It’s becoming more difficult to recall a time when vampires and werewolves weren’t brooding, misunderstood sex symbols. Now it seems zombies will undergo the same treatment, though Hollywood might be getting ahead of itself on this one.
A poster for Warm Bodies was released, and if illustrates anything, it’s that sometimes the undead crave more than just brains. Sometimes, underneath that decomposing skin, is a sensitive soul looking for a mate. The image says it all, but I don’t know what’s more absurd – the literal bleeding heart in the background, or leading man Nicholas Hoult’s come hither death stare. See below:
In 50/50 director Jonathan Levine’s adaptation of Isaac Marion’s post-apocalyptic novel, a young zombie named R (Hoult) has an unusual Meet Cute with Julie (Teresa Palmer) when he saves her from getting eaten by his fellow undead. The two form an unlikely romance that could change their worlds forever – because if anything can civilize a lifeless cannibal, it’s the love of a good woman. The film also stars Rob Corddry and John Malkovich, who plays Julie’s father, a man hell-bent on destroying the encroaching zombie horde.
Zombies are a hot commodity, but its tough to successfully deviate from the usual man vs. monster storyline. In light of the book’s popularity, however, Levine seem confident that people will connect with the leap from the genre’s familiar formula. Of the concept, he said:
I think this movie takes the mythology in a different direction, and I think there is a lot there for die-hard zombie fans … We’re encouraging people to be open-minded, because it does take some liberties with the mythology, but at the same time, it’s very grounded in the science of zombie-ism and uses that as a springboard for a more fantastical story. It may be divisive, but I think there’s a lot there for zombie fans if they’re open-minded to a new take on it, and I hope they can. To me, that’s one of the great things about having these genre films. You can take something familiar and turn it into a whole new direction.
Thankfully, the film is a romantic comedy, so at least laughs are intentional. But Levine’s insistence that viewers, especially hardcore zombies fans, should keep an “open mind” foretells of some weird, uncomfortable details. Will mainstream cinema see its first hot zombie-on-human sex scene? Is the movie going public morbidly curious enough to find out? I guess we’ll see when the film opens nationwide on February 1st, 2013. [MTV]
Do you think Warm Bodies sounds funny or just ridiculous? Are you looking forward to the sexy zombie revolution?