Block Z (2020) Movie Review
Written By: FR
Edited By: Grave Reviews Staff
Film Information
Director: Mikhail Red
Writer: Mixkaela Villalon
Producers: John Paul Abellera, Carlo L. Katigbak, et. al.
Date Released: March 13, 2020
Cast:
Julia Barretto as PJ
Joshua Garcia as Lucas
Ian Veneracion Mario
Dimples Romana as Bebeth
Maris Racal as Erica
McCoy De Leon as Myles
Yves Flores as Gelo
Ina Raymundo as Angie / Patient Zero
Miel Espinoza as Ruby
Et. Al.
Rating = 2.5 /5 Graves
***May contain some spoilers***
Synopsis
Block Z opens with a patient being admitted in the university hospital suddenly turning into a zombie after an apparent bite. The infection spreads quite quickly throughout the hospital which is a part of the university. The story follows four medical students who are resident assistants in the hospital. As a result of the outbreak, the university is suddenly locked down without any clear indication of how the infection came to be. Once the outbreak starts, the students must try to escape and survive the infected people.
Gore Factor
Like all other zombie movies, there is enough gore to go around. Some scenes involve the consumption of flesh and limbs. Other scenes show a multitude of body parts and blood splatter. In this respect, the special effect make up and visuals are effective enough to make them look menacing.
The Grave Review
Block Z is a Filipino horror movie about zombies. Up to this point, the amount of zombie movies have saturated the subgenre and the same stories have been written over and over again. As such, there is nothing particularly new with Block Z. Unlike other zombie movies, there is no government or scientific research involved. Being at a medical school, Block Z tries to give the story a medical explanation. But, it is not enough to make the film unique or distinguished from other zombie outbreak films.
What made Block Z watchable was the fact that the families affected go through the struggle of keeping each other together while testing their family bond beyond its limits. In one case, a child who is separated from her mother eventually encounters and runs to her mother despite the fact that she is infected. There are other scenes like this that attempts to give Block Z a personal aspect to give the typical zombie story a little more substance. Unfortunately, there is little in the way of character development. Some of the main characters in the film have no backstory and it is very difficult to relate to them.
Like all other zombie movies, there are always flaws that eventually hit the surface in the story. Some scenes do not make any sense, but were incorporated to keep the story going. For example, in one scene, PJ’s boyfriend, Lucas, jumps off a building in order to save PJ, from the infected. Oddly, he is found after two weeks in a basement with a broken leg. How is he going to survive after two weeks with no water or food? There is no way he can go out to nourish himself since his leg was broken in the fall. As to the pace of the film,
In respect to the cast, the acting performances of the actors and actresses were not bad. In some scenes, the actors and actresses try to incorporate some comedic relief which gives the film a likeability in this aspect.
Overall, Block Z is another zombie movie that has offered the same recipe as other movies of the same genre. Unfortunately, Block Z is a forgettable film and one where you would not be missing much.
For the foregoing reasons, Grave Reviews gives Block Z (2020) two and a half graves out of five graves.
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