A horror movie wrapped in war, action and sci-fi, Overlord is an uber violent and gory film that fits well in the general horror genre.  What was hyped as a zombie movie early on ends up being more sci-fi than an undead film.  For those that enjoy war and horror movies this is the film for you.  The sci-fi of Overlord is merely the catalyst.  Overlord is truly a war film turned horror.  As it quickly opens with a strong World War II act 1, followed by a slow paced character build in act 2, Overlord ends with a violently grotesque third act.  Built with a cast of familiar unknowns, where Overlord saved on household names, it went big on cinematography, special effects, and makeup.

With a cast of “hey I know that guy”, Overlord’s acting plays out surprisingly well.  Jovan Adepo (Boyce), Wyatt Russell (Ford),  and Pilou Asbæk (Wafner) as the lead villain role make up the main cast of this movie and do a pretty good job selling the plot.  None are very well known and take this opportunity to get some good exposure in which they stepped up to the plate.  Mathilde Ollivier (Chloe) plays the “damsel” and ends up being a very strong character in the movie.  John Magaro (Tibbet) plays the comic relief, if you can call it that.  Bokeem Woodbine (Rensin) is the most familiar face and lives up to the typical stereotype of black leads in horror films.  The acting in Overlord is above average and plays well with a cast that you would typically have low expectations for.  A final note for our nerds, it was fun seeing Iain De Caestecker (Chase) in a role outside of S.H.I.E.L.D. with an American accent.

If you are a horror or grindhouse fan then by all means get up and go see this movie.  It is very well produced and you would expect no less from a Bad Robot production.  For J.J. Abrams to produce a sci-fi film without the use of aliens was interesting to see.   Although if you are a casual movie fan you can wait for home viewing.  Nothing about the movie, possibly other than the war scenes, would dictate you must see it in a theatre.  Overlord should be plainly apparent for mature audiences only.  If you enjoy gore or good old American soldiers killing Nazi’s then this movie should be enjoyable.