Sometimes as a reviewer you get a movie with an interesting title such as Zombiology (with the original title of Gam man da song si) immediately knowing it’s foreign with subtitles, none of that bothers me, rather does the storyline keep me engage. In addition, with a title that has the first four letters of zomb one thinks of a zombie-flick and good horror tale, oops sorry not quite it’s more of an action movie out of Hong Kong from director Alan Lo.  The movie tends to follow a strange rollercoaster presentation mixing various genres, from martial arts action, to animation, comedy, some horror and then multiple plot lines as if b-movie design became more of an afterthought.

It starts with a vivid display of animation involving two unusual characters taking on a weird bird creature firing rocket projectiles at them, however this all ends dissolving into a story of two real friends Lung (Michael Ning) and Chi-Yeung (Louis Cheung). These young men lead a carefree life, and in a fantasy world consider themselves some sort of superheroes to save the earth. Just like typical buddies, they dream big and talk about girls, soon dreams become reality and problems begin, unsure how though, not too clear on that situation. Meanwhile, the problem is just beyond their immediate area, Lung dealing numerous issues his father (Alex Man) returning home from prison, his mother Shan (Carrie Ng) suffering depression and bankers issuing an eviction notice. In addition, Chi-Yeung eagerly wants a girl named Chan-Yat (Cherry Ngan) and his best friend seeks an unreachable vixen called Yee-Sue (Venus Wong). Soon the combination of zombies appear (though they appear to avoid the bankers) and a giant chicken roams the streets (yes the same from Lung’s animation dream) shooting off exploding eggs. In some case the eggs rendered people with burnt skulls on fleshy bodies. The first half of the film seemed at times like a rotten egg just laid, but the second half brings incredible battles.

Everything in this movie, appears in a sluggish manner, and not clearly translating the plot or intention of the characters. It leaves viewer trying to figure if it’s a comedy, action or both, the pacing throws much of the film into a tailspin, leaving the audience confused. The animation well placed in context, of the beginning of flick but (spoiler) not at the end.

If you thought this movie might be another Train to Busan (2016) sorry to disappoint its far from that level, in fact, it’s not even a straightforward chase and run zombie flick that you can enjoy without much thinking. Now those perhaps more versed in Asian and zombie cinema it might just be one of those overlooked gems worth digging. However, it struggles to keep the attention, an over usage of drama in the first half, filling the screen with too many details, and muddling to convey a simple story and keep it all entertaining.

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt6220406/

IMDb Rating: 4.5/10

Baron’s Rating: 3.5/10

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