Zombies might be massive — they are, after all, at the center of the biggest show on television with “The Walking Dead” as well as its massive spin-off — but it’s harder and harder to feel that there’s anything new to say with the genre. It’s been over a decade since Danny Boyle’s “28 Days Later,” the last truly interesting spin on the undead pic, and from video games to blockbusters like “World War Z,” the zombie is ever-present but feeling increasingly played out.
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Could we get a new lease on life with “The Girl with All The Gifts,’ an under-the-radar sci-fi horror that just dropped its first trailer this morning? It’s based on a novel by M.R. Carey (aka veteran comic book writer Mike Carey) and follows Melanie, a young hungry (the film’s euphemism for the z-word) who may hold the secret to a cure, and travels with a group of scientists and soldiers.
It seems to have a little in common with Boyle’s film while also doing its own thing, and “Peaky Blinders” and “Sherlock” director Colm McCarthy seems to have a real handle on the chaos here. He’s assembled a superb cast here, too, with newcomer Sennia Nanua in the lead role, and Glenn Close, Gemma Arterton and Paddy Considine also in the cast.
Do we have a potential sleeper on our hands? Saban Films have bought the rights in the U.S, but haven’t dated the film yet, so the U.K. will be finding out first, on September 23rd. Don’t be surprised if it pops up at TIFF before that, though. Watch the trailer above.