World War Z

Quentin: I was really surprised.

Jake: Much better than I expected.

Jason: After all the bad press, I thought for sure it would be a real stinker.

Jake: We went to see World War Z today.

Quentin: What was the deal with the push back?

Jake: It was originally scheduled for release in December, but supposedly the ending was” incoherent,” whatever that means. I would love to have seen it, just to know how bad it was. The studio pushed the release back six months, hired Damon Lindelof and Drew Goddard to rewrite the third act, and then shot additional footage for two months. This is what they ended up with.

Jason: Do you think they fixed it?

Jake: Not really. It’s not bad, per se.

Quentin: It just kind of lays there.

Jake: But I would still recommend it to anyone who even remotely enjoys an apocalyptic zombie movie.

Quentin: I can see why they went to those lengths to try and save it. The first half is that good.

Jason: Should we talk about what we liked?

Quentin: Brad Pitt. The guy is a natural on screen, and you can see his thought process play out on his face. That’s a movie star.

Jake: I loved Marc Forster’s direction.

Quentin: It was great the way he shot Pitt’s point of view.

Jake: Yes. Pitt’s character was always cataloging things. You could see him put the pieces together. Oh, he saw that. Then he saw this other thing. Watching characters figure stuff out is a great payoff in and of itself. What was your favorite part, good looking?

Jason: Fast zombies!

Quentin: How do you know he was talking to you?

Jason: Please.

http://youtu.be/HcwTxRuq-uk

Jake: Not just fast.

Quentin: Fast, strong, aggressive…

Jake: And virtually impossible to stop.

Quentin: Jason, you want to recap?

Jason: This is a disease pandemic movie. A zombie virus spreads across the globe, causing the collapse of civilization as we know it. Brad Pitt plays a former UN guy who is recruited to help a young doctor figure out how to stop it. When the doctor is quickly killed, Pitt becomes humanity’s only hope.

Quentin: I think it’s going to happen, you know.

Jake: A pandemic, you mean?

Quentin: A pandemic, a climate change event, a stock market collapse, take your pick. I think we’ll see the end of the world in our lifetime.

Jason: You’re such a nihilist.

Quentin: And yet, I draw such comfort from these movies. The chaos of the first thirty minutes reminded me of how I felt when Mom and Dad died.

Jake: And you draw comfort from that?

Quentin: Yeah. Don’t ask me why.

Jason: I think it’s because we watched movies like this right after they died. Remember? When Ben and Travis lined up that whole testosterone festival?

Quentin: I never thought of that.

Jake: My favorite part was that people weren’t stupid.

Jason: I know what you mean.

Quentin: It was so refreshing to see a horror movie that wasn’t fueled by moronic decisions.

Jake: From the very first moment, when things started to unravel, you can see Pitt and his wife (Mireille Enos, not Angelina Jolie) making smart choices. And that continues throughout the film.

Quentin: I can’t undersell how much that endears me to a movie.

Jake: It’s the kind of thing that draws me in. I was on board right away.

Jason: And there were some really cool moments.

Quentin: The zombies climbing that wall in Jerusalem?

Jake: Awesome. And every time they put a plan in motion, something went wrong.

Jason: I don’t know how many times I heard Quentin mutter “shit” under his breath.

Quentin: Pitt just couldn't catch a break. I was really feeling his pain.

Jake: But the obstacles felt organic to me.

Quentin: Are there supposed to be more of these?

Jake: Yes. The plan is a trilogy.

Quentin: Then they should have ended it on a cliffhanger.

Jason: I don’t remember a movie where saving the world was so anti-climactic.

Jake: I don’t know where they plan to go from here.

Quentin: A zombie war?

Jake: I guess. Or it becomes The Walking Dead.

Quentin: It was missing a big sacrifice.

Jason: And the payoff that comes with it.

Quentin: Like when Bruce Willis says goodbye to Liv Tyler in Armageddon.

Jason: Yes.

http://youtu.be/2H0pnL03vB0

Jake: That’s the advantage of making a stand-alone movie. If you’re launching a franchise, you can’t exactly kill off Brad Pitt.

Quentin: No one can stop at just one anymore.

Jason: I want to call out Daniella Kertesz, who plays a young Israeli soldier swept up in Pitt’s drama.

Jake: She was very good.

Quentin: Did you notice one of the Navy SEAL’s was Matthew Fox, from Lost?

Jason: I missed that.

Jake: Me too.

 Quentin: I’m surprised, Jake. You usually don’t miss that kind of thing.

Jake: Shut up.

Jason: Can we see Whedon’s Much Ado About Nothing this weekend?

Quentin: Yes. We also got a request to see The Bling Ring.

Jake: Maybe a double feature?

Quentin: A twofer?

Jason: You mean not pay for the second one?

Quentin: Yeah. They never check the tickets once you get past the front door. What’s to stop us from seeing movies all day?

Jason: Our conscience.

Quentin: Have you forgotten you’re a teenage boy? This kind of thing is in our DNA.

Jason: Whatever.

Jake: Anyone want to take my bet about White House Down? A hundred bucks says it ends with a digital clock ticking down.

Quentin: I’ll take that bet.

Jason: You win either way, Jake.