It would be easy to write off Night of the Zoopocalypse as one of those stupid animated films cheaply made to generate a quick buck. To do that would be a mistake, though, because this comedy/horror film is a hilarious time and a solid animated movie for the whole family. Based on a concept from Hellraiser director Clive Barker, this tells a relatively exciting story of zoo animals facing a zombie crisis. This is worth a watch with a fast pace, solid animation, and a funny story.
Night of the Zoopocalypse Review
After a meteor containing a virus crashes into an ordinary zoo, a pack of wild animals are brought into a fight for their life as they work together to save the world. We focus our story on Gracie (Gabbi Kosmidis), a young timber wolf with a penchant for adventure. She leads a rag-tag group of animals, including Dan (Stranger Things‘ David Harbour), a buff and hard-tempered mountain lion, alongside several other funny characters.
The animation is a surprising high point of the film. All of the character design is bouncy and silly but is also charming. The design of the zombies is well done and surprisingly creepy at times. It has a nice balance of fear, excitement, and playfulness the whole way through – a clear effort from a large team who wanted desperately to make something original.
Kosmidis’ voice acting is excellent. She plays Gracie with a level of boldness that you can’t help but root for her the whole way through. Harbour is a perfect choice for playing the gruff lion. He mostly sounds like himself, but the character works well against Gracie as he tries to solve things in his brutish way. The rest of the cast does an excellent job. They’re all funny and silly like the film is.
There’s a sense of childish wonder in this film that is so needed in movies today. So much of this feels like familiar territory as far as children’s animated movies go, but it has such lightness and excitement that it feels pretty unique. Nowadays, it’s essential for children to have alternatives to big studios in terms of animation, and this is a great one.
There are moments where Night of the Zoopcalypse is a little obnoxious. Some of the jokes are overplayed, and some of the characters are a little annoying. It’s unlikely that an adult watching this will fully love it without tapping into his younger self. Still, it’s certainly a lot more bearable than even some mainstream animated movies like Moana 2 or Mufasa: The Lion King.
Dan Levy, formerly of The Dø, brings an excellent score that works perfectly with the fast-paced, ridiculous horror of the film. He utilizes unique instruments and synths that play on the horror genre in a light and playful manner. It helps the film move along at its breakneck pace by smoothing the transitions between scenes.
Is Night of the Zoopocalypse worth watching?
Directors Rodrigo Perez-Castro and Ricardo Curtis had fun with this story, written by James Kee and Steven Hoban from Barker’s concept. The film flies from scene to scene with plenty of energy and excitement. Is it a ploy to get as many showings as possible? Maybe. It’s not a film to endlessly rave over, but it’s important to embrace films that aren’t soulless.
Ultimately, Night of the Zoopocalypse is quite a bit better than you would assume it is. At only 90 minutes long, this is, at worst, a short waste of your time. It’s loud and possibly too annoying for its own good, but if you’re willing to look past something silly, you’ll find a film with much heart. It’s wholesome entertainment that families will certainly enjoy and possibly a new obsession for children.
Night of the Zoopocalypse is in theaters nationwide on March 7.
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