Zombeavers uses a collection of well known horror formula's and tropes (including but not limited to zombies, a cabin in the woods, and slashers) and mashes them together in one riotous film.
While many of these tropes are well loved by fans of the horror genre none of them seem to be well used in this film. Poor writing, mediocre acting, and unbelievable horror "lore" make this film a rather unpleasant viewing experience.
But when the three boyfriends Buck, Tommy, and Sam, show up unexpectedly the weekend looks to be a flop for Jenn. And just when she thinks the trip couldn't get worse she is attacked by a seemingly rabid beaver in the shower.
The group quickly learns that there are more of the beavers all lurking outside. And it seems that they won't die. Soon, the group is being killed off one by one in typical horror fashion. But the friends don't stay dead. They are resurrected in the most disturbing and absurd way possible--they become human sized beavers.
The film opens with a synthesized theme song with animated artwork reminiscent of 80s horror films such as Night of the Demons. This made me excited and hopeful that the movie would fulfill it's quota as a bizarre throwback to the 80s. But I was ultimately disappointed.
While the actors themselves aren't bad (but don't expect to be handing out any awards) the less than adequate writing and poorly represented caricatures suck most of the life out of film. I don't mind stereotypes in my horror movies. For most slasher movies it is expected.
However, Zombeaver's characters are so over simplified and characterized that they are mostly annoying. Particularity Zoe, even as she was flashing her breasts, was a character that grated on my nerves the entire movie. And her boyfriend Buck wasn't much better. I did enjoy Tommy and Mary, but their characters couldn't make up for the rest of the crew.
And while I also expected certain things from the characters, such as a final girl syndrome, the film did not live up to the quota. I was surprised (and disappointed) to see which characters died earlier and which ones lasted to the end. It felt as if the writers hadn't spent a lot of time really planning out plot points and character developments and instead just wrote a bunch of kill scenes and strung them together.
Ultimately what killed the movie was the "virus" and it's effects on human characters. When one of the girls starts to transform into a giant beaver I thought for sure it was a dream sequence. But when it turned out that it was part of what was actually happening in the reality of the story it completely broke my willing suspension of disbelief.
Summing it Up
Deaths: 9
Language: 3
Gore Factor: 4
Sex Factor: 3
Scare Factor: 2
Fun Factor: 3
Overall Rating: 2