I so wanted this to be good. The trailer looked good and Oliver Hirschbiegels first two films were both pretty kick-ass. But there’s a key problem. Does the movie want to be taken seriously, as Roger Rees’ “red-in-tooth-and-claw” monologue suggests? or is it just fun popcorn, as the wacky zombies climbing on Nicole Kidman’s car suggests? As it stands now, it is neither and, therefore, a drag. Things take an awfully long time to get rolling – as exposition is slammed down our throat we also get double-doses of gratuitous Kidman-in-panties and product placement shots. (Hats off to those plastic surgeons and the good people at Mountain Dew!) Midway through, thankfully, some shit is hitting the fan and zombies are running around vomiting on people. Police are out rounding people up but, strangely, there is no menace. Somewhat surprising, given that Hirschbiegel’s first two films were all about the breakdown of social order. The Invasion pales in comparison to the films of George Romero or, say, Children of Men.
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Jordan Hoffman is a New York-based writer and film critic working for The Guardian, Vanity Fair, Thrillist, Times of Israel, NY Daily News and elsewhere.
He is the host of ENGAGE: The Official Star Trek Podcast, a member of the New York Film Critics Circle and challenges you to a game of backgammon.