Overall Score
Rating Summary
Out of the all the sub-genres of horror, the zombie genre arguably has the most inconsistent track record. George A. Romero’s iconic horror classic Dawn of the Dead is the tent-pole film of the genre, eventually inspiring dozens of offspring; many of which are very well respected and have taken the genre to new heights such as Shaun of the Dead, 28 Days Later, or Train to Busan. However, the immediate success of The Walking Dead in the early 2010’s inspired a wave of apocalyptic zombie films; most of which were poorly directed and were immediately forgotten. After saturating the market for a few years, The Walking Dead began to see a steady decline in popularity as the zombie craze quickly began to fade out. Meanwhile, horror fans are still recovering from the complete saturation of zombie films which is why the genre has seen very few successes within the past few years with Train to Busan and Zombieland: Double Tap (from a strictly financial perspective) being the two exceptions.
Following in those aforementioned film’s footsteps, Jeff Barnaby’s Blood Quantum, first premiering at TIFF 2019, provides a fresh new take on the genre that, albeit a flawed one but is still admirable nonetheless. While it is not nearly as carefully constructed or wildly entertaining, the film is certainly an interesting watch and one that offers a perspective that audiences don’t typically see in horror films.
Blood Quantum takes place within the Red Crow Mi’gmaq reserve in the midst of a pandemic that turns its victims into zombies. However there’s a twist, the First Nations residents of the reserve are completely immune to the pandemic. Therefore, if they are bit by a zombie they will not contract the disease; although zombies are still dangerous and still pose as a serious threat. This leaves our protagonists in the position of protecting those who are susceptible to the disease while fending off any zombies that attempt to enter the area. Though the film gives us a glimpse of life on the reserve before the pandemic erupted, we are then quickly thrown into a dystopian world of flesh-eating zombies.
While it is is heavy on politics and generally thought-provoking, Blood Quantum unfortunately also carries many of the tropes that the zombie horror sub-genre is known for. Not only is the film fairly predictable, the way the zombie pandemic is handled undercuts the film’s more interesting aspects. In the end, it is at its best whenever it explores the dynamics between the characters and how they are dealing with the situation at hand. Barnaby is clearly a very talented filmmaker but with a more fleshed-out script, he has the potential to deliver something truly special.
With all that being said, Blood Quantum is still a thoroughly entertaining film that offers a fresh perspective on a sub-genre that is generally known for its lack of risk taking.
*still courtesy of Elevation Pictures*
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