Overlord (DVD)

Stars: Jovan Adepo, Wyatt Russell, Mathilde Ollivier, Pilou Asbaek, Bokeem Woodbine

Director: Julius Avery

Incredibly violent, this is (eventually) a misbegotten, zombie-type movie that leaves its cast covered in gore and the screenplay covered in cliches. The second half runs like a 'B' movie from black-and-white days.

Things start with some promise. The production design (by Jon Henson) is striking, producing painterly images from the nighttime theatre of war, as a platoon of soldiers headed by Cpl Ford (Russell) pursue a mission to destroy a vital German tower deep in the French countryside. But the group is decimated when their transport plane is shot down.

The survivors, including Ford and Afro-American private Ed Boyce (Adepo), hole up in the home of a female veterinarian (Ollivier) with a small brother, and a disfigured aunt in the attic.

Not far away at Nazi HQ, there's an underground facility where a mad scientist (Erich Redman) has developed a serum that can turn the dead or nearly-dead into superhuman, zombie-like killers.

Lots of beatings and berserkers ensue, with the inevitable massive explosions at the end. Fast-moving, but still utter rubbish: late-night TV on Movies4Men is its home.

David Quinlan

USA 2018. UK Distributor: Paramount. Colour by deluxe.
104 minutes. Widescreen. UK certificate: 18.

Guidance ratings (out of 3): Sex/nudity 1, Violence/Horror 3, Drugs 0, Swearing 2.

Review date: 15 Mar 2019