Film Review: Osombie (2012)

SYNOPSIS:

The story follows Dusty, a yoga instructor from Colorado, who is on a desperate rescue mission to save her crazy brother Derek, a conspiracy theorist who is convinced Osama bin Laden is still alive, despite having been buried at sea. In Afghanistan, Dusty falls in with a team of NATO special forces on a secret assignment. Turns out Derek is not so crazy after all, and that Osama has returned from his watery grave and is making an army of zombie terrorists. When the group crashes headlong into the growing zombie apocalypse, Dusty and the troops must find and destroy the root of the zombie insurgency before it infests the rest of the world.

REVIEW:

I hope I’m not the only one here that thinks “Osombie” was a good film. Maybe the idea of a zombified Osama Bin Laden is too much for some folk, here it just worked. We barely see the actual “Osombie”, he mostly shows up at the opening of the film and then end, that aside, I found the film to be very entertaining and well made. My taste in film is always questioned by friends, family, and peers, and maybe this is a crazy notion, but “Osombie” was a blast. It wasn’t the farce that I thought it was going to be. There are some funny moments during the first twenty minutes or so, then things get serious. Sometimes maybe a bit too serious, but overall it is well worth the 90min you invest into it.

Dusty (Eve Mauro) is on a mission to find her brother Derek (Jason Wade) in Afghanistan. He believes that Osama Bin Laden is still alive and refuses to leave the country until he is dead for good. What Dusty doesn’t know is that there’s much more to the war and there’s an army of the undead that’s growing and being used by al-Qaeda. Dusty ends up being rescued by a group of NATO special forces that are on a secret mission. They are a rag tag group with names like Chip (Corey Sevier), Joker (Paul D. Hunt), Tomboy (Danielle Chuchran), and Chapo (William Rubio). Without fear they head right into the center of the insurgents and try to discover the truth behind the rise of the zombie.

“Osombie” falls short from being called a classic. I had several problems with the film. If they had been addressed by the filmmaker,s could have led the film to being one. Instead it’s just really good. I hate the fact so many films abandon traditional effects in favor of CGI. It will always be less convincing and will never take the place of the far more believable corn syrup and food coloring. There was some decent CGI and a cool blood splashing the camera effect but most looked silly. The plot was relatively non-existent. It worked, but I was hoping for a bit more to the story. Also, what the title suggests and what the movie delivers are two completely different things. The title suggests silly B-movie exploitation fun, we end up getting something that is much more serious in tone.

That may seem like quite a few complaints but really they are only minor annoyances and mostly just a personal preference. As a whole, the film works on an unexpected level. The group of characters we get to know were much more fleshed out than I would have thought. We spend enough time with them that when some of them fall, we hate to see them go. Their banter is fun and they function well as a unit. The zombie effects were great with a few really unique looking creations that I found to be creepy. The film is expertly paced and never felt like it drug on too long. It was shot with a very polished look and never looked cheap or unprofessional.

“Osombie” played it pretty safe as far as being politically correct yet still managed to say a few things about the world we live in. While not the silly B-movie I thought it would be, it still entertained me on a weekend night when I had a rough day. There is plenty of action (it is more of an action film than a horror film), thrills, and explosions brought to us by director John Lyde and writer Kurt Hale. Though I had some minor issues with the story, it was all executed rather nicely and would recommend as well as watch again. I have no problem giving “Osombie” ***1/2 (out of 5). It does exactly what it sets out to do and delivers an entertaining and unique zombie experience.

Osombie (2012)