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Movies: Zombieland
by Alex Birch
I say what Bill Hicks would have said: PIECE-OF-SHIT. This is really a garbage movie and the only reason I write this review is to explain why. The story is simple. A nerdy WoW-player lives an abandoned life on a planet invaded by zombies. This is our story teller. Few humans have survived. One of them is a tough-guy loner who is crazy about a certain brand of fast food. Two sisters, young and pretty, naturally, have also survived. The four of them team up and this is basically what the movie is about.
There are many things that make this movie a really shitty one. The soundtrack theme, Metallica's classic For Whom the Bell Tolls, is completely out of place. The casting and storyline is boring. We've seen at least a hundred zombie films, some actually worth watching, but this one is generic to the point where it gets ridiculous. To make this up, the directors have played "smart" and turned the zombie killing into an ironic video game with "rules" to follow. It doesn't work.
Yet, we all know Hollywood produces at least twenty of these useless flicks every year, so why does this particular movie bother me so much? Martin has kind of laid the groundwork for my commentary already. The main character is no longer a masculine super hero, or even a bad imitation of one. It's a nerd. A loser. Someone who spends his life avoiding family by playing WoW, eating shit food, pissing in a jar, and walking on pink clouds as soon as a girl comes over. He's not just a nobody, he's a perfect example of someone who is wasting his life.
This is supposed to be the character we all sympathize with. Are young guys in their 20s watching this movie and really connecting with this character? The loneliness? The desperation? The nerdiness? The weakness? If this is the best we can do 2010, we're screwed already. Only a minority of guys should recognize themselves in this character. Yet I have a strange feeling this is a universal, Westernized persona. And of course, the nerd smartens up in the end, beats down a zombie, and gets the good-looking chick in the end for it. Is that realistic? Of course not. He's still a loser. In other words, feminists must be cheering by now. They've already domesticated us on screen.
But in the eyes of WoW-players who no longer feel responsible for their families--for the people who actually pay money to go and see this shit--he's more than they could ever dream of. The fact that it receives higher IMDb rating than Dellamorte Dellamore and equal rating to Dawn of the Dead, proves my point. Never before has a movie about "hope" made me so turned off.
Click here to automatically donate us a few cents for hosting, but plz don't buy this garbage.
Antidote: we're coming to take back what's ours.
WoW (video games in general) as entertainment
Been reading the vicious comments, and I came to think: Is not video games just a form of entertainment? Whether you watch TV or play video games, isn't the goal here is to relax and be entertained.
So the question should be: how much should one be spending of entertainment? Since often the case is when you're entertaining yourself, you're not producing, learning, developing skills, etc. So all depending on what kind of human being you wish to make out of yourself in balancing out the entertainment versus productivity, is all up to each individual.
I must agree with Legion though, that most of one's time should be spent wisely.
Yes but entertainment does
Yes but entertainment does not necessarily have to be something that you need when you're not producing, learning or developing skills. It is possible to find entertainment and self betterment in the same activity.
But does entertainment (and life for that matter) have to be..
...productive 24/7? Constant productivity can wear and burn one out. Sometimes one just wants to chill and do an activity that requires no effort or depth, something fun for fun's sake. Some video game playing is honestly not that different from watching some TV, or lounging outside with a beer.
I've tried a hyper busy schedule before, and just ended up bitter and burned out. I'm much happier and more productive with some "unproductive" time thrown into the mix.
Personally I find the "ZOMG! YOU PLAY VIDEO GAMES?/DO SOMETHING FUN FOR FUN'S SAKE? SINNER! REPENT! FOR YOU ARE IN THE HANDS OF AN ANGRY GOD!" subtext around here more than a bit excessive.
@Einzeta
I don't consider productive time as 'work'. I guess you do. I find absolutely no urge to watch some TV at the end of the day because my daily schedule while most of it is necessary 'work' is also fun. I don't think any one second of your day is unproductive even if you decide to spend it doing nothing. You're playing video-games to recharge from a hard day at work, so how can you say its not productive time? But this sort of entertainment provides nothing but momentary fun. There's other things you can do that are much more fun and rewarding. Learn cooking, or gardening, or spend some time with friends. These and other activities of the sort will provide entertainment and fulfillment at the same time, and I don't think you will count it as work once you pick one and spend your leisure time at it.
Indeed.
"I don't consider productive time as 'work'. I guess you do."
Yep, that's accurate. Work can be fun, but it's still work. Your suggestions on cooking and gardening are excellent, but like sports, which are also fun, have one thing in common: they all require effort. Sports require physical exertion; cooking requires some preptime, assembly and monitoring; gardening requires some preptime, as well as knowledge of such things as proper soil conditions for certain individual plants, the right amount of watering, and perhaps some trimming and upkeep. The later two certainly do not require the equivalent effort of hours of heavy lifting and/or office work, but effort nevertheless (gardening wise, watering with a hose can be relaxing, but you can only do that for so long before you drown the plants!)
Bottom line, when I think of the kind of deep relaxation that really charges me up, I think of no effort activities like napping, meditation, tv, sitting around, video games, etc.
You're also right about spending time with friends. Nevertheless, being an introvert, I absolutely need some alone time or else I get rather batty.
But you don't have to learn
But you don't have to learn all about something in one day. If something is too much effort for you, take it slow. You can't become a 5 start chef in one day. Go at a pace that's comfortable for you. But video-games or TV etc are dead ends. You can keep at them for as long as you like but nothing will come of it. And you may repent the wasted time later on.
We're just gong to have to agree to disagree.
I simply see nothing wrong with activities that are fun for fun's sake, in moderation.
I agree.
Being a learner of Japanese, I decided to play video games in Japanese ( i.e. Super Famicom, PS2, etc ). Based on my belief on video games being an utter shit waste of time. I thought, why not play in Japanese? So it is a fun way to waste time yet still learn something useful in the future. Granted words like, " wizard" and "magic" are not used often in real life but the other 90% of the Japanese used is spoken a lot in real life situations.
Rather enjoyed Zombieland.
I found it amusing that they managed to utilize the tried and true zombie genre as a "heartwarming family comedy." (Shaun of the Dead sort of went for a similiar style, though not quite the same.)
Also, I think you took the concept of the lead character a bit too seriously. Rather than a "role model for all modern men," I think his persona worked rather well for the comedy angle that this movie was going for (ie. I can actually somewhat buy a paranoid anti-social shut-in managing to survive a zombie apocalypse, precisly because he's a paranoid anti-social shut-in.)
I don't think audiences where meant to go "wow, this character being the lead makes me feel so much better about being the loser I am.", but rather to go "GWA HA HA HA HA! It figures that a loser like him would survive the zombie apocalypse precisely BECAUSE he's such a loser! GWA HA HA HA! Oh, the irony!" In fact, the entire movie was basically a parody of the zombie genre tropes, right down to the fact that none of the main characters died.
While the nerd character going from zero to hero so quickly was unrealistic, there was still a subtext of "stop being a loser and come out of your shell and maybe you'll start winning." which honestly, is that so bad?
Finally, the entire Bill Murray segment was comedy gold.
Why do you say...
Why do you say he is wasting his life, as a nerd, playing World of Warcraft, or any other video game? His pursuits are surely as superficial as yours, for a person only lives once and the way they choose to spend their time is, as it is to you, up to that person alone. Immersing yourself in a virtual world is just as superficial and weak as immersing yourself in the world of putting on airs. One is a path of least resistance the other is a path of, for whatever 'gain' you think you get, hardship. Why do you not ever address the, I go on a limb here, very high intelligence of those people you call nerds?
I am not sure about "intelligence"
I wouldn't say that nerds have a very high intelligence. I will use a WoW player or (insert video game title) player; for example, most of these people play these games quite often. They shut themselves away from different experiences. How could someone classify them as very intelligent when in reality they are just "good" at video games. Whenever a friend of mine shows/tells me about his Halo, CoD 4, WoW, or Resident Evil accomplishments I just tell him, " That's cool." and blow it off. All those hours pumped into playing videos games and for what; a slight praise. Hell, most nerdy people I talk with who play video games are completely boring. I will ask them what else do they do and they will reply, " umm, uhh, I like to have fun." I thought intelligence was knowing a broad range of subjects. In conlusion of that paragraph, I don't consider nerds who play video games to be intelligent due to the fact that if they do sit in front of a screen all day they are not subjecting themselves to a wide range of experiences.
You do have a point though. People have the right to choose how they are going to live their lives. But people who play WoW or whatever other video game should think about what they will be like 50 years from now. If they want to choose that path, then yeah let them do it; let them piss their life away. I look at it this way. What will my life be like 20, 30 or even 50 years from now? I know for a fact that by playing shit video games instead of working out, studying foreign languages, maintaining healthy relationships, etc, is not going to improve my characteristics or intelligence.
Then you are a confused idiot
"I wouldn't say that nerds have a very high intelligence."
Geeks play video games all day, NERDS actually know shit about a wide variety of things despite their video game playing.
Also lets not forget that this world is filled with toxic people, it's small wonder those who are bullied and abused by society retreat into fantasy worlds, because people are vicious apes.
The rebellious nerd attempts to stike again. But fails.
I am not talking about geeks. I am talking about personal developement and what it means to truely be "intelligent."
"Also lets not forget that this world is filled with toxic people, it's small wonder those who are bullied and abused by society retreat into fantasy worlds, because people are vicious apes."
What the fuck are you talking about? I never mentioned anything about toxic people or people being bullied and abused. My point was that I think nerds were not smart because they tend to close out reality and not subject themselves to different things.
"Because people are vicious apes."
Yeah right. It sounds like you think the world is out to get you. As if you were the rebellious nerd trying to rise up against the "evil" normal society. With that attitude you are definately closing yourself to different view points and opportunities.
I have a question. What the hell are you trying to argue? You have not proven yourself in any of your replies because you have no point to argue. You just stated that you have "dead time" and "geeks play games."
-"Surprisingly, that leaves a lot of dead time."
-"Geeks play video games all day"
In my view you sound like an frustrated nerd trying to justify the time you have wasted on video games. Granted it was dead time; you still could spend that time productively. Now, I am just making recommendations; hence the word: could.
What confused me was that I even agreed with you: Nobody should tell somebody how to live their life. But that was not the point in my post.
Wannabe ex-nerd attempts to strike back but fails
LEGION, exactly what opportunities is he missing out on in a society of declining friendship & marriage? You sound like a naive wannabe ex-geek/nerd judging by the emotional undertones of your reply & preoccupation with the subject, with ZERO understanding of Modern social context. Gaming is an unhealthy escape but unlike your gamer opponent - you're just a naive fucking fool. By: 'Another Anonymous'
Ugh, more nerd gamers getting pissed.
You make no damn sense! Why are you posting when you make no sense???
-"naive wannabe ex-geek/nerd"
I am talking about doing productive things with your time while learning new things and not wasting it on video games you fuckin' idiot. Don't you two have any reading comprehension skills?
Next time you fucking try to argue with me PLEASE for the love of god use some sort of rational logic. Instead of just attacking people with illogical fallicies. You idiots appear to be a bunch of sad fucking nerds who will desperately defend the wasted time spent on video games.
Also, where do you come off knowing that I have "zero" understanding of modern social context? Both you anons make no fucking sense at all. Anyway, fuck this. There is no point in continuing to argue. It will just be a never ending cycle of you bitching at me and vice-versa.
Uggh more wannabe ex-nerds resort to strawmen
I never disputed v-games were a waste of time and the best refuge of the short & ugly. Its your misguided dickhead idealism about life-affirming opportunities & points of view to be sought in a society of declining marriage & friendship that was my target.
Explain to me.
"Its your misguided dickhead idealism about life-affirming opportunities & points of view to be sought in a society of declining marriage & friendship that was my target."
Yet again, what leads you to assume that I have a "misguided" idealism and points of view? How can my own opinions be misguided by myself? What does your point even have to do with my original post? Where are your facts that society is declining in marriage and friendship? What society are you even talking about? Start making some fuckin' sense next time you post.
Explaining REALITY to deluded Corrupt member 'Legion'
Yet again, what leads you to assume that I have a "misguided" idealism and points of view? How can my own opinions be misguided by myself? What does your point even have to do with my original post?
Buddy...you are really, really, really confused and waaaaaaaaaaay too emotional. Your words below to the Anonymous gamer lead me to believe it...
http://www.corrupt.org/news/movies_zombieland#comment-6324 Yeah right. It sounds like you think the world is out to get you. As if you were the rebellious nerd trying to rise up against the "evil" normal society. With that attitude you are definately closing yourself to different view points and opportunities.
The belief that there are worthwhile opportunities and different points of view to pursue in a society of RAPIDLY declining friendship and marriage is the misguided idealism and point of view in question.
Facts that our Western society is declining in marriage and friendship are below:
^ Kornblum, Janet (June 22, 2006). Study: 25% of Americans have no one to confide in. USA Today. http://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/2006-06-22-friendship_x.htm
^ McPherson, Smith-Lovin, Brashears (Volume 71, Number 3, June 2006). [1]. American Sociological Review. http://www2.asanet.org/journals/asr/2006/toc051.html
^ Ellen McCarthy (2009-10-23). "For better or worse:Report says marriage's best days have gone by". Washington Post. Washington Post. pp. 10E. http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/10/23/AR200910....
Here's more food for thought...
Decline of Marriage - http://www.google.ca/search?hl=en&source=hp&q=marriage+decline&meta=&aq=...
Decline of Friendship - http://www.google.ca/search?hl=en&q=friendship+decline&meta=&aq=f&oq=
I hope you are a teenager. You really, really sound like a guy who hasn't had much experience in life and is starting it out with the best intentions and assumptions but has no idea what he's dealing with and no real knowledge of even the most basic mainstream sources of information. You're too emotional and obviously had a hard time understanding even the most basic ideas of my fairly simple sentences. Please take the time to read over the above information. If I get a response from you in less than a week, I'll know I'm wasting my time with someone as of yet young and hopeless. Take care.
So what are you trying to say?
That just because some statistics claim that society is doomed/in decline, that people who play video games excessively instead of developing themselves into well-rounded and productive individuals should get some slack? Hell, maybe if those individuals were trying to do more than video game constantly, society wouldn't be so bad off. But I'll admit, that's just conjecture.
Anyway, I'll cut to the chase:
One mode of thinking: trying our best in spite of the decline, may possibly and eventually yield good results.
The other mode of thinking: "We're doomed anyway, let's give up!" is going to doom us for certain.
The first mode of thinking is obviously superior.
I'm not 100% certain if you were trying to express the second mode of thinking. However, considering that, roughly paraphrased, your posts essentially said: "While video games are a waste of time, there are very few/a declining amount of positive experiences out there to motivate one beyond playing video games excessively.", I think that second mode of thinking is exactly what you're getting at.
If the above is what you are trying to express, I can say from personal experience (not statistics) that you are either deluded, or full of bullshit. Finding positive experiences beyond excessive video game playing is so pathetically easy, I'm not entirely certain why I'm even bothering to type the next few sentences, as they should be common sense: Get out of your comfort zone! Read a new book! Go to a club or social organization and meet new people! Take up different hobbies! What's that? Your social skills suck? Grow some balls and improve them! Read books on the subject, take courses, and practice by communicating with others when you can.
Yes, if you have a serious psychological disorder or something along those lines, the above advice may not help, but now we're just getting pedantic. The fact is, the vast majority of geeks and nerds can improve there lives just by growing some fucking balls.
By the way, I find it somewhat ironic that you criticized Legion for being "naive and limited in life experiences", when your post is nothing but statistics.
Long story short: Stop living your life by statistics and grow some fucking balls.
3rd Mode of Thinking: we most likely doomed...
...but you cant give up even IF doom is imminent, unless you're ugly-looking. Standards of what's 'possible', 'eventual' & 'good' in your words, will have to change as years pass because the decline is ongoing & exponential every 5 years and it's in tandem with one's age depleting energy naturally. They're not 'just some statistics' either but a valuble frame of reference for personal experience by pretty credible institutions.
Good then I know for
Good then I know for sure I did my job to waste your time because I am in fact a teenager with nothing better to do with his time! LOL!!! But what does it matter? This is the internet! I can say anything about my background and you won't believe it. So I will choose to be an ignorant teenager who loves to troll the shit out of people just for kicks. LAWL!!! Real immature, huh? ;)
Hell you might be a teenager for all I know! HAHAHAHA! LOL!
I look at it this way. I wasted my time writing this stupid reply. So if anybody reads it they are wasting their time as well. So that means I am making profit with the amount of time I am making people waste! Man, I am an awesome punk ass snot nosed teenager! FTW!!!
Although, I will admit that the contents of this site have helped me think a little differently about my young life. Now that this is settled, I am going to go troll some other site instead of arguing with idiot "adults" who take the time to argue with brat teenagers like myself; because I am a shit bag teenager!! YAY!! Have a nice day Anonymous!
WoW players are losers in one
WoW players are losers in one aspect, that you mentioned. I meet a lotta cool people when I play. WoW is a last resort after ive maximized my daily cardio and strength training workouts, exhausted all possible avenues for meeting people within the given limitations (usually resulting in facebook), maintaining family relationships, finances, cooking, cleaning and satisfied all progress requirements for career advancements at school... Surprisingly, that leaves a lot of dead time.
Spending even a second of
Spending even a second of your time on video-games is not excusable in my opinion. I wonder about this dude who says he does all that and still has a lot of 'dead' time. Keeping up with class, working out and eating take up all my day. But who am I to teach anyone, I'm spending my time posting on Corrupt which is also not a very productive thing to do.
Mundane activities by a mediocre WoW player.
So you think I am going to believe that? You think that just because you claim to have done all these things that I am just going to blindly take your word for it; regardless of any proof. Hell, I can say the same thing to you and you would have no idea whether or not I was lying to you. Even if you happened to do the above mentioned activities; I find it oddly funny how you happen to have a lot of dead time after doing so. But hey, if you want to still piss your freetime away playing WoW, go for it!
Speaking of activities, the ones you mentioned above aren't even impressing not to mention extremely vague. Most people do that shit anyway. Why don't you try going above and beyond? Eh, it doesn't even matter. You will probably just say you have done everything and improved everything and maxed out everything as if life was a video game called WoW.
haha
no, obviously life to you is getting angry over a MOVIE, for gods sake, the only thing worse than that is getting angry over a video game....next, lets have an argument over Dora the explorer...your next article "is Dora REALLY an explorer?: the angry rants on an Internet moron"
No one cares what you think of a movie, if you like it, rent it, if not, rent the next one, if your opinion of movies mattered in society, you would be making them. you're wasting YOUR TIME complaining about it. Sadly, your anger toward the Nerd/hero in this movie shows exactly how much YOU identify yourself with the character. You hate him because he reminds you of your own shortcomings.
If you live your life being in denial of your flaws instead of facing them, projecting them onto others through hate, you'll never overcome them.
its just sad, playing WoW might be immature, but its more embarrassing to impose your opinion on others on-line, you're SO menacing LOL I'm gonna run and burn my copy of Zombieland right now, some nobody HATED it LOL