The Crazies (2010)

Credits / Details

63%
Overall Rating

Ranked #1,405
...out of 20,698 movies

Genres: Action Thriller Escape Film Horror Sci-Fi Horror

Connections: The Crazies

As a toxin begins to turn the residents of Ogden Marsh, Iowa into violent psychopaths, sheriff David Dutton tries to make sense of the situation while he, his wife, and two other unaffected townspeople band together in a fight for survival. --IMDb

Review by Chad
Added: September 21, 2010

I've always been a bit of a Romero fanboy, but The Crazies is one of his films that I just couldn't get behind. I mean, it wasn't a horrible movie by any stretch, but to call it a classic or even a fun night in front of the tube? Hardly. So, when I heard about the remake coming our way, I actually got a little excited. I liked the concept found in Romero's telling of the tale, but didn't much care for the final product itself. I felt that this was one of those rare times where if the remake sucked, I wouldn't have to mourn the loss of yet another little piece of my soul, but on the other hand, it would be awesome if it was one of those rare remakes that worked. Surprisingly, it did work, and it worked rather well.

The storyline wastes no time in getting down to business, as we kick things off by meeting the sheriff of Ogden Marsh in one David Dutten (Timothy Olyphant), his pregnant wife Judy (Radha Mitchell), and of course, David's deputy Russell Clank (Joe Anderson). We barely have time to get comfortable with these characters when we find them at the first town baseball game of the year, and there, things are going well... until a man with a shotgun walks onto the field. David tries to talk some sense into the man, but there's something strange about this fellow: it's almost as if he isn't even hearing David speak to him, and the situation ends with the shotgun-toting crazy dead on his back. Before anyone can even find out what was behind this man's odd behavior, the virus / sickness / whatever it may be starts to spread around town, and it isn't long before the military is on the scene to quarantine the town. Unfortunately, while our heroes seem to be alright, the soldiers aren't exactly going to just take their word on it and let them waltz right out of the containment area.

Perhaps I'm just in a good mood today, but I did enjoy this movie much more than I thought I would. It's not something that will wind up on any year-end lists and it's not going to make me change my outlook on the flood of remakes hitting screens every month, but as a standalone product, I did enjoy it. I felt that the movie did everything that a good remake should do: it stayed relatively truthful to the original while bringing some new ideas to the table, and of course, the fact that the entire affair was simply damned entertaining didn't hurt. Sure, there's a few moments where you'll probably roll your eyes, and yes, there are scenes that are straight out of "bad horror movie" 101, but after averaging out the entire ninety minutes, I think it's safe to say that the good far outweighs the bad.

One of the big reasons for this is the story itself. This is a story that was relevant back in the seventies, and it was just as relevant today - maybe even more so, what with the various virus outbreaks throughout the last decade and the increase in government surveillance. There will always be disease scares, there will always be conspiracy theories, and the government probably isn't going to change all that much any time soon - therefore, this storyline worked this year, and it will more than likely work just as well twenty years from now. It's just a solid, enjoyable storyline that the audience can get behind and identify with, and that goes a long way.

Another thing that aided in my enjoyment was the fact that the film flows so well from scene to scene and is almost always doing something to further the plot. I say "almost" because there are a few scenes that seemed to be inserted just to shake things up a bit and keep the audience on the edge of their seats, but remember, I did say that the good outweighs the bad. There's not much in the way of genuine padding to be found here, and at the same time, the storyline never really starts to drag either. Unlike a lot of other recent releases, this is not a movie that overstays its welcome, nor is it a movie that seemed to need another ten or twenty minutes to tell the tale: the chosen cut of the film has a flawless running time, and I never once found myself watching the clock throughout the entire thing.

Aiding the film even more was the acting, namely the performances turned in by Timothy Olyphant and his sidekick Joe Anderson. These two men had great chemistry together, the writing for their characters made them click together even better, and even when they got separated from one another, the two men both proved that they could command a scene. Radha Mitchell was average enough as she did nothing to heap praise upon and nor did she ruin any scenes, but her two male costars more than made up for her shortcomings.

Bottom line? Check it out, even if you typically hate remakes. This is one of the good ones, as it features a timeless tale presented by competent filmmakers and a talented cast, and yes, gorehounds will be pleased to know that there are some good scenes in store for them as well (the "knife" scene in particular is quite memorable). The Crazies may not go down in the record books as causing more of an impact than the original film, but when choosing between the source and the remake for pure entertainment value, I'd pick this one every time. 8/10.