World War Z (2013)
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A former United Nations investigator must travel the globe to find a solution to a sudden zombie apocalypse.
The story
When a sudden zombie outbreak hits downtown Philadelphia, former United Nations investigator Gerry Lane and his family are forced to flee the chaos. They are eventually rescued and taken to a US Navy vessel in the Atlantic Ocean where a team of scientists is studying the outbreak. To ensure the safety of his family, Gerry reluctantly agrees to assist a virologist in searching for the source of the infection. The journey takes them across the globe, from South Korea to Israel, as they race against time to find a way to stop the spreading plague and find a cure.
Full plot (contains spoilers)
After a zombie outbreak hits Philadelphia, Gerry Lane, a former UN investigator, and his family are rescued and taken to a Navy vessel in the Atlantic. Gerry agrees to help virologist Andrew Fassbach find the source of the infection. They travel to South Korea, where Fassbach is killed during an attack. Gerry then travels to Israel, where he navigates through a city protected by a massive wall. Following a chaotic escape, he flies to a WHO facility in Cardiff. After surviving a plane crash, Gerry discovers that zombies ignore the sick or injured. He develops a 'camouflage' strategy by treating healthy individuals with a specific pathogen. He eventually reunites with his family in Nova Scotia, where a vaccine is successfully created using a hybridised meningitis strain, allowing for the containment of the outbreak.
- First release year
- 2013
- Runtime (minutes)
- 116
- Production countries
- United States
- Original languages
- English
- Directors
- Marc Forster
- Writers
- Matthew Michael Carnahan · screenplay; Drew Goddard · screenplay; Damon Lindelof · screenplay; Matthew Michael Carnahan · story; J. Michael Straczynski · story
- Cast and characters
- Brad Pitt · Gerry Lane; Mireille Enos · Karin Lane; Daniella Kertesz · Segen; James Badge Dale · Captain Speke; David Morse · an ex-CIA officer; Fana Mokoena · Thierry Umutoni; David Andrews · Captain Mullenaro; Sterling Jerins · Constance Lane
- Genres
- disaster; action; horror
- Themes
- survival; global cooperation; humanity in crisis
- Tone and mood
- tense; action-packed
- Setting
- A global journey through Philadelphia, the Atlantic Ocean, South Korea, Israel, and Wales during a zombie apocalypse.
- Premise and plot tags
- zombie apocalypse; global pandemic; survival thriller
- Source material / true-story basis
- 2006 novel by Max Brooks
- Franchise connections
- World War Z
- Reception
- Generally positive, praised for the performance and as a revival of the zombie genre, though criticized for its ending and lack of faithfulness to the source material.
- Reported review scores
- Metacritic · score: 63 · scale: 100 · review count: 46; CinemaScore · score: B+ · scale: A+ to F
- Production trivia
- The film was the highest-grossing zombie film of all time at the time of its release.
Film metadata comes from the open sources listed in Credits & Contact. Catalogue details may be incomplete.
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