WYRMWOOD: APOCALYPSE returns us to the post-apocalyptic world of zombie filled New South Wales from the Zom – com WYRMWOOD. That place had staccato shootings, high octane action and crazy doctors with a sense for abominable actions. The very successful original, revealed to the world that Kiah Roache-Turner was an interestingly director. It also took many by surprise for a first film. It might not have been totally unique, nor refreshing to the genre and it owed a great debt to SHAUN OF THE DEAD, but it was playful and interesting. I would have also said it was joyous fun!

So the zombie apocalypse continues and now solider for hire Rhys (Luke McKenzie) is set on making right what was wrong. McKenzie appeared in the original as The Captain, a dubious character without a heart. He facilitated the grabbing of zoms for his replacement, The Colonel (Jake Ryan) and for their collective pay master, The Surgeon General (Nicholas Boshier). Ahh military rank wins out! It also returns the overall shape of a crazed doctor, high on zombie blood to our screens. Boshier reveals in it, turning out maybe an unbalanced performance, but one that compliments the comedic diffusion which seems to be more the focus here. This said, I also feel that the gore and guts that were dripping off the screen in the original, still do so here.

Laughs are hard on our screen. The original had funny flicks of the pen, which are more crosses on the page here and it keeps the film in track. Now Rhys wants to gain redemption for his sins and so make his bosses pay by joining forces with a group of rebel survivors. This is the obvious angel of the film and one that (it happens early on) leaves us fearful of a fail in the set up and pay off. The hope of destroying all the monstrous good work however is not found. WYRMWOOD: APOCALYPSE retains enough of the original and blends I with more humour, to make us hopeful for a trilogy. This talk of a TV series is good but the lack of any extras on the disc, is a real pain…

NO EXTRAS