They may have been boy scouts since early childhood, but as these three young men teeter on the brink of becoming juniors in high school, it seems that the badges they still sport now evoke a feeling of shame, rather than pride, for all involved. That is, for all except for Augie. Augie is about to enjoy the best day of his life, for he is about to accept his condor badge, a.k.a. the highest award in all of scouting. Since the ceremony calls for camping out with their Scout Leader Rogers, two of the boys decide to sneak off while the others are sleeping, have a great time at their first big high school party, and be back by dawn. Little do they know, meanwhile, on the other side of town, a freak accident has just occurred at the local lab, unleashing a tidal wave of disease and mayhem on these quiet suburbs and their scouts. It’s not long before zombies are dragging their feet around every street corner, lurking in the dark shadows, preying on the weak, and chomping down on those too slow to run away. In the end, when the town is in ruins, and the undead begin to outnumber the living, it seems that the only people capable of preventing the impending apocalypse are the most unlikely of heroes: the scouts.
Augie looks to prove himself in the eyes of his scout leader, but now, he’ll face his greatest challenge yet, as he and his friends undergo the ultimate rites of passage, and become not just masters of outdoor activities, but heroes in charge of saving world. Set around the premise of three childhood friends overcoming impossible odds which all unfold in the same evening, hoping, in the end, to attend the big high school party, Scouts Guide to the Zombie Apocalypse plays like a juvenile version of Superbad with speedy zombies sprinkled in. With a setup of sweet, juvenile scouts going up against merciless, cannibalistic corpses, this film had a real opportunity to present a witty, naive take on the usual gruesome, terrifying zombie genre, but instead, its rude, cocky characters came off like brats that didn’t deserve to overcome the obstacles they encountered.
The characters don’t change, or grow, or even have moments of vulnerability. Their cool, crass facade was never broken for a moment to let the audience in on their emotions, forcing the film to forfeit any sense of sympathy for the well being of these kids who are far too passive and accepting of the fact that zombies have come to take over their little town and everyone they know is probably dead. The only character that elicits any sort of sympathy in the entire movie is Augie, and that’s really only because he’s the butt of every joke. For a film that seeks to express the idea that tragedy can break down barriers and encourage people to realize that friendship is more important than popularity and societal expectations, it sure seems that no one involved is too shaken by the news of the end of the world, or too concerned about anyone’s well being.
The lack of emotional investment in the characters rings especially true for pretty much every female involved in this movie. One so-called zombie strips for the boys and bares her breasts, managing to pull off smooth, sexy dance moves as she slides down her pole, undead yet somehow still completely limber. Another woman tries to chase the boys through a gate but gets caught on the metal fence, ripping open her shirt and revealing her large, bouncing breasts and she continues to run in place. Even the girl that’s carved out a place in the scouts’ crew, Chloe, despite being the real ringleader, superior fighter, and hero of the group, is only recognized as the hot stripper who’s greatest lesson to pass on to the younger impressionable boys is how to french kiss. The women in this film are trophies, incapable of physical imperfections and devoid of personalities; which might be acceptable in today’s world where even zombie flicks are filled to the brim with impossibly pretty people, if not for the fact that most of the male zombies are anything but attractive.
Sad, stereotypical depictions of women aside, the thing that really bothers me about movies like this is how unoriginal and played out these scenes are. It’s not the nudity that’s the problem, it’s the silly, unimaginative presentation, which only lends to the suggestion that the only real role that a girl can play in a horror movie falls under one of two categories: the hot damsel in distress, or the hot frigid challenge that needs to be conquered. It’s the idea that these young men don’t need to change into better people to get the girls that they want, they just have to take advantage of the women’s’ vulnerability in life-threatening situations. Even Chloe, one of the main, integral characters, who fires a shotgun and rides a motorcycle, falls prey to this trap. No matter how many times she saves the boys’ lives, in the end, Chloe is nothing but a tan body of temptation in a white tank top.
On the plus side, I really like the premise of boy scouts going up against zombies and using the skills they’ve learned to lend a hand in preventing the apocalypse. This plot provides a unique angle on a worn subject that allows a refreshingly innocent take on a subject that usually comes with such cynicism and sadness. However, the scouts’ triumph over the undead comes with little enthusiasm from me, personally, as I found them lacking the heart and growth that makes most characters facing the end of the world so sympathetic. By the night, after all of their trials and tribulations, the boys should have evolved from arrogant teenagers to humble men, but it seemed that instead of changing for the better, they stayed the same and learned how to pick up chicks.
Scouts Guide to the Zombie Apocalypse mainly finds strength in its references to the veterans that have come before it, filled from start to finish with easter eggs that veteran horror fans are sure to enjoy. From a street sign that reads “Haddonfield” to a weapon of choice that screams Dead Alive, to a climax that echoes Shaun of the Dead, this is one horror movie is brimming with nods to the classics, which is always nice to see, especially in a film that’s aimed at such a young audience. Unfortunately, the film relies so much on homages, that it itself becomes a shadow of its predecessors; a mimicry that fails to possess the heart that made the films it pulls from so memorable.
Of course, this is a comedy, so it doesn’t necessarily have to be permeated with the gut-wrenching, somber drama that characterizes many end-of-times tales in pop culture today, but the humor, felt too immature and unimaginative to balance out the lack of melodrama. However, the audience I saw the film with seemed it find it hysterical, and laughed at many of the jokes in the film, so I still think it well do well in theaters, even though I personally found it dull. However, with the graphic subject material and the immature nature of the film, it’s unclear as to who the real target audience is, seeing as most of the teenagers who would actually be interested in seeing Scouts Guide to the Zombie Apocalypse in theaters will be too young to buy a ticket.
