R.L. Stine’s Zombie Town stars Marlon Kazadi and Madi Monroe with supporting performances by Dan Aykroyd and Chevy Chase. Directed by Peter Lepeniotis, Zombie Town is the story of film that causes everybody in the vicinity to become zombies except for the two teenage protagonists who must then team up with the film’s reclusive director (Aykroyd) to save the town.
Zombie Town is intended for very young viewers, children who would read the Goosebumps book series. However, there are some sequences in the beginning of the movie that might be too scary or gory for such a young audience, and the film is rated PG-13. Zombie Town is a movie in search of its audience. Young kids might find a couple moments too scary, but the rest of the film is so campy, light, and anesthetized that older kids won’t find much to enjoy.
There’s also some lazy filmmaking. The editing in a few chase sequences confuses the characters’ geography and spatial relationships, and one sequence in a library has even more wonky editing.
The performances are consistent with the after-school special vibe that occupies Zombie Town. Everything is light, indicated, and spoon-fed to an audience that needs to remain unchallenged.
While it’s possible that some very young Goosebumps fans might be able to find enjoyment in the film, parents will have to stay on guard for the film’s first half-hour; after that, they can let the movie do its thing without paying much attention, as there isn’t anything in Zombie Town for older audiences.
