Billy Zane has appeared in at least one film or television show every single year since he first burst onto the screen as one of Biff's lackeys in 1985's "Back to the Future." Yet it feels like the only memorable role Zane's had was when he played himself during a cameo in the painfully unfunny 2001 film "Zoolander." For an actor who's worked every year for over two decades, that's not saying much, but with the way Zane mumbles his way through his lines, he doesn't seem to have much to say, either.
"The Mad" is another entry in the quickly growing genre of "non-zombie" zombie films. Although the "creatures" shuffle like zombies, moan like zombies, and get their domes caved in like zombies, the characters in the film and even the director insist they're not. This is a new trend in the zombie genre popularized by far better films like "28 Days Later," "Slither," and the tremendously enjoyable first half of "Grindhouse," "Planet Terror." The aforementioned films have a legitimate claim on attempting to skew the image of what constitutes a "zombie" film. And they do so in an effort to change what viewers should expect from the genre; sadly all "The Mad" does is hitch its chain to their achievements.
Zane stars as Dr. Jason Hunt, a single father on a road trip with his girlfriend Monica (Shauna MacDonald), his floozy teenage daughter Amy (Maggie Castle), and her moronic boyfriend Blake (Evan Charles Flock). After an argument in the car, the four city slickers end up in a hick town looking for a bite to eat. While sampling the local diner's menu, the other patrons flip out and instead of enjoying the down-home cuisine, they begin eating each other. After an unfunny attempt at a humorous zombie attack, Monica is dead, Blake is shy a few toes, and everybody alive is visibly shaken. The exception being the eternally stoic Zane; his inability to act keeps him from showcasing any emotion other than boredom and thus keeps the movie from being anything other than boring. Eventually, Zane's remaining crew and a rag-tag group of survivors realize that the "zombification" of the diner customers is directly related to their consumption of tainted meat. Zane and company beat feet to the local farm in search of answers and, thankfully, the end of this film.
"The Mad" is full of uninspired "pop culture" enriched dialogue that's delivered in a fast-paced, rapid-fire format. Similar cinematic conversations have been made popular by films as diverse as "Reservoir Dogs" and "Clerks." While those films had talented script writers like Quentin Tarantino and Kevin Smith behind them, "The Mad" has Kevin Hennelly, John Kalangis, and Christopher Warren Smets. Three people put their names on this script and not one of them could deliver a single entertaining or original moment over the course of this eighty-three minute mess. The closest the script comes to being even mildly interesting is when Zane begins to carelessly mumble his way through lines about his character's love of eighties´ music. For a better take on a similar music theme, check out Christian Bale's impassioned monologues about eighties´ bands in "American Psycho." Sure, it's unfair to compare an accomplished actor such as Christian Bale to the human cue ball known as Billy Zane, but it's an unfair world. After all, I'm the one who had to sit through "The Mad."
"The Mad" is another entry in the quickly growing genre of "non-zombie" zombie films. Although the "creatures" shuffle like zombies, moan like zombies, and get their domes caved in like zombies, the characters in the film and even the director insist they're not. This is a new trend in the zombie genre popularized by far better films like "28 Days Later," "Slither," and the tremendously enjoyable first half of "Grindhouse," "Planet Terror." The aforementioned films have a legitimate claim on attempting to skew the image of what constitutes a "zombie" film. And they do so in an effort to change what viewers should expect from the genre; sadly all "The Mad" does is hitch its chain to their achievements.
Zane stars as Dr. Jason Hunt, a single father on a road trip with his girlfriend Monica (Shauna MacDonald), his floozy teenage daughter Amy (Maggie Castle), and her moronic boyfriend Blake (Evan Charles Flock). After an argument in the car, the four city slickers end up in a hick town looking for a bite to eat. While sampling the local diner's menu, the other patrons flip out and instead of enjoying the down-home cuisine, they begin eating each other. After an unfunny attempt at a humorous zombie attack, Monica is dead, Blake is shy a few toes, and everybody alive is visibly shaken. The exception being the eternally stoic Zane; his inability to act keeps him from showcasing any emotion other than boredom and thus keeps the movie from being anything other than boring. Eventually, Zane's remaining crew and a rag-tag group of survivors realize that the "zombification" of the diner customers is directly related to their consumption of tainted meat. Zane and company beat feet to the local farm in search of answers and, thankfully, the end of this film.
"The Mad" is full of uninspired "pop culture" enriched dialogue that's delivered in a fast-paced, rapid-fire format. Similar cinematic conversations have been made popular by films as diverse as "Reservoir Dogs" and "Clerks." While those films had talented script writers like Quentin Tarantino and Kevin Smith behind them, "The Mad" has Kevin Hennelly, John Kalangis, and Christopher Warren Smets. Three people put their names on this script and not one of them could deliver a single entertaining or original moment over the course of this eighty-three minute mess. The closest the script comes to being even mildly interesting is when Zane begins to carelessly mumble his way through lines about his character's love of eighties´ music. For a better take on a similar music theme, check out Christian Bale's impassioned monologues about eighties´ bands in "American Psycho." Sure, it's unfair to compare an accomplished actor such as Christian Bale to the human cue ball known as Billy Zane, but it's an unfair world. After all, I'm the one who had to sit through "The Mad."
Billy Zane has appeared in at least one film or television show every single year since he first burst onto the screen as one of Biff's lackeys in 1985's "Back to the Future." Yet it feels like the only memorable role Zane's had was when he played himself during a cameo in the painfully unfunny 2001 film "Zoolander." For an actor who's worked every year for over two decades, that's not saying much, but with the way Zane mumbles his way through his lines, he doesn't seem to have much to say, either.
"The Mad" is another entry in the quickly growing genre of "non-zombie" zombie films. Although the "creatures" shuffle like zombies, moan like zombies, and get their domes caved in like zombies, the characters in the film and even the director insist they're not. This is a new trend in the zombie genre popularized by far better films like "28 Days Later," "Slither," and the tremendously enjoyable first half of "Grindhouse," "Planet Terror." The aforementioned films have a legitimate claim on attempting to skew the image of what constitutes a "zombie" film. And they do so in an effort to change what viewers should expect from the genre; sadly all "The Mad" does is hitch its chain to their achievements.
Zane stars as Dr. Jason Hunt, a single father on a road trip with his girlfriend Monica (Shauna MacDonald), his floozy teenage daughter Amy (Maggie Castle), and her moronic boyfriend Blake (Evan Charles Flock). After an argument in the car, the four city slickers end up in a hick town looking for a bite to eat. While sampling the local diner's menu, the other patrons flip out and instead of enjoying the down-home cuisine, they begin eating each other. After an unfunny attempt at a humorous zombie attack, Monica is dead, Blake is shy a few toes, and everybody alive is visibly shaken. The exception being the eternally stoic Zane; his inability to act keeps him from showcasing any emotion other than boredom and thus keeps the movie from being anything other than boring. Eventually, Zane's remaining crew and a rag-tag group of survivors realize that the "zombification" of the diner customers is directly related to their consumption of tainted meat. Zane and company beat feet to the local farm in search of answers and, thankfully, the end of this film.
"The Mad" is full of uninspired "pop culture" enriched dialogue that's delivered in a fast-paced, rapid-fire format. Similar cinematic conversations have been made popular by films as diverse as "Reservoir Dogs" and "Clerks." While those films had talented script writers like Quentin Tarantino and Kevin Smith behind them, "The Mad" has Kevin Hennelly, John Kalangis, and Christopher Warren Smets. Three people put their names on this script and not one of them could deliver a single entertaining or original moment over the course of this eighty-three minute mess. The closest the script comes to being even mildly interesting is when Zane begins to carelessly mumble his way through lines about his character's love of eighties´ music. For a better take on a similar music theme, check out Christian Bale's impassioned monologues about eighties´ bands in "American Psycho." Sure, it's unfair to compare an accomplished actor such as Christian Bale to the human cue ball known as Billy Zane, but it's an unfair world. After all, I'm the one who had to sit through "The Mad."
"The Mad" is another entry in the quickly growing genre of "non-zombie" zombie films. Although the "creatures" shuffle like zombies, moan like zombies, and get their domes caved in like zombies, the characters in the film and even the director insist they're not. This is a new trend in the zombie genre popularized by far better films like "28 Days Later," "Slither," and the tremendously enjoyable first half of "Grindhouse," "Planet Terror." The aforementioned films have a legitimate claim on attempting to skew the image of what constitutes a "zombie" film. And they do so in an effort to change what viewers should expect from the genre; sadly all "The Mad" does is hitch its chain to their achievements.
Zane stars as Dr. Jason Hunt, a single father on a road trip with his girlfriend Monica (Shauna MacDonald), his floozy teenage daughter Amy (Maggie Castle), and her moronic boyfriend Blake (Evan Charles Flock). After an argument in the car, the four city slickers end up in a hick town looking for a bite to eat. While sampling the local diner's menu, the other patrons flip out and instead of enjoying the down-home cuisine, they begin eating each other. After an unfunny attempt at a humorous zombie attack, Monica is dead, Blake is shy a few toes, and everybody alive is visibly shaken. The exception being the eternally stoic Zane; his inability to act keeps him from showcasing any emotion other than boredom and thus keeps the movie from being anything other than boring. Eventually, Zane's remaining crew and a rag-tag group of survivors realize that the "zombification" of the diner customers is directly related to their consumption of tainted meat. Zane and company beat feet to the local farm in search of answers and, thankfully, the end of this film.
"The Mad" is full of uninspired "pop culture" enriched dialogue that's delivered in a fast-paced, rapid-fire format. Similar cinematic conversations have been made popular by films as diverse as "Reservoir Dogs" and "Clerks." While those films had talented script writers like Quentin Tarantino and Kevin Smith behind them, "The Mad" has Kevin Hennelly, John Kalangis, and Christopher Warren Smets. Three people put their names on this script and not one of them could deliver a single entertaining or original moment over the course of this eighty-three minute mess. The closest the script comes to being even mildly interesting is when Zane begins to carelessly mumble his way through lines about his character's love of eighties´ music. For a better take on a similar music theme, check out Christian Bale's impassioned monologues about eighties´ bands in "American Psycho." Sure, it's unfair to compare an accomplished actor such as Christian Bale to the human cue ball known as Billy Zane, but it's an unfair world. After all, I'm the one who had to sit through "The Mad."
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