Overlord (2018) Nazi Zombie Movie Review - Quick One

Movie Night Autopsy

Sam, of Movie Night Autopsy, reviews the new Nazi zombie horror movie, Overlord.

What, what, what in the unholy Hell did I just watch? This is Sam, with a Quick One, brought to you by the crew from Movie Night Autopsy.

OK, so first off, I just want to say I can't believe it took us so long to come up with a horror film about war, something so inherently horrible, but here we are, and at least we got here, and Overlord is just that.

It's a horror movie. It's an unapologetic genre flick, if there ever was one, but when it's not that, it's a legitimately powerful take on war. From the opening moments centering on a squad preparing to drop in Nazi occupied France, and I can't believe I'm saying those words about a movie like this, the sense of camaraderie and brotherhood commonly associated with stories of war are ever present. The entire sequence of allied planes being shredded by German forces and the reaction of petrified, largely untested troops is among the most beautiful accomplishments I've seen on screen this year. At the heart of everything that happens moving forward, this is in fact a war movie.

Now admittedly, the film deviates from historical cannon right away, as American troops weren't integrated until 1948, but history is irrelevant in this type of a story. Also, Javon Adepo just kills it, watch out for that guy he’s going places, but that's almost beside the point because everyone here is in on what's happening, and they are dedicated to fulfilling this vision of... just whoever was crazy enough to put all of this together. So as the flick starts by leaning hard on some Band of Brothers type of Saving Private Ryan aesthetic, the director gracefully, for lack of a better term, handles the genre-bending transition into the From Dusk till Dawn of the Night of the Living Dead-like place where this whole thing ends up, and that, is no small feat.

It’s impressive as we weave our way through this horror show of a war story, and we eventually see it become a very different type of horror show, that I was never left questioning what I was seeing. I accept the films maniacal left turns — even embrace them — because of course, Nazi zombies, of course. It's not quite Wolfenstein: the Movie, which is almost what I was expecting, but the film succeeds on its own merits in just about every way that it can, and as long you know the cluster fuck of a movie that you're getting into, I think most movie goers are in for a good time at the theater, and all this despite having J.J. Abrams’ name on it. A wild, crazy, fun ride occasionally delving into the true stuff of nightmares, this one’s a winner for me. See it in IMAX if you have a chance. It’s worth it.

4 Nazis and a half a zombie out of… something… you know. Whatever.

I'm Sam, and this was a Quick One, brought to you by Movie Night Autopsy.

P.S. What's the deal with kids just owning it in R-rated movies this year? Yeah, this one’s got one of those too.

Thanks for listening.