Directed by Jeremy Gardner, The Battery, which screened at the 2013 Fantasia Film Festival, follows Ben (Jeremy Gardner) and Mickey (Adam Cronheim), two baseball players from Pittsfield, MA who are living a nomadic existence while trying to survive after the zombie apocalypse has taken place. Though only really acquaintances, the two have to rely on each other for both their own survival and sanity. Ben is a realist, a laid back baseball catcher who handles the gun, bat and all zombie killing duties. Mickey on the other hand is the romantic, the emotional guy who not only can’t say the word “zombie” but can’t even manage to pull himself together to kill one. All he does is listen to music and most of Ben’s orders, desperately hoping to eventually come into contact with other humans.
The Battery is a very small American film, filled with only two living people for about 97% of the film and follows the isolationist nature of The Walking Dead. In fact, it takes most of its cues from that show, forcing people who aren’t really that close together to survive the unfortunate circumstance of a zombie apocalypse. That being said, the movie has a bit humor to it, including a hilarious masturbation scene that’ll get you thinking “no, he’s not going to that, oh, wait, he is, he’s seriously doing it!” On the down side, that scene is probably the high point of the film in terms of overall enjoyment.
Where the film succeeds, yet also makes it terribly humdrum, is its depiction of the everyday life of these nomadic friends, the isolation and the passing of time alone in the wilderness. We watch Mickey and Ben argue, bicker, eat, fish, sleep, listen to tunes, play catch and general everyday mundane behavior that helps pass the time as they continue to survive. Further to that, the atmosphere, zombie makeup, and look of the film was very appropriate for the genre and can be commended, especially for a film shot for only $6,000.
The best part of the film is probably the soundtrack. They had some really good tunes playing throughout the movie and through Mickey’s CD player. The worst part was probably the inconsistent and unconvincing deliveries of the actors. It didn’t really work for me most of the time though they each did have their moments of quality too. Additionally, the last five minutes of the film are the most exciting and when it ends you get pissed because that excitement is what you had been waiting for the entire time. It’s a bummer it had to end there but I’m hoping that Gardner comes through with a sequel that continues the adventure, making the transition from drama to a cool thriller.
The Battery isn’t a horror film, it’s a buddy drama with a sprinkles of horrific elements added to spice things up. Director/writer/actor Jeremy Gardner shows promise as a filmmaker, crafting a movie that, while easily forgettable, manages to focus on the aspects of what makes a good zombie production, the drama and solitude of the survivors but , unfortunately for him, most don’t want to watch that, they want to see a little more zombie killing so that there can be some stimulation amongst the tedious boredom of life.
Rating: Like a poor man’s episode of season two of The Walking Dead but without most of the zombie killings (4.8/10)
The Battery
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