On October 31st, just in time for Halloween, Apocalypse Z – The Beginning of the End (original title Apocalipsis Z: El Principio Del Fin) was released on Prime Video, a Spanish horror film based on the novel of the same name (the first of a trilogy, in case you were wondering if there could be sequels) by Manel Loureiro. Not to be confused with En fin – Il giorno zero, a dramedy series also Spanish on Prime Video and also focused on a (in that case missed) enormous tragedy that strikes the world.

Rather, if you don’t know Loureiro’s book and want to have a comparison to understand what type of story it is, we could say that Apocalypse Z is somehow reminiscent of the settings of The Last of Us, or even I Am Legend. Here too, in short, there is a virus that transforms infected people into monsters hungry for the blood of other people to infect (and/or kill). But if you want to know more, we continue this review with a summary of the film’s plot, and then express our, as always highly questionable, opinion.

What Apocalypse Z is about

The protagonist is Manel, who is named after the author of the novel. Manel lives in Spain, in Galicia, and after the tragic death of his beloved wife Julia the only company he wants is that of his cat Lucullus, named after the hunger he shares with the famous Roman general.

One day, about a year after Julia’s death, news is spread of a fearsome virus which, from Russia, is spreading throughout the world. It should be noted that Loureiro’s book is from 2008, but those who have experienced Covid-19 already know very well that – especially in horror films – there will be no government or health intervention that will hold, in the end the virus will spread anyway.

When the pandemic has yet to break out in Spain, Manel’s sister, Belen, invites him to join her and her family in the Canary Islands, where the government and the Spanish crown are taking refuge and where Belen’s husband, a soldier, will have to operate. But when, the next day, Manel is about to embark for Las Palmas it is already too late: all flights have been cancelled, and the army is rounding up the population in “safe points”.

Manel, on his sister’s advice, is not to be found when they come to pick him up to take him to one of these centers, and so his solitary struggle for survival begins. His goal is to reach Gran Canaria, but obviously he will have to escape the hordes of infected people who now fill the streets. And they are not the only dangers to beware of, but let’s not say anything else so as not to spoil: at the bottom of the article you will find the official trailer for Apocalipsis Z: The beginning of the end.

Why see Apocalypse Z

As mentioned, the idea behind this story isn’t the most original. There is a virus that leads to the extermination of the human race and in the meantime the infected are transformed into undead thirsty for blood and new subjects to infect. And there is the protagonist, a man with a trauma in his past who still retains a shred of humanity and hope in the future also thanks to the presence of someone at his side: in The Last of Us there is Ellie who cheers up Joel , in I Am Legend Will Smith walked around with a dog, here there is a cat that meows at the most inopportune moments.

But then again, the parable of the survivor who escapes death is as old as the world, and it is certainly not on the originality of the starting assumption that a film like Apocalypse Z can be judged. Rather, it must be evaluated for its ability to hold the audience with bated breath, and in this sense this Spanish film works great.

Manel’s journey, as he gradually meets new friends as well as new enemies, keeps the level of tension high until the end (and let’s hope for a sequel). Thanks to a tight direction, just the right amount, to a gallery of characters with whom one can easily empathize, and in general to a story which, net of the suspension of disbelief that horror requires by definition (even if now when we hear about pandemic, a shiver of reality runs down our spines), is interpreted and written so well that it seems true.

For this reason, on Halloween or any other evening of the year, we would like to say that Apocalypse Z is an excellent choice for a couple of hours of high tension.

Rating: 7.4