The review of Wyrmwood: Road of the Dead - A recent Scream Factory Blu-ray release. Read the review below:
Wyrmwood: Road of the Dead has come out riding out a wave of positive buzz. The film was being touted as a mix of Mad Max-ian post-apocalyptic landscape and Dawn of the Dead like zombie action. While those influences are identifiable in the film, the film itself has a long way to go to reach that level. Putting aside the obvious influences, the film on its own is as great of a mindless action film as you can get, despite a low budget. It has a rather confusing and convoluted storyline that is obviously a result of the desire to pack the film with as much action and excitement as they could, with the story itself taking a backseat. Fortunately that does not hold back the film too much.
The story of the film follows a group of people who have survived the recent world disaster in which a comet exploded above Earth and the dust caused people to turn into zombies. One of the survivors is kidnapped by a mad scientist who is experimenting on survivors and zombies alike. The brother of the kidnapped woman, along with other survivors, set out to rescue her once they find out she has been kidnapped.
Unfortunately the rather simple plot of the film becomes a little convoluted thanks to the disjointed timeline of the film. To start the film of with a bang we are shown a group of survivors decked out in armor and guns fighting off a horde of zombies as the group determines that they need to get a nearby truck into the warehouse. Once this is accomplished it appears to go into backstory explaining how this whole zombie situation came about and how each person was able to get out of their situation that lead to the meeting of the group. After all of this is where some of the confusion seeps in. It seems to be that the current time of the film is the morning after the event happened but considering how the rest of the film plays out and some of the people involved later, it would seem that the event would have had to have taken place at least a few weeks prior. For example, how could there already be an unchecked mad scientist experimenting on bunches of survivors and zombies only a few hours after the zombie event? Thankfully the story doesn't try to overcomplicate itself so these discrepancies can be ignored and the action of the film can be enjoyed.
It should be noted that the story and plot of the film is only there to service the action. So while the film does employ some questionable story structure, the film is overall very solid. Essentially the film is the type where the parts are greater than the sum. A bunch of cool and new ideas were put together in this film with a decent enough story to keep it all together. To me that is what makes this film such a solid action/horror film because with these types of mindless action focused films it is alright if the story is not perfect as long as there is a lot of action sequences and cool new ideas, which this film is overflowing with. How could you not like cars powered by zombie blood/breath, a person gaining the power to mind control zombies, and zombies that are both walkers and runners as their strength fluctuates throughout the day?
Overall the film has some flaws and blemishes but despite that the film is able to give the type of mindless action fun that so many newer action films have not been able to. Tons of zombie kills, lots of fighting, cool stunt sequences, and car chases are just some of the things that have been jammed into this film. This is all the more surprising considering the relatively small budget for the film that fortunately is not obvious all to often throughout the film. In the end the film is an exciting, fun time that converges many obvious influences into one big action packed thrill ride that is a fulfilling slice of mindless action fun. Ignore the story, disregard the confusing plot, and just enjoy the ride.
Special Features:
-Wyrmdiaries: Behind the Scenes of Wyrmwood (49 mins): This was an interesting segment that offered a fun behind the scenes look of the film from the start to end. Rather than a usual discussion of the process, this segment shows short clips of behind the scenes action so there is a mix of information on the making of the film and people goofing off during down time.
-Audio Commentary with the Roache-Turner Brothers: An overall solid commentary that talks about the structuring of the film, how some of the effects were created, and all the rest of the usual information.
-Crowdfunding Videos: Wyrmwood production pitch (10 mins): This is broken down into two scenes. The first showcases the directors, their film history, and the general background of the film. The second shows the director and producer in zombie make-up reflecting on the shoot, giving thanks, and asking for more money to pay for all the post production necessities.
-Deleted Scenes
-7-minute teaser scene
-Storyboards by the Director (1:30 mins)
-Theatrical Trailers
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