Nowadays, live-action anime films are poorly received due to the number of times they have failed to meet expectations. But does Zom 100’s live-action film suffer the same fate as its predecessors? Here’s our Zom 100: Bucket List of the Dead (2023) movie review!
Spoiler Warning: This review may contain some spoilers from the Zom 100 live-action film!
Zom 100: Bucket List of the Dead (2023) Movie Review
If you go into the Zom 100: Bucket List of the Dead movie blind, you'll quickly realize how different it is from other zombie films to date, such as South Korea's Train to Busan and Taiwan's The Sadness.
It's not just about terrifying zombies hungry for human flesh; it also digs into an important societal problem in Japan.
Interestingly, the concept of Zom 100 is different, as the film satirizes the toxicity of Japan's working class.
It demonstrates how corporations may exploit Japanese labor, as Akira Tendo works for three days straight with barely any free time to rest. Unfortunately, this occurs in real life as well.
I was one of many who were looking forward to seeing the Zom 100 live-action movie.
I was immediately invested after watching the trailer, maybe because I was reading the Zom 100 manga and watching the anime at the same time.
The trailer seemed intriguing enough, and the film's actors, particularly Akira (Eiji Akaso), appeared to be spot on. He looks just like Akira Tendo!
Furthermore, the film's crew has done a lot of fantastic work in the past.
Yusuke Ishida, the director, has previously worked on TV shows like Re: Mind and Kantaro: The Sweet Tooth Salaryman, all of which earned positive reviews.
Meanwhile, Taro Kawazu, who was the director of photography for Alice in Borderland, also did the film's cinematography.
With this, I was convinced that I had no choice but to see the film. And because the Zom 100 anime was delayed, I had the perfect chance to watch the film.
The Zom 100 live-action film has a running time of 2 hours and 8 minutes; therefore, my eyes were exhausted by the end of it.
The first part of the Zom 100 live-action film is pretty entertaining, except for the scenes where Akira’s actor is obviously doing some fake running away from the zombies.
It was cheesy, and you can immediately see Akira has plot armor.
In light of this, the zombies in the film look menacing but also funny, as one would expect from a comedic horror series.
They also made use of blood and gore, but the funny thing is, they decided to switch Akira’s convenience store run for seasonings rather than beer.
It’s weird how they changed it, probably due to censorship, and yet the film had so much blood and gore.
The movie also lacks the vibrant colors that the anime had, so don’t expect to see the same polychromatic colors from the blood splatters.
You just have to rely on Akira’s wide smile in the film, as he gets freedom from his exploitative job to get some colorful experience.
As a manga reader and anime viewer, I feel the Zom 100 film has numerous flaws, most notably the pacing.
The film is rushed, cramming the events of the manga and leaving out certain crucial scenes that should have been included.
The order of events is also altered, combining two significant occurrences that should have been separated.
However, there were some enjoyable moments in the film. I appreciated how the film portrayed the cast's youthful and unbothered hijinks in the middle part.
And, to be honest, it was perhaps the best part of the movie when the actors bonded by doing yoga, igniting fireworks, going camping, and so on.
Afterward, the film sadly goes downhill. This is where everything went wrong, and it almost seemed as though the movie had no clear direction and didn't know whether or not to take itself seriously.
The plot also gets dragged out as the zombie shark chases Akira and its potential victims.
The CGI of the zombie shark is decent enough, but it gets cringe-worthy the more I get used to it.
Not to mention the acting of the cast, particularly the scene where Shizuka had to throw two megaphones in the aquarium with both of her arms raised.
It’s one of the most awkward moments in the film, and there are still many of them.
What’s more, the Zom 100 film has an unnecessary post-credits scene that doesn’t make any sense at all.
So, Is the Zom 100: Bucket List of the Dead (2023) Movie Worth Watching?
From the perspective of an anime viewer and a manga reader, I suggest giving the film a chance. It has its own unique charm, but don’t expect much from a live-action anime film.
You just have to see it at least once, because, at the end of the day, it is still Zom 100 content. It’s for the experience!
There are some good moments, but not enough to warrant a higher rating. It's not a great live-action film, but it's also not the worst I've seen!
Overall, the Zom 100 film fell short of my expectations, but at least I got to watch some zombie action in the middle of the delayed episode of the Zom 100 anime.
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