What The Critics Are Saying About Army Of The Dead

These days, director Zack Snyder may be best known for his contributions to the superhero genre. After coming off the success of "Watchmen" in 2009, Snyder kick-started the DC Extended Universe with "Man of Steel." He went on to direct the follow-ups "Batman v. Superman: Dawn of Justice" and "Justice League," the latter of which audiences finally got to see the director's true vision for when the four-hour cut debuted on HBO Max. Between all the superpowered mayhem, it's easy to forget the director got his start in the zombie genre. 

His feature film debut came in 2004 with "Dawn of the Dead," the remake of the classic horror film from 1978. It remains one of Snyder's best films to date, as he proved himself to be a master of suspense when it came to crafting a superb zombie flick for the 21st century. With his time directing in the DC universe seemingly at an end, it only seems appropriate for him to return to his roots and deliver a wholly unique experience with "Army of the Dead" that promises to crank the action we see in "Dawn of the Dead" up to 11. 

"Army of the Dead" comes out in theaters on May 14 before premiering on Netflix a week later, but undoubtedly, the question on every Snyder fan's mind is whether the movie lives up to the director's legacy. Luckily, from what critics have been saying on social media so far, it sounds like the movie is everything you can expect out of a Snyder flick in the very best way possible. 

Full reviews aren't available just quite yet, but from the snippets we've been able to find over social media, plenty of critics had a blast watching "Army of the Dead." That includes Looper's own Tim Lammers, who so far has this to say, "Zack Snyder has redefined the zombie genre once again with 'Army of the Dead' — it's a badass movie!" That appears to be a common theme across the film's mentions so far. Even if you've only seen a couple of Snyder's films before, then you know he has an eye for action set-pieces, and apparently, "Army of the Dead" delivers some of the most spectacular yet. 

Phil Nobile Jr. writes, "The gore and mayhem on display is lovingly captured and, more importantly, gleefully faceted within the film," while Perri Nemiroff states that the movie is "a downright stunning display of zombie mayhem and carnage." Naturally, there are a few words of criticism directed toward the film, and a lot of that seems to be directed toward its length. The movie's runtime clocks in at 148 minutes, and apparently, you can definitely feel that at times, as Courtney Howard explains: "[The] opening credits sequence is delicious, pure camp. While the rest of the film doesn't sustain that tone (& meanders), there are lots of wild, deftly executed concepts & scenes centered on the heist."

What's even more impressive is that it's not just all blood and guts. As Howard goes on to write, "Even more audacious is there's an unexpected infusion of heart." Suffice to say, if you're a fan of Snyder's work, then "Army of the Dead" should scratch all those itches you have. If you aren't, then it may be time to give him another shot, as the zombie flick is looking to be a career-best from the director.