Overlord

War and sci-fi horror: it’s been an intriguing mashup since the days of “The Keep” (1983) directed by Michael Mann (based on the novel by F. Paul Wilson), but it’s enjoyed an unprecedented explosion since the dawn of the new millennium. In fact, the early 2000s marked the start of a real tidal wave of titles dedicated to the genre, both in the videogame realm (notably 2001’s revolutionary “Return to Castle Wolfenstein”), as well as in film, with various releases such as “The Bunker” (2001), “Deathwatch” (2002), “Outpost” (2008), “Dead Snow” (2009), and “Frankenstein’s Army” (2013).

Most of the aforementioned works are set during WWII and belong to the evergreen “Nazi-zombie” subgenre, featuring mad scientists of the Third Reich obsessed with creating a powerful, indestructible “Übermensch” (“Germany will have an invincible army!“). For such films, box-office success was practically a given. Looking for an easy win, the shrewd J.J. Abrams, through his Bad Robot Productions (in close cooperation with Paramount), produces a purely entertaining film with a tried-and-true format offering a classic mix of soldiers on a secret mission, crazy Nazi projects, and horrific biological monstrosities.

Not only does the film have all the character development of a strategy video game, but it astutely leaves any (pseudo)scientific explanations by the wayside. (At most there’s some babble about a supposed “power in the tar […] refined by their bodies“). Instead, Julius Avery’s main focus is to alternate scenes that progressively build tension with sudden bursts of violent action. Looking at it that way, we can say the young director basically achieved his objectives. A tense atmosphere, a dark, claustrophobic feel, excellent special effects (with a rather prominent splatter component), and atmospheric art direction make “Overlord” an ideal way to spend an enjoyable evening without having to think too hard.

Having a budget that was nothing to sneeze at ($38 million) certainly didn’t hurt the film’s success.