In a market that has been saturated for at least a decade, it’s unusual to find a new zombie movie that has even the faintest of surprises up its sleeve. Belgian horror-comedy Trizombie is the rare exception, leveraging a gang of unexpected heroes to make even the most familiar plot elements feel fresh.
Originally conceived as a TV show, Trizombie opens in a care center for people with Down syndrome. Here, we’re introduced to Luka (Jelle Palmaerts), who has a crush on fellow resident Kelly (Gitte Wens) — only Kelly is too preoccupied to notice. She’s convinced that she’ll soon be moving into assisted living, gaining the independence she so desperately craves, only to be crushed when she learns that her best friend Robin (Tineke Van Haute) is the one leaving instead. All of them are too wrapped up in their own drama to pay much attention to what’s being said on the TV about an airborne virus spreading across Europe… or the fact that one of the staff is coughing up blood.
One of Trizombie’s smartest decisions is to kill off its entire non-disabled cast in one fell swoop. The script, penned by Lars Damoiseaux and Lectrr, sets up several carer characters before quickly sweeping them off the table, allowing the film’s focus to fall squarely on its ensemble of young actors with Down syndrome. This ensures that Trizombie avoids cinema’s seemingly compulsive need to reinforce normative savior stereotypes, allowing the plot to focus on the challenges and triumphs of living an independent life in a world that isn’t built with accessibility in mind, especially during the zombie apocalypse.
That’s not to say that Trizombie doesn’t have a hero figure. That character comes in the form of Slasher (Jason Van Laere), a.k.a. George, who arrives with warpaint on his cheeks and a sledgehammer in hand to save Luka and Kelly from a horde of the undead. Slasher also has Down syndrome, reinforcing what the characters already suspect: the virus does not affect people with an extra chromosome.
This explanation is, unfortunately, handled rather clunkily. Rather than allowing its heroes to figure it out on their own through observation, Trizombie leaves it up to Google. One has to wonder how Google knows given how fast the virus is spreading, but this is a small gripe in an otherwise deeply engaging and heartfelt film.
It’s also funny. Lectrr and Damoiseaux’s script gives the cast plenty of punchlines without punching down, using humor to flesh out and differentiate its leads. Kelly is a little haughty but still cares deeply about her friends, Luka is comically jealous when Kelly has eyes for anyone but him, and Robin is obsessed with a fictional pop star called Will Murray (Simon Platteau) whose dementedly catchy Schlager songs like “Komaan Komaan” will haunt your dreams.
But the best character by far is Slasher, with Van Laere striking the perfect balance between machismo and vulnerability. It’s great to see a character with a disability not only being given depth and heart but also smashing zombie brains in, and Trizombiereally hits its stride as soon as Slasher swaggers on screen.
Feeling like a cross between 2009’s Zombieland and the late Jeff Barnaby’s Blood Quantum (2019), Trizombie is a welcome addition to the undead oeuvre. This is director Bob Colaers’s first feature film and I’ll be interested to see what he does next — but not as interested as I’d be to see the cast, sourced from Belgium’s Theater Stap, take another bite out of horror.
Trizombie had its international premiere at Fantastic Fest 2024.
