Like a shambling dead thing encased in a suit of the strongest armor, the zombie in popular culture is pretty unstoppable even at this point of over-saturation. That said, it’s a fine day indeed when someone comes up with a new angle on the undead while making a crowd pleasing viewing experience worth running out and catching in a theater or owning on a disc down the road. Welcome to WYRMWOOD: Road of the Dead, director Kiah Roache-Turner’s first (and hopefully not last) film that deserves a place in horror fan’s still beating hearts.

As that poster to the left states, what you’re getting is more or less Mad Max meets Dawn of the Dead, but the film is a lot more than that handy to memorize tagline suggests. Co-writers Tristan Roache-Turner, Kiah Roache-Turner have cooked up a fast-paced action flick that blends biting wit and dramatic bits just about perfectly. A cast of likable thrust into their post-zombie apocalyptic heroics characters, some truly nasty villains and yes, hordes of zombies keep things pumping and the film never wears out its welcome even when it deftly ventures into cliche territory.

Actually, the film’s use of familiar genre tropes such as survivors telling their tales via flashback and the appearance of zombies coming as a result of a cosmic mystery never fully explained works beautifully. By working with what’s expected of the genre with a punchy, thrilling opening that introduces some of the cast the film lures you in before hitting you with what it adds to the lore. After a meteorite shower starts turning the living into zombies, survivors Barry (Jay Gallagher) and Benny (Leon Burchill) team up to find and rescue Barry’s sister, Brooke (Bianca Bradey), who’s been kidnapped and experimented on by rather mad military scientist(Berryn Schwerdt). Brooke ends up with the power to control zombies and (of course) uses it with relish.

Another new twist to the zombies here is that meteorite swarm has made them a great source of fuel; their blood and breath are flammable during the daytime. As the swarm has killed every gas engine in the area, some of those slow-moving undead end up as reliable fuel sources once it’s figured out how to rig them into a vehicle securely. However, when night falls, the zombies get much faster and lose their fuel capability. Naturally, this leads to some tense and funny moments as things go from bad to worse for our heroes. The actors are all excellent here, bouncing between one-liners, teeth-gritting action and a few sad moments without missing a beat.

The body count is fairly high, with disposable humans and zombies alike getting it but good in some great action scenes. The brothers R-T aren’t shy about dispatching characters, so it’s good to not get too attached to everyone you meet. Naturally, some get what they deserve, but there’s a tragic weave throughout the film that adds to the impact. It would actually be lovely to see the story expanded a bit more as a book of some sort or perhaps some sort of cable mini-series. An Aussie version of The Walking Dead with those above cinematic influences? Sounds like a plan to me!

Gore fans will get their fill as the film isn’t shy about splattering zombies or humans to progress the plot. That said, it would have been nice to see the film take a different tack for its finale. There’s one of those drawn out fights with a mean-spirited villain (Luke McKenzie) where you know what’s coming, but have to sit through all the painful hits and snappy quips until it ends. The payoff is worth it, as is the tease of more to come in a world that needs to be more fully explored should there be a sequel. The brothers Roache-Turner have made an instant genre classic that’s a must-see film for zombie fans, action fans and thanks to Brooke, fans of kick-ass female characters who need a loyal following.

Go in with those movie poster references if you please, but also go in with no expectations and prepare to be surprised at how well this debut turned out. WYRMWOOD: Road of the Dead is a fine and fantastic addition to the well-packed (and undying) zombie genre. I have the feeling I’ll be picking this up on Blu-Ray/DVD at some point just to see whatever special features are on the disc. A film this fun deserves a longer look as well as some insights as to what makes it all tick so well.