Maggie Arnold Schwarzenegger Does The Walking Dead

It seems almost unfathomable that in the multiple-decade acting career of Arnold Schwarzenegger, the former Governor never did a zombie movie. He’s fought aliens, robots, and Batman, but zombies had never previously graced the screen alongside him. That changes with Maggie, although he only rarely fights them. Maggie is a drama about a father and his daughter, and somehow, some way, might actually have given us the best dramatic performance of Schwarzenegger’s career. I never thought we’d see this day. The eyebrow-raising casting of placing Arnold Schwarzenegger in an art house zombie movie paid off – at least, as well as it realistically had the potential to. The plot, set at some point in the near future, sees a virus break out and begin to infect humanity. It slowly turns perfectly good humans into zombies. Our lead is Wade Vogel (Schwarzenegger), whose daughter, Maggie (Abigail Breslin), is infected with the virus. In a few weeks, she’ll become a zombie. Almost all of the film takes place at their home, as Maggie slowly transforms into a zombie and we see the toll that this takes not only on her, but on her family – predominantly seen through the eyes of her father. It’s a tale that should be heartbreaking, and in some ways it is. Like watching a family member deteriorate thanks to any disease, watching Maggie’s transformation isn’t pleasant. Still, Maggie isn’t without its pleasures. Being an effective mood piece means that its sense of atmosphere needs to be strong, and if there’s one thing first-time director Henry Hobson does, it’s achieving a strong sense of atmosphere. This is a bleak film, and you feel that permeating through every frame. The screenplay, provided by John Scott III, offers a few surprising moments later in the proceedings, which come as a nice way to change things up. The makeup used to slowly transform Abigail Breslin into a zombie is also quite impressive. Breslin, by the way, is quite good as a teenager who is in her last few weeks of humanity; she brings surprising depth to the role. She makes her Maggie into a real character in a way that Schwarzenegger fails to do with his Wade. Maggie is a mixed-bag of a movie. On one hand, a somewhat nuanced performance from Arnold Schwarzenegger and a strong sense of atmosphere always give you something to watch, but on the other hand, it’s incredibly slow moving and ultimately doesn’t add up to a whole lot that you haven’t seen before. It offers a few surprises, and it’s not without merit, but for most audience members it’s not going to be something worth seeking out. Bottom Line: A bleak, slow-moving zombie movie that’s not particularly entertaining, Maggie is an odd entry into the career of Arnold Schwarzenegger. Recommendation: Die-hard Arnold Schwarzenegger and zombie movie fans will want to check out Maggie. Otherwise, it’s only worth seeing if you need a sleep aid. [rating=2.5]