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[tab title="Movie Review"]

The road trip through the zombie apocalypse continues with Ruben Fleischer’s Zombieland: Double Tap, which comes some ten years after his Zombieland caught the front end of the zombie resurgence in the ‘90s and rode it into undead lore.

While a decade is a lifetime in terms of a follow-up installment, it doesn’t feel like it has been that long. Nor does it really matter as Tallahassee, Wichita, Columbus, and Little Rock are back in this genre-bending horror/comedy that picks up where the previous installment left off. Zombieland: Double Tap, is a solid genre mashup dripping with the same irreverent, sarcastic humor that so endeared the original to zombie/horror aficionados. Welcome, fans, to Zombieland. Where life is more than just about survival!

Double Tap picks up ten years after the events of the first film, amidst a post-apocalyptic, zombie-ravaged world that sees our heroes having taken up residence in the White House. Columbus (Jesse Eisenberg), Tallahassee (Woody Harrelson), Wichita (Emma Stone), and Little Rock (Abigail Breslin) appear to be – on the surface anyway – an idyllic family trying to stay alive during the zombie resurgence. By sticking to a set of prescribed rules (i.e. Rule #1: Cardio - to escape a pursuing zombie you will need to out-run it, and this means being in good shape), they’ve been able to fend off the undead flesh eaters well enough so that their interests have since switched from protection and safety to more mundane things such as love and friendship, particularly for Little Rock who is now a young woman and is itching to be with someone her own age.

Also growing restless is Wichita who, after receiving an unwanted proposal from Columbus in the Lincoln Bedroom, joins her sister Little Rock as the pair skedaddle away from the overgrown and dilapidated White House to head out on the road. Naturally, Tallahassee and a lovesick Columbus take out after them, but it isn’t long before Columbus finds comfort in the arms of air-headed Madison (Zoey Deutch), who he finds hiding in a freezer inside an abandoned shopping mall. {googleads}

Director Ruben Fleischer (Venom) returns, as do original writers Rhett Reese (Deadpool) and Paul Wernick (Deadpool) who have undoubtedly found a way to answer the question of whether or not we really needed a sequel. Of course we didn’t, but the first film was such perfectly-timed lightning in a bottle with so many great comedic moments, and such perfectly gruesome zombie kills that fans grew annoyingly persistent for a revisit. For once, the fans were right.

But several other things needed to fall into place for this thing to work. The script had to be absolutely worthy and, of course, the return of the principal cast was imperative. But who could imagine four Academy Award Nominees (Stone with a win) returning to do a zombie movie? Well, fortunately everyone agreed and the result is a pleasantly enjoyable little comedy/action/drama/romance film that occasionally rises above its lowbrow zombie tropes to remind us that family, home and reliable friends are often all we need to get by in this messed up world.

The film also stars Luke Wilson, Rosario Dawson, Thomas Middleditch, and Avan Jogia. It is also worth mentioning the memorable performance of Zoey Deutch (The Disaster Artist) who upstages everyone around her and very nearly steals the entire show.

Major credit must be given to Fleischer who manages to perfectly orchestrate the delicate tone dance needed to get the feel of everything just right. There are a lot of elements at play here, from breaking the fourth wall, to on-screen graphics, to winks and nods towards the genre, to a mid-credits scene. So it all comes with a high degree of difficulty. But Fleischer nails it perfectly and manages to give us something quite different while paying loving props to the original. And yes, he even takes a few jabs at the current inhabitants of the real White House.

If you liked Zombieland, then by all means don’t miss this one. Just don’t forget rule #8: Get a Kickass Partner – It’s always good to have an experienced zombie killer on your side.

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[tab title="Blu-ray Review"]

Blu-ray Details:

Home Video Distributor: Sony Pictures
Available on Blu-ray - January 21, 2020
Screen Formats: 2.39:1
Subtitles: English, English SDH, French, Portuguese, Spanish, Cantonese, Indonesian, Korean, Malay, Mandarin (Simplified), Mandarin (Traditional), Thai, Vietnamese
Audio: English: DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1; French: Dolby Digital 5.1; Portuguese: DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1; Spanish: Dolby Digital 5.1; Thai: Dolby Digital 5.1
Discs: Blu-ray Disc; Two-disc set; DVD copy; Digital redemption code
Region Encoding: Locked to Region A

Sony Pictures definitely has an experienced zombie killer onboard as they perfectly nail this Zombieland: Double Tap Blu-ray + DVD + Digital release. We get a plethora of extended and bonus material as well as a cracking good transfer to boot. Included in the two-sided eco-case are a blu-ray disc, DVD disc, and a Movies Anywhere digital redemption coupon.

Sony definitely live by their own rule #2: If you think one was good enough, one more makes 100% sure. They've put everything into this release and as a result, you'll definitely want this one in your hi-def collection?

Video

A glorious blood-soaked 1080P 2.39:1 transfer awaits you as the disc is popped in your player. This is a true thing of beauty as colors are always true in both indoor and outdoor scenes (especially the deep crimsons of the blood). Despite the occasional seemingly random appearance of grain here and there (noticed it in some night scenes), you'll be amazed at the clarity of detail throughout. Most of the landscapes are quite bleak and depleted, which is reflected in the somewhat de-saturated color palette throughout. Check out the Winnebago scene at the 33-minute mark and feast on the buckets of blood that splatter the surroundings in glorious 1080p detail. Jump on this release now, but be sure to mind rule #4: Seatbelts. It's going to be a bumpy ride.

Audio

On the audio front, there's not a whole lot to lose your head over. The film is surprisingly dialogue-heavy, but gunshots, headshots, and the grunts of the undead will pepper your home theater from all sides in pure DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 glory. Of particular note is that the Portuguese, Spanish, and Thai language audio tracks are in full 5.1.

Here's where this release really goes for the throat as included in the Blu-ray + DVD + Digital release is a bucket-full of bonus material including a feature-length audio commentary with Director Ruben Fleischer.

Supplements:

Commentary:

• Feature commentary audio track with director Ruben Flesicher.

Special Features:

• Extended Bloopers & Outtakes
• Alternate & Extended Scenes
• The Doppelgangers
• The Rides of Zombieland
• Rules of Making a Zombie Film
• Making Babylon
• New Blood
• Single Take Doppelganger Fight
• Zombieland Ad Council

Blu-ray Rating:

	Movie
	Video
	Audio
	Extras
Overall Blu-ray Experience

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[tab title="Film Details"]

MPAA Rating: R for bloody violence, language throughout, some drug and sexual content.
Runtime: 99 mins
Director: Ruben Fleischer
Writer: Dave Callaham, Rhett Reese
Cast: Woody Harrelson, Jesse Eisenberg, Emma Stone
Genre: Horror | Comedy | Romance
Tagline:
Memorable Movie Quote: "It's time to nut up or shut up."
Theatrical Distributor: Columbia Pictures
Official Site: https://www.zombieland.com/
Release Date: October 18, 2019
DVD/Blu-ray Release Date: No details available.
Synopsis: Columbus, Tallahassee, Wichita, and Little Rock move to the American heartland as they face off against evolved zombies, fellow survivors, and the growing pains of the snarky makeshift family.

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[tab title="Art"]

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