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Aug 14, 2014 By Stephen Danay Web Exclusive

In the midst of mourning his girlfriend’s death, Zach is delighted to discover that Beth has returned to life, but somewhat dismayed by her growing hunger for human flesh.

Slipping neatly into the zombie romantic-comedy sub genre spawned by Shaun of the Dead, Life After Beth swaps bloody action hijinks for a gruesomely absurd comedy of errors and a lo-fi indie sensibility. First time director Jeff Baena uses handheld camerawork and clever framing to create tension when the film needs scares, and to allow gags to play out in the background or just off camera.

Dane DeHaan ably sets the tone as the slightly-too-intense but always earnest Zach, and the rest of the cast plays to type, albeit with a uniformly manic tweak. Standouts include John C. Reilly and Molly Shannon as Beth’s desperately accommodating parents and Anna Kendrick as Beth’s obliviously chipper rival. The revelation here is Aubrey Plaza, who forgoes her usual deadpan sarcasm for a performance that spans free-spirited charm, poignant confusion and anger, and finally, go-for-broke insanity. Her physicality and vocal work alone make for one of the most memorable zombie performances in recent memory.

www.a24films.com/films/life-after-beth

Author rating: 7.5/10