This movie was amazing.
Right off the bat I will point out that IMDb list the genre as Drama/Horror/Thriller and that is exactly what it is. First and foremost it is a Drama. It's very sad and pulls at the right heart strings, which is a first coming from a Horror movie, as I shed a few tears. Mainly because the story touches on a very heavy subject matter in the most palatable way - euthanasia. Whether by ones own hand or another, when is that time to end it because of an incurable situation? How does one say goodbye? And is that just giving up?
This film, to some degree, was reminiscent of "Outbreak" where there is an advancing disease, a sad love story, slight doses of action and a scary animal that spreads the disease. However, "Outbreak" was far more literal, not nearly as clever and did not go to the depths that "The Returned" went to.
We could make the comparison that the zombie spread is an allegory for HIV. Some might say it is twenty years too late and the stigma is different, those individuals are usually negative because the personal stigma is still attached to those who are positive. So the HIV analogy is more personalised in "Alex", played by Kris Holden-Reid, as a man living with the virus, controlling it and medicating everyday to prevent the virus from taking over. No cure, just a managing program. The film takes the idea of a man living on ARV's to control his condition to that of an 'entertaining' zombie story which, often allows the viewer to think more about the symbolism as apposed to forcing the truth down ones throat.
We could focus on the politics where some people are ill and those that are not are so overwhelmed with fear they react to exterminate. Should they be allowed to protect themselves to such a degree? Is extermination an option in terms of preservation? And should the sick live in fear? But it provides a volatile backdrop to the story at hand, creating tension and supplying character motives.
The gem of this story is the relationship between "Alex" and "Kate" that only intensifies as the story progresses. It's the new age, grundge version of "Dying Young" where cancer is replaced with zombies and the refusal to go on chemo is replaced with a protein shortage but the love and resistance to say goodbye and let go is the same.
This film was unexpected, and I loved every moment it made my brain wheel rotate.
8/10
