropes, is instead no more than another sparkly yet mediocre piece of cookie-cutter movie confection.

The fact that more movie goers aren't outraged by the significant and apparently permanent drop in quality/intelligence of most these blockbuster Hollywood productions is what bewilders me. Apparently, just shoveling an old retread of a story into a production-line CGI machine is enough to satisfy most of today's audience, who blithely flock to, praise, and subsidize whatever vapid POS comes out. Are super hero action scenes really all we're after anymore? Isn't it time to demand more for your entertainment dollar?

Good concept, bad writing, and terrible characters

[harrymchall · 22 May 2021]

I'm not usually a fan of Zack Snyder's movies, but I do enjoy his visuals from time to time - maybe he should just stick to directing and leave the writing to those who know how to actually write a good movie with some interesting characters because this movie is just downright bad.

It's mindless fun - no more, and no less.

[tim-stjames · 7/10 · 13 June 2022]

You can't help but appreciate Snyder for the vision he brings to his projects, even if you disagree with so many decisions that go along with them. It's a really fun escape that captures the magic of the summer blockbuster with great action set pieces and a badass ensemble, it's so hard not to recommend.

Enjoy the ride.

[PalmersGreek · 7/10 · 24 May 2021]

The problem is that nowadays everyone thinks they're a film critic. Honestly, some of you have forgotten what it's like to sit back and enjoy a movie and instead seem hellbent on ripping it apart to it's bare bones and then holding up the pieces as if you're Roger Ebert reincarnated. But you're not. And he ain't come back as a zombie. So just watch and enjoy and ignore all the armchair experts. It's good fun. I loved the Dawn of the Dead remake. This is a very different film. But so what? It's a rollercoaster ride. I really cared about all of the characters. It moves the genre forwards. The action scenes are fantastic. It pays homage to those that came before it. And it stars Dave Bautista with a great supporting cast. What's not to like?

For a genre that has been done to death, this was a decent effort.

[awaydayfootball · 8/10 · 21 May 2021]

I've given the movie a generous 8 really just to make up for the poor ratings it has received! The zombie genre has been pretty much run dry through movies and TV mainly over the last 15 years and the bad movies far out way the good. I thought this was a decent offering with a few fresh ideas. Some people on here saying "it's hard to screw up a zombie movie". Seriously. I'd love to know what wonderful new ideas others would bring to the table!!!

Not bad

[rorytoss · 7/10 · 21 May 2021]

Entertaining movie. I enjoyed it.

People are taking the movie to serious. It's a zombie film after all.

The reviewers say it right: this movie is just bad, sorry Zack.

[ThomDerd · 2/10 · 23 May 2021]

(Netflix...once again) A stupidly bad film. So much money spent for this rather silly zombie flick and Zack Snyder got a nice paycheck for preparing and executing a script of a 10 year old. I don't even know where to start with this dumb script and scenes, let alone the enormous runtime of more than 2h, which completely killed this film.

I thought I will see something cool once the starting titles went in; I found that small part a great start for a nice, interesting and intense Zack Snyder film. But little did I know...The dialogue is so bad that it is not even funny, the motivation of the protagonist(s) and the character development are non existent. If you see someone saying this movie is fun then it's either Netflix social media writers or people that have never ever seen a zombie flick before. Because this is clearly not fun, but more of a money run! 2/10 just for the starting titles.

Annoying

[Gordon-11 · 6 June 2021]

The story is somewhat taking, but the daughter is just very annoying that it makes me angry.

Stop basing horror/zombie movies around stupid character choices!!!

[ethanbresnett · 7/10 · 23 May 2021]

I'm not a huge Snyder fan and think his films always have flashes of brilliance mixed with face palm moments, and Army of the Dead doesn't break this mould at all.

There's a lot to enjoy with this movie. I love the zombie genre and Zack's take on it in this film was pretty unique and interesting. The central premise was great and put a new spin on the genre. Instead of a ragtag group of survivors doing their best to evade the undead we follow a well equipped and skilled group who know what they are doing and actively head into the lion's den, which was a fresh take that I enjoyed. His style of zombie was very well done as well, with two defined types of zombie that we encounter.

The aesthetics were all pretty good, from the zombie design to the ruins of Las Vegas, everything looked cool. There were some typical Snyder directorial trademarks, as well as some blurry camera work which I really wasn't on board with, but on the whole I'd say this is one of Snyder's better looking films.

Then there's the main part of any zombie film, are there actually decent action scenes with the zombies? I'm glad to report Army of the Dead is full of some fantastic and gory zombie action. The opening credits are glorious and set the tone for the film in terms of the action. I would have liked a little more, and the pacing of the film was off a bit, as with most Snyder films, but the action we did get was top drawer.

Unfortunately, this film fell into the trap of so many horror and zombie films. The numerous nonsensical and idiotic decisions of the characters make these films so frustrating! When there are flesh eating monsters running around you don't have to inject tension, drama, and death through moronic character decisions, there's enough inherent tension already. The result of this is that none of the emotional deaths are deserved and don't carry the impact that was intended, because they are so avoidable. You just end up mad at the character that caused the death. As a result the ending fell flat because it was very avoidable and frustrating.

A good film there's no doubt about it, and it's good to see Zack returning to the zombie genre with a solid film, but it couldn't escape the usual genre pitfalls and was pretty frustrating in parts. An enjoyable and cool film though.

Just Bad

[krbodkin · 1/10 · 24 May 2021]

Slow, stupid and a painfully artificial narrow depth of field injected into every single shot. The characters are all abrasive. And the daughter, oh the daughter. I have never had to watch such a spoiled little brat sink a movie so fast.

Great entertainment

[mohdilmanqureshi · 7/10 · 24 May 2021]

A different type of zombies movie! I don't know why raiting is 6/10. You should watch it don't look at the bad reviews.

Why Oh Why?

[damianphelps · 6/10 · 26 December 2021]

A movie with great potential brought down by every single scene that the 'daughter' appears in.

The movie is stylish and fun but drags itself down to a daddy/daughter film the more it continues on. The last 20 minutes are a real let down.

Worth seeing yes but far from a classic :)

I generally love all zombie movies but wow... This was so bad.

[jonihaipus · 1/10 · 22 May 2021]

Comparing Zack's "Dawn of the Dead" and this piece of garbage is like comparing Mona Lisa and my idiot neighbors redheaded 6-year-old stepchilds scribbles.

A zombies movie

[franciscoinchau · 8/10 · 21 May 2021]

What do you expect? It's a zombies movie guys, don't think to much about the decision of the characters, or about why this happened in this way. Just sit, relax and enjoy explosions, dead and violence. If you want to see a majestic screenplay watch a Nolan movie, Scorsese or Tarantino movie.

A failed comedy

[siderite · 2/10 · 25 May 2021]

This film is directed and written by Zack Snyder?! It's garbage, from start to end. The only good bits in it are comedic and the rest is laughable, but not in a good way. It is a two hour and a half heist movie where everybody is an idiot. With zombies. They are idiots, too. The daughter, as usual, kills more people than the villains by being humane and in distress and, as unbelievable as it sounds, more of an idiot than everybody else.

Then there is the acting. Dave Bautista moves like a grandpa. Theo Rossi, who did pretty well in Luke Cage, has a ridiculous role that makes no sense. Garret Dillahunt was good in the Terminator series, but he acts like a jester in this film. Tig Notaro is not really funny after being the highlight of Star Trek Discovery. Hiroyuki Sanada... oh, Hiroyuki Sanada... he was never a good actor, let's face it, but the depths to which he fails as an actor are truly amazing.

And there is the story. A heist movie?! But with zombies that make no sense, with failed opportunities for sequels, with cardboard characters, with not one, but two straight white males that have to be brutally punished for their transgressions against women, with scenes like "I didn't do it for the money! I did it for youuuuu!". Jesus, it's worst than I am telling you it is, I just can't find the words to express the piece of excrement that this movie is.

So if you are really really really drunk, this might be funny. I don't know. I've never been that drunk, but it could happen.

They showed everything in the trailer and they even showed the best zombi fight scene in the opening credit scene via fast cut editing and then there was nothing left.

[Fella_shibby · 6/10 · 22 May 2021]

Edited : I recently revisited An American Werewolf in London n BA_Harrison rightly pointed out the similarities in the opening scene where a man falls down n as his buddy goes to lend his hand, a werewolf pounces n in this movie a zombie pounces.

Generous with a 6 cos it has some cool action n the zomtiger attack scene is bloody awesome.

There was no need to lock the team inside. Martin cud have easily told them the truth that keep all the money n more money but lemme have the head.

By just putting containers, they were able to restrict the intelligent zombies in one corner.

Vanderohe exits the vault like a piece of cake while it took hell lottuva effort by Dieter to open it.

give it a go

[odinsonthor · 7/10 · 21 May 2021]

Solid action zombie movie.

Nothing spectacular. Good watch. Got exactly what I expected and wanted.

The premise was cool and the movie doesn't take itself too serious.

Well done.

Needs a quick headshot to put it out of its misery

[leewelton-81877 · 2/10 · 23 May 2021]

A truly awful outing for Snyder. Thin dumb plot, bad writing, terrible dialogue, cinematography of someone that doesn't understand depth of field (wide open for everything). Yes you can have fun dumb movies. This one is just dumb.

Dumb fun without the fun

[cherold · 4/10 · 27 May 2021]

Army of the dead begins as though it's going to be a fun B movie. 2 exchanges in different vehicles leads to disaster which leads to terror which leads to a fun title sequence in which we see a garish Las Vegas overrun by Zombies. This title sequence packs in a lot of story; in fact, in packs in about 90% of the movie's story.

After that a bunch of people decide to go into Zombie-infested Vegas to get some loose cash, which is what the rest of the movie is. In spite of the absence of story, there's still a long chunk of time between the credits and the action which is filled with the strikingly dull enlisting of cannon fodder.

You might have a few questions as the movie begins. Are the protagonists being mislead by the billionaire who puts this in place? Is the soldier they're forced to take along untrustworthy? Will someone sacrifice themselves for others even though they probably could have saved themselves as well? Will someone risk everyone's lives on a side mission? Will things suddenly become way more urgent? Will the characters be too undeveloped for you to care about them or their mission? Will this all result because no one in the movie even considered the possibility that things weren't what they seem? Will you be unsurprised at the "surprise" ending?

If you don't know the answer to any of these questions then you've never seen a movie before and might like this one. Otherwise...

There's little attempt to bring these characters to life except in several tediously emotional conversations between two characters you don't care about.

Yes, there are some good moments here and there. The aforementioned opening credits. Zombie animals. A quiet scene with an unquiet finale. Occasional moments of good action or suspense. But it all gets suffocated by the length, the slack moments, the predictability, the stupidity, and the high "who cares" quotient.

Zack Snyder is a hit or miss director, but normally his failures are from pretention and hubris. This time he didn't fail because he was too ambitious, but because he seemingly had no ambitions at all.

FFS It's a zombie movie not Pride and Prejudice...

[grahamdean · 8/10 · 21 May 2021]

What's the matter with people an bad reviews - it's a zombie move if for goodness sake.

Just sit back and enjoy, the story is shallow but just about hold water, effects are great, Dave B and the cast are good. If you like zombie movies you'll love it.

It's a zombie movie, not an attempt at an Oscar

[titanspens · 7/10 · 30 May 2021]

It's what anyone should expect from a zombie movie. Action, gore, and nonsensical fun.

Mister Snyder knows what the fans want

[joostkale · 7/10 · 21 May 2021]

Please know what you are getting into before you start watching this movie. I've already seen countless people giving bad reviews, because they think the story isn't well-developed and has bad character studies. To all does people I would like to ask: What did you expect? Is the story the most groundbreaking thing ever? God no, but that's not what I came for. I came to see a group of weirdos chop some zombies and grab some money, and I got exactly what I wanted. I honestly think it has some surprisingly emotional moments. They didn't make me cry or anything, but I felt the relationship and the pain between Bautista and Purnell's characters. But then again, it's Zack Snyder. This man has already proven this year that he can humanize a fiction movie with Justice League, so I shouldn't be that surprised. But what I really came for, was the action. I wanted to see Zack Snyder at his best with he's great camera direction and fight scenes. The ending left me a little underwhelmed in terms of an end battle, but it still has so much energy over the entire movie with great battles and fight scenes. The story builds up the tension perfectly and kept me on the edge of my seat. This makes the fight scenes so much better. It may not be the most amazing story ever, but it kept me entertained and more.

Feels like Zack Snyder's Suicide Squad.

[tylerwood1116 · 7/10 · 14 May 2021]

First things first, I tend to like Zack Snyder's visuals and tone. Just wanted to put that out there before I review anything. If you also like his style you will enjoy this movie. It's a solid zombie movie with you not necessarily knowing who is going to make it out. Not much more than that. 7.5/10 good visuals and a fun time.

If you rate this a 1-3 rating you don't understand movies

[pmt-40832 · 7/10 · 21 May 2021]

A solid Zombie movie! People discussing screenplay and characterization and writing in the reviews may be mentally disabled. Say it with me morons ZOMBIE MOVIE. And for a zombie movie Fan or not it hit what it needed to! And you'll leave the movie having a good time if you have the expectation you are going to see a ZOMBIE MOVIE.

They also added some very cool elements I had not seen before in a zombie movie over all I think if you love Snyder you'll love this movie.

And if you are in between like me you most likely will find the movie enjoyable and a fun watch at home in Netflix.

It just gets worse and worse for Zack Snyder

[grantonslow · 1/10 · 29 May 2021]

This movie starts out as a 5 and then 4, 3, 2, 1 in quick succession. What else would you expect from the brilliant mind that brought us Batman vs Superman and Justice League? Plot holes galore. Writing, acting and directing was completely ridiculous. This movie is an insult to the make up artists and set workers who did a great job setting up the scenery for nothing.