Horror and comedy are a volatile combination, as the ratio of creeps and giggles is very hard to get right. Many times, the comedy overwhelms the horror, watering down its impact. You can also go too far in the other direction, drowning all your laughs in too much blood. Leonard breaks the mold by doing an absolutely brilliant take on the slow-burning horror build-up. Leonard builds her comedy world completely, then lets little black veins of horror slowly spread through. There is no sign of a supernatural element until half an hour in, followed by a serious creepo event ten minutes later that seals the deal. By keeping Zombucha! a total comedy with the dread element hidden behind the curtain for most of the movie, Leonard delivers maximum horror impact that Ira Levin would have been proud of.
The kombucha business takes a very bad turn in Zombucha!
“The high production value is enhanced by a dynamic visual storytelling style…”
Leonard also delivers a devastating satire on the modern state of things, with a funhouse mirror to hold up to the millennials. Some of the funniest parts are the dead-on caricatures of co-workers and bosses, as there is a lot to recognize and relate. Also, marketing is skewed sideways in ways that border on gut-busting. But the thing that will make the millennials salivate is how well Leonard plays with the extremes one has to go to in order to make ends meet. By making the whole movie hinge on economic stability, she has nailed the number one struggle moviegoers are most concerned with. Zombucha! is one of the most fun movies made about the apocalypse going on in your wallet.
While it is easy to ramble on about Leonard’s screenplay, with also a quick mention of how well she performs her own material with deft timing, we must now talk about the earthshaking direction by Dzienny. I don’t know what the currency valuation is today between American and Australian dollars, but Zombucha! looks like many millions of bucks. There is a polished look to it that would slide nicely into any theater in the world, as this indie looks like “a real movie”. The high production value is enhanced by a dynamic visual storytelling style that makes every frame shine hard. The colors are vibrant across the fantastic arty backdrops, with cuts that are snappy and well-timed with the comedy. Dzienny has the power as a director to give any project a highly professional look, like Zombucha! sports. If you miss that fresh feeling you got from Shaun of the Dead, go find Zombucha! I found it to be just as clever, if not more.
"…one of the most fun movies made about the apocalypse going on in your wallet."
