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EXIT HUMANITY (2011)

Directed by John Geddes
Written by John Geddes
Starring Mark Gibson, Jordan Hayes, Brian Cox, Dee Wallace, Bill Moseley, and Stephen McHattie
Find out more about the film here and on Facebook

EXIT HUMANITY is an ambitious film which does a good job of keeping within its parameters without showing the stretch marks often associated with lower budget fare when stretched beyond its reach. You know the films. They’re usually on SyFy: flicks that want to be blockbuster films, but lack the tech, talent, and money to do so, so instead they settle for doing things on the cheap without adapting the script accordingly. The result is usually disappointing. EXIT HUMANITY doesn’t suffer from that problem. It’s obviously a low budgeter, but writer/director John Geddes is conservative with the range of this film. Just when the seams are starting to show, Geddes reels the scope in to keep the illusion of the story going.

EXIT HUMANITY takes place on the heels of the Civil War. The country is in turmoil already and all of a sudden the dead begin to rise up and walk around. Heading home from the war, Edward Young (played by newcomer Mark Gibson) returns to his home to find his wife zombiefied and his son missing. With his life torn asunder, Young begins an epic odyssey across a decimated land killing every zombie that shambles across his path. Soon his journey crosses paths with another survivor, Isaac (Adam Seybold), and a delusional General played to perfection by the one and only Bill Moseley (DEVIL’S REJECTS) who believes a cure to the zombie plague lies in the blood of Isaac’s sister. Along the way, classic horror actress Dee Wallace and PONTYPOOL’s Stephen McHattie pop up, but for the most part are somewhat wasted in lesser roles. Brian Cox narrates this film as if it were being read from Young’s journal. Cox gruffs up his voice nicely and amps up a thick Southern accent which makes his voice almost unrecognizable.

As I said above, writer/director John Geddes lives within the budget, focusing mainly on photographing the beautiful landscapes and forests his characters are wandering around in. Geddes keeps things close and clean, making the threat of the zombies feel more intimate. The tone is dead serious throughout and if it’s guilty of anything, it’s of making the reader feel pretty morose about the way things were back then. Geddes also smartly uses some animation sequences to fill in the gaps where budget might have been a problem. This is an extremely smart move by a director who seems to know how to make a great film despite lack of funds.

The acting is pretty top notch with the genre cast shining in roles they usually don’t get to play. Moseley does the best work with his role. He seems to have a lot of fun with his twisted and misguided General character. Mark Gibson is capable in the lead role, though he seems to scream quite a bit (something all survivors of the zombie apocalypse knows only brings more zombies). Here Gibson’s screams are used to an advantage in the final act, but having heard his gravelly bellow throughout the entire film, it’s something that gets rather tedious after the tenth or so time you hear it.

Though there are a lot of zombie films out there, EXIT HUMANITY deserves to be recognized for its unique angle on the zombie mythos and its creative use of telling an epic story. The effects are fantastic and the animated sequences are kinetically charged and action packed. Reminiscent of PRIDE & PREJUDICE & ZOMBIES, this historical zeek is definitely a cut above most zombie films. One might call it DANCES WITH ZOMBIES. Geddes has a Terence Malick-like zen style of filmmaking going on that absorbs the environment and amplifies the beauty and ugliness often at the same time. See EXIT HUMANITY when you get a chance. It’s not your typical zombie fare.

Check out the trailer here!!