A lot of people are taking a glance at Warm Bodies and immediately comparing it to Twiglight. Which is a shame. Other than the two being stories involving love between a human and a mythical creature that feasts on humans, the two share no real similarities. Which is, of course, a very good thing.
If anything, Warm Bodies could be compared to Romeo and Juliet. Our lead characters, R (Nicholas Hoult) the corpse, as their called, and Julie (Teresa Palmer) the human, represent a love between rival “families” who want to kill each other. But these two are different. Unlike her father, Colonel Grigio (John Malkovich), she’s hopeful for a cure. And while she’s understandably wary of R at first, she eventually warms up to him as they begin the dance that is forbidden love. How cute. Proceedings occur in an incredibly corny manner, but it’s never off putting. Things are awkward, but the movie’s entire premise is awkward. So we get to sit back and laugh as a zombie tries to get into some girl’s pants.
If there’s a complain to be made against the film, lack of substance should be first on everybody’s list. While comparison’s to Shakespeare’s classic are deserving, the two aren’t even on the same level. From the opening narration from R, it’s evident that Warm Bodies is meant to be enjoyed instead of taken seriously. It’s just a shame it loses sight of this in the movie’s third act. I understand a story needed to be told, but the voice overs sadly stop and while we’ll get bits and pieces of the lighthearted fun that made the first half of the movie so enjoyable, they become few and far between.
Perhaps I’m more disappointed by this because this is such a technically sound movie. While R isn’t the only corpse who has actual thoughts, his best friend M (Rob Corddry) shares the same straight, R is still the one that stands out. He’s wearing color, his eyes are blue, he collects thing. He’s visibly different. If he’s unable to speak what’s on his mind, he finds ways to communicate with Julie.
I don’t even know why I’m so upset over this. It’s an enjoyable film. Maybe I just expected more from it. Though I’m not sure why. Just go see Warm Bodies and enjoy it for what it is: a somewhat-corny love story that’s at its best when not being taken seriously.
