Review of Army of the Dead

As I started watching this movie I became a little confused, this wasn't the zombie splatter fest I had been expecting, but when I finally realized what I was watching I became pleasantly surprised. . I have to say I have no idea why this movie has an R rating. It feels much more the likes of a Ray Harryhausen or a Disney film. It's really in the realm of PG-13. There's almost no blood or gore, and when there is, it's not very realistic. I think it's being mismarketed, which is where I think the disappointment lies; it could have easily been sold as a good family movie. It looks like a low budget Sci-Fi channel movie, but with better effects. Nothing about it is earth shattering or ground breaking, it's obvious that it's extremely low budget, just like the Harryhausen films, but it also has the same magic. I found myself feeling like a kid again and that doesn't happen very often. Maybe it's just the simplicity of the story, or the naiveness of the cute blond. The story is adequate; certainly formulaic, but with the right twists and turns, the acting isn't great, but acceptable. The real gem in this film is those darn Skeletons. They are so cool in a Ray Harryhausen sort of stop motion way. They kind of jerk abnormally, I don't know if this was intentional or not, but it did give them a very unique creepy feel, like the ones in Jason and the Argonauts, except you don't have to wait until the end for the payoff. You get them from the beginning and throughout in abundance. I can't say this is an amazing movie, but it does stand out on its own. Maybe they stopped making these movies because nobody wants to see them anymore unless they're loaded with lot's of chopped limbs, gushing blood, gore and sex. This movie has a certain innocence to it that I find refreshing, and maybe some of you will too.