To my surprise, the "Z" is for Zombie. So for those of you who love a good romp with the undead, perhaps this pricey genre picture will amuse. As for those of us expecting a bit more depth to the plot (no, I'm not talking about a zombie burial), "World War Z" hasn't much to offer despite Brad Pitt in the starring role.

That said, Pitt does an amazing job of keeping the thin script and its unoriginal zombies compelling and engaging right up to the end. The crisp editing and interesting "climbing mob" effect help. But it's the very impressive open that gives this rather vacant film purpose and drive. The filmmakers do a solid job of establishing a strong family bond between Pitt, Enos, and the kids. So often these "family bonding" scenes are as corny as pharmaceutical commercials, but "World War Z" sells them well. Mireille Enos compels as the spouse in waiting. It's a big action open with strong promise, but the rest of the picture has no larger theme to offer, no commentary on modern society, no brilliant ideas, just "haunted house" zombies that jump out and scare you, and a guy trying to figure out how to stop them so he can get back to his family.

The film takes itself pretty seriously, so the few camp moments feel oddly out of place. That said, the pager joke cajoled well-earned audience belly laughter. At the end of the day, this is just another zombie film with enough money to buy solid acting and filmmaking. The 3D adds very little. But, again, despite this review, if you like the genre, you might discover that this film has more of a bite to it.

-- Books by Ross Anthony, Author/Illustrator --