New streaming on Shudder!
Directed by Adam MacDonald.
Written by Courtney Summers, Adam MacDonald.
Check out the
trailer here!
During a zombie outbreak, a group of kids make their way to school. But their perfect safe space turns out to be not so much. With tensions mounting inside and zombies at the doors, will these kids survive?
THIS IS NOT A TEST is a zombie movie. It’s an outbreak film where everything falls apart and societal norms crumble, proving that *gasp* man is the real monster here. There is absolutely nothing wrong with that. It’s quickly paced. There is some decent gore. There’s a level of suspense going on. And the acting is better than usual for most of the actors involved.
Still, in this day and age where a million and one zombie films, TV shows, and other media are out there, you just can’t be a typical zombie movie to make an impression. I was waiting for the other shoe to drop the entire movie. Like, maybe the kids were zombies the whole time and they were hallucinating that the real people were zombies. But no, this is just a standard zombie movie.
I get it. The zombie craze was soooo 2000’s starting with 28 DAYS LATER and THE WALKING DEAD. So since it’s been 20 years, some might think it’s a subgenre of horror worth revisiting. And it should be. But just as the 28 DAYS LATER franchise has evolved, I think a straight up, run of the mill, zombie yarn is a little passé.
Apparently, THIS IS NOT A TEST was originally a 2012 young adult apocalyptic horror novel written by Canadian author Courtney Summers and it plays like a film made for the younger generation. The adults are penned as enemies or done away with quick, leaving everything up to the kids to survive. Obvious references to THE BREAKFAST CLUB are made, but none of the themes really explored. And none of the characters are deep enough to make you care.
Sure, if you haven’t seen a zombie flick and this is someone’s first one, it might leave a lasting impression. But if you lived through the zombie-saturated oughts and into the teens, THIS IS NOT A TEST isn’t going to be anything new.
