After the United States accidently detonates an experimental weapon of the Eastern coast of Tasmania, the city of Hobart is destroyed, and victims on the island not caught in the immediate blast are rendered brain dead. It seems like some of these undead function in different ways, some of them barely move while others are far more advanced and may attack. The Australian military need all the help they can get, to take care of all the rotting dead bodies they have to move from different locations. American physiotherapist Ava Newman ( Daisy Ridley ), volunteers to help taking care of the dead bodies. Ava is placed on a team with Clay ( Brenton Thwaites ), who go through homes looking for the undead, where some of them might still be alive. Ava´s biggest concern is to find out if her husband Mitch ( Matt Wheland ) is still alive.
To say that We Bury The Dead is a very traditional zombie film would be wrong to say. Sure, there are zombies seen in this film during different locations, but what this film really is trying to say is how we deal with a world that changed. Nothing is what it used to be, and when we need ordinary citizens working to pick up dead bodies everywhere, you know that this is not the society that we were all hoping for. There are no ordinary schools running, no shops running either. It is basically just taking the supplies that you need too survive. Some people don´t even know if their loved ones have survived or have turned into the undead. Which is why our main character Ava is very important, connected to the main plot and the struggling she is going through trying to find her husband. One thing i really appreciate about We Bury The Dead is that they mostly use still standing zombies, not running, just giving us very disturbing eye contact with their dead eyes. Even if some of them move they do this in a creepy way, while we get too see a few faster. Reminded me a bit of director Lucio Fulci´s classic Zombie Flesh Eaters, since this is one of those zombie films where zombies barely move that fast at all. I appreciate that We Bury The Dead tries to go back to that old school format of 1970´s zombie films, it helps this film stand out a little bit in this specific genre, and the practical make up effects of the zombies look great. When it comes to the main character Ava Newman, i personally feel that actress Daisy Ridley ( who you most likely recoginze from the latest Star Wars films as the character Rey ) deliver a solid performance of a woman trying to deal with so many issues. The horror elements works well with the plot, and i have to say the cinematography by Steve Annis looks great. We Bury The Dead is actually a nice surprise in a horror genre that´s been having a difficult time finding interesting stories, this is actually a solid choice if you enjoy movies that includes zombies. Perhaps some dialogue scenes are a bit too long and dull, otherwise i can´t really complain. Director Zak Hilditch ( who directed the solid 2013 Australian post-apocalyptic thriller These Final Hours, worth checking out on physical media ) proves with We Bury The Dead it is still possible to give life to this specific horror genre, and definetely worth picking up if you love physical media just like myself. No speacial features on this UK blu ray release that i got, still worth adding to your horror collection.
Rating: DDD
If you want a special release of We Bury The Dead on a 4KUltraHD release with a blu ray included, you can get a special release of this film from the Australian distribution company Umbrella Entertainment on the following link:
