The Girl with All the Gifts (2016) Review: Stunningly Original
“Our greatest threat is our only hope”Synopsis: A scientist and a teacher living in a dystopian future embark on a journey of survival with a special young girl named Melanie. | ![]() Watch now on Amazon |
Calamity Brains:
Every now and then, a movie comes along which proves that even a crowded subgenre can still have unexplored depths. The Girl with All the Gifts is just such a movie. It takes the audience into the very overrepresented zombie movie realm, and offers something new to say.
Not only does The Girl with All the Gifts offer a refreshing take on the zombie virus, but it also captures the human element in an utterly poignant way. The movie focuses on Melanie (Sennia Nanua), a young zombie with an attachment to her instructor. When the research facility studying Melanie is overrun, she ends up on the road with a handful of survivors desperate to learn the missing links in their knowledge of the zombie virus before it’s too late.
Sennia Nanua is utterly captivating as Melanie, with a gravitas far beyond her years. Her protectiveness and curiosity create both problems and questions for her human captors, and it’s exciting to see her develop and learn throughout the movie. Her interactions with beloved teacher Ms. Justineau (Gemma Atherton) and scientist Dr. Caldwell (Glenn Close) are fascinating, and highlight a central question rarely asked in zombie movies: What does it truly mean to be human?
The depth of story and character development, along with an excellent technical background, make The Girl with All the Gifts a movie you don’t want to skip. Even if zombie movies aren’t normally your thing, I highly recommend you give this one a try.
Calamity Brains’ Rating: A
Watch now on Amazon
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