Zombieland is thoroughly entertaining

If you’ve seen any zombie movies or read Max Brooks’ “Zombie Survival Guide,” then you know the key to actually surviving a zombie threat is by having a few rules to follow, and things are no different for Columbus (Jesse Eisenberg) as he tries to make it through a zombie infested world in the new horror/comedy film, Zombieland, from director Ruben Fleischer.

Columbus is a nerdy college student that spends his Friday nights eating pizza and playing World of Warcraft while thinking about his one simple dream in life: to one day lightly brush a girl’s hair away from her ear. When the people of the world suddenly turn to zombies, surviving becomes easy for Columbus since the most basic form of survival is to avoid zombies, which has been his same rule of thumb for people. On his way to Ohio (hence, the name Columbus) to see if his family is alive, Columbus compiles a list of rules to help survive zombie attacks: cardio, because the fatties are always the first to go; limber up, because the last thing you want to do is pull a hammy while running from flesh eating zombies; and avoid bathrooms, because the undead always attack when you’re most vulnerable.

Along the way, Columbus runs into Tallahassee (Woody Harrelson), a badass, zombie killing machine, and two smooth operating sisters in Wichita (Emma Stone) and Little Rock (Abigail Breslin). From this point on, the film sort of takes on the feel of a road trip movie, if road trip movies consisted of slaying zombies, and the destination switches from Ohio to California as the girls headed to a theme park they attended as children.

While the plot is nothing original, just your typical zombie flick with some laughs thrown in for good measure, it is hugely entertaining. Strangely enough, the combination of Eisenberg and Harrelson make for an amusing odd couple that feed off each other. Eisenberg once again shines as the socially awkward, lovable loser and Harrelson, well he’s Harrelson. As far as the female leads go, Breslin continues to solidify her spot as one of the most impressive rising young female talents in Hollywood and Stone has come a long since performing in the Valley Youth Theater in downtown Phoenix, Arizona.

The best part of Zombieland is an impressive celebrity cameo. Who makes the cameo, you might ask? I can’t tell you because that would ruin it! The only way to truly appreciate the magnitude of the greatness of this moment in movie history is to witness it with your own two eyes. I assure it’s the greatest cameo in the history of film, even better than Will Ferrell in Wedding Crashers. You’ll be talking about it for days.

So if blood, gore, theme parks, rednecks and Twinkies are up your alley, then you won’t find another movie this year, or any other year, nearly as entertaining as Zombieland.