Trying to classify Shaun of the Dead is nearly impossible. Is it a zombie flick? A romantic comedy? A horror movie spoof? At different points in the film, Shaun of the Dead, the newest British comedic import, seems to be a little of all of these, but the movie is at its best when it just tries to be funny.
Although Shaun of the Dead definitely cannot be called mainstream, it does not get wrapped up in its own humor and never becomes self-conscious, a trap of many indie films. Co-writers Jessica Stevenson and Simon Pegg have plenty of experience writing comedy. The idea for the movie is based on an episode of their own British comedy series, Spaced, which, along with Shaun of the Dead, is directed by Edgar Wright.
Shaun, played by co-writer Pegg, is an electronics store employee whose career is stagnant and love life is even worse. He wakes up one morning to find that the dead are rising again to feed off the flesh of the living. Realizing that these stumbling, incoherent creatures are not just hung-over losers, Shaun must rise to the challenge and protect himself and those he loves from becoming zombie-bait.
The biggest jokes of the movie come at the beginning, when Shaun goes about his business, unaware of the hordes of undead walking the streets. The underlying joke, of course, is that every member of modern society has conformed to such a degree that we are all two steps away from becoming zombies ourselves.
The majority of laughs come not from the zombies but from the much livelier group of supporting actors. Shaun’s lovable roommate Ed, played by Nick Frost, is even more incompetent than Shaun himself. Shaun’s mother, played by Penelope Wilton, is hilariously oblivious to the imminent threat. Kate Ashfield is very likable as Shaun’s on-again, off-again girlfriend, and Bill Nighy (you remember him as Billy Mack from Love, Actually) scores major laughs as Shaun’s cold, unloving stepfather.
Where Scary Movie merely spoofed specific horror flicks, Shaun of the Dead spoofs the entire genre of zombie movies, creating a more original and more accessible film. Because the humor of the movie does not hinge upon the fact that the audience is already familiar with specific zombie horror movies, everybody is in on the joke. Shaun of the Dead relies on references to everyday life, such as the feeling of drudgery in day to day tasks and the guilt stemming from ignorance of major world affairs.
Eventually, Shaun of the Dead falls victim to the traps of all romantic zombie comedies. Somewhere between the barricading in the pub and the 57th head-bashing of a zombie, the movie takes a turn for the serious and leaves behind the witty dialogue and subtle jokes that kept the first half of the film moving. The action becomes more desperate, and the hilarious minor characters are either killed off or fade to the background. When interviewed by the BBC, Pegg admitted to being influenced by classics such as Night of the Living Dead: “It has that rare joy of being a film which is at once hilarious and terrifying, and forces you to experience this strange spectrum of emotion.”
Shaun and his leading girl do manage to carry the latter, more serious part of the movie, however, but by this point Shaun has transformed from sluggish couch potato to take-charge hero. Frankly, he was more entertaining as the couch potato. The film regains in part its original sense of humor in the final few minutes, in which every character, of course, gets his or her comeuppance.
In Shaun of the Dead, we humans wind up laughing at the ironic, thoughtful humor of which we are the brunt. We may all be zombies, but we can enjoy being made fun of.
Shaun of the Dead is currently playing at Loews Georgetown 14 and Landmark’s E-Street Cinema.
