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Generation Z opens with an army truck driving down a tight country lane before it flips over after a tyre blows, leading to its cannister splitting open, causing a spillage that’s having an unwanted effect, and one that’s going to require more than a bottle of Cillit Bang to sort out!
If you’ve seen the trailers, then basically, it’s a zombie comedy where the leakage only affects the elderly, including Janine (Anita Dobson – Doctor Who) who turns feral after an altercation with another old-timer, but before we get to her, both Cecily (Sue Johnston – Truelove) and Frank (Paul Bentall – SS-GB) are out for an evening walk, but they get overcome by the fumes from it and go back into their care home, but it doesn’t take long to work out what’s going to happen to them.
Elsewhere in the cast is Morgan (Robert Lindsay) with his own little private enterprise, schoolgirl Kelly (Buket Kömür – Our House) who wants to go on a school trip to Frances, young lad Stef (Lewis Gribben – Somewhere Boy) who buys a crossbow online, leaving his Dad none too impressed – even though you know it’s bound to prove useful with what’s to come.
So, in this so-so opener, it’s really just giving a flavour, as well as introducing the characters, although Generation Z is a bit different in a way, given that the elderly walk around with blood on their mouths, not realising they’re zombies, even though they’ve already killed people. All they seem to know is that they feel more alive than ever.
Then again, it’s the first time I’ve ever seen a dog fisted, before being used as a weapon!
I will check out more, given Ben Wheatley‘s track record with the likes of Free Fire and Sightseers – even if later, we also got his pointless Rebecca remake, along with Meg 2: The Trench – both of which felt like he wasn’t even involved in the slightest.
However, the trouble is, if you’re going to dabble in zombie comedy, you’ve really got to go some to beat Shaun Of The Dead, and nothing has so far.
UPDATE Episode 2:
And after finally getting to the final episode…
Generation Z begins tonight on Channel 4 at 9pm, and is available to pre-order on Blu-ray and DVD, ahead of its release date TBA.
All episodes are online now at All 4.
Cert: 
Running time: 45 minutes per episode (6 episodes)
Release date: October 27th 2024
Channel: Channel 4
Format: 2.39:1
Director: Ben Wheatley
Producers: Alex Kazamia, Beth Willis
Creator/Writer: Ben Wheatley
Cast:
Cecily: Sue Johnston
Morgan: Robert Lindsay
Janine: Anita Dobson
Stef: Lewis Gribben
Kelly: Buket Kömür
Finn: Viola Prettejohn
Charlie: Jay Lycurgo
Charlie’s Mother: T’Nia Miller
Terry: Chris Reilly
Frank: Paul Bentall
Billy: Ava Hinds-Jones
Gabe: Garrick Hagon
Parrenster: John Hollingworth
Jane: Rebecca Humphries
Malcolm: Maanuv Thiara
Karl: Robin Hill
Maisy: Ellie-Mae Siame
Mike: Bekir Aslan
Reviewer of movies, videogames and music since 1994. Aortic valve operation survivor from the same year. Running DVDfever.co.uk since 2000. Nobel Peace Prize winner 2021.