State of Emergency starts off strong. A man (Jim) and his wife fleeing until her injuries make them pause. Jim watches as his wife passes away. He’s in shock. Something horrible is happening, and while he knows he needs to hole up, he doesn’t yet know how bad it is.
Jim finds a barn, and after pulling his dead wife into a stall, Jim proceeds to explore, only to hear something moving somewhere. He thinks everything is okay when he sees a cat, but the relief is short lived. When he returns to the main hallway he sees muddy foot prints.
There are a few things I really liked about State of Emergency. One of them was that they never pulled the “wife” card. It would have been expected, and would have made the movie less enjoyable for me. The other was the quality of Jim’s character, and the suspense around surviving as he comes to grips with a world with new dangers, and new rules.
This is not a zombie hordes movie. This is a zombie suspense movie with just a few zombies that drive the story, and that part well well done. The honest truth is that until we meet the 2nd group of survivors that Jim pairs up with, the movie was on its way to getting a score in the 90’s.
What happened? The acting once Jim meets the second group of survivors goes down hill fast. Scott (played by Scot Lilly) was really rough around the edges. I’m guessing this was really early in his career and he didn’t have much screen time before this? His scenes really feel like he reading cue cards above the cameraman’s head.
How much did that bad acting hurt the movie? Well, it was still enjoyable and I watched it until the end, and actually liked it. The story was well written and the characters themselves were well rounded, which earned State of Emergency a 73/100.
| Review | Year | Score | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
| #Alive | 2020 | 100 | Action / Infection |
| Dawn Of The Dead | 1978 | 100 | Action / Horror / Classics |
| Night Of The Living Dead | 1968 | 100 | Action / Horror / Classics |
| World War Z | 2013 | 100 | Action / Infection |
| 28 Days Later | 2002 | 100 | Action / Infection |
| Train To Busan | 2016 | 100 | Action / Infection |
| Zombieland | 2010 | 100 | Comedy / Action |
| Flesh And Blood | 2018 | 99 | Shorts |
| Serenity | 2005 | 99 | Action / Sci-Fi |
| The Girl With All The Gifts | 2016 | 95 | Action / Infection |
| Land Of The Dead | 2005 | 94 | Action / Horror |
| Resident Evil: Apocalypse | 2004 | 93 | Action / Infection |
| Resident Evil | 2002 | 92 | Action / Infection |
| Rampant | 2018 | 91 | Action / Infection / Mid Evil |
| Day of the Dead | 2008 | 90 | Action / Infection |
| Cooties | 2014 | 89 | Comedy / Action |
| The Return of the Living Dead | 1985 | 85 | Comedy / Action |
| Night of the Comet | 1984 | 85 | Comedy / Action |
| Train to Busan Presents: Peninsula | 2020 | 84 | Action / Infection |
| Zombieland: Double Tap | 2019 | 83 | Comedy / Action |
| Fido | 2006 | 82 | Comedy / Action |
| Shaun Of The Dead | 2004 | 81 | Comedy / Action |
| Zombie | 1979 | 80 | Action / Horror |
| The Evil Dead | 1981 | 80 | Classic / Action |
| I Am Legend (2007) | 2007 | 80 | Action / Infection |
| 28 Weeks Later | 2007 | 80 | Action / Infection |
| Infection | 2019 | 79 | Action / Infection |
| It Stains The Sands Red | 2016 | 79 | Action / Infection |
| Overlord | 2018 | 79 | Action / Horror |
| A Little Bit Zombie | 2012 | 78 | Comedy / Action |
| Plan Z | 2016 | 78 | Action / Infection |
| Wyrmwood: Apocalypse | 2021 | 77 | Action / Infection |
| Day of the Dead | 1985 | 77 | Action / Horror / Classics |
| Dead Rising: Endgame | 2016 | 77 | Action / Infection |
| Freaks of Nature | 2015 | 76 | Comedy / Action |
| The Dead | 2010 | 76 | Action / Infection |
| Cockneys Vs. Zombies | 2012 | 75 | Comedy / Action |
| Here Alone | 2016 | 75 | Suspense / Infection |
| The Battery | 2012 | 74 | Drama / Infection |
| Shed of the Dead | 2019 | 74 | Comedy / Action |
| Alone | 2020 | 73 | Action / Infection |
| Survival Of The Dead | 2009 | 73 | Action / Horror |
| State of Emergency | 2011 | 73 | Action / Infection |
| Remains | 2011 | 72 | Action / Infection |
| Dawning of the Dead | 2017 | 72 | Action / Infection |
| Dance of the Dead | 2008 | 72 | Comedy / Action |
| The Rezort | 2015 | 72 | Action / Infection |
| The Army of the Dead | 2021 | 71 | Action / Infection |
| Witness Infection | 2021 | 71 | Comedy / Action |
| Daylight's End | 2016 | 71 | Action / Infection |
| The Valley Of The Dead | 2021 | 70 | Horror / Infection |
| Wyrmwood: Road of the Dead | 2014 | 70 | Action / Infection |
| Scouts Guide to the Zombie Apocalypse | 2015 | 70 | Comedy / Action |
| Resident Evil: Afterlife | 2010 | 70 | Action / Infection |
| Night of the Living Deb | 2015 | 70 | Comedy / Romance |
| For A Few Zombies More | 2015 | 70 | Action / Infection |
| Zombie Night | 2013 | 70 | Action / Infection |
| Dead Rising: Watchtower | 2015 | 70 | Action / Infection |
| Zombie Hunter | 2013 | 70 | Action / Infection |
| The Dead 2: India | 2015 | 70 | Action / Infection |
| Among The Living | 2022 | 69 | Suspense / Horror |
| Exit Humanity | 2011 | 69 | Action / Infection |
| Bird Box | 2018 | 69 | Action / Horror / Possession |
| Republic Z | 2018 | 68 | Action / Comedy |
| Blood Quantum | 2019 | 68 | Action / Infection |
| Ravenous | 2017 | 68 | Action / Infection |
| Quarantine | 2008 | 67 | Infection / Horror |
| Forget Everything And Run (F.E.A.R.) | 2021 | 67 | Suspense / Horror |
| The Night Eats The World | 2018 | 67 | Suspense / Infection |
| Ultimate Zombie Feast | 2020 | 66 | Shorts/ Action |
| How To Kill A Zombie | 2014 | 66 | Action / Comedy |
| Cargo | 2017 | 66 | Suspense / Infection |
| Trench 11 | 2017 | 66 | Action / Horror |
| Dead County | 2021 | 65 | Drama / Horror |
| Zombie Town | 2007 | 65 | Action / Horror |
| Zoombies | 2016 | 65 | Awesomely Bad |
| The End? | 2017 | 64 | Horror / Infection |
| Quarantine 2 | 2011 | 64 | Action / Infection |
| Zombie Apocalypse | 2011 | 64 | Action / Infection |
| Red Spring | 2017 | 63 | Action / Infection |
| Virus:32 | 2022 | 62 | Horror / Infection |
| Resident Evil: Extinction | 2007 | 62 | Action / Infection |
| Resident Evil Retribution | 2012 | 61 | Action / Infection |
| Zom 100: Bucket List of the Dead | 2023 | 60 | Comedy / Action |
| Resident Evil: The Final Chapter | 2016 | 60 | Action / Infection |
| Life After Beth | 2014 | 59 | Comedy / Action |
| Diary Of The Dead | 2007 | 58 | Action / Horror |
| Revelation Trail | 2013 | 57 | Action / Horror |
| Eat Brains Love | 2019 | 56 | Comedy / Horror |
| My Mates vs. The Zombie Apocalypse | 2015 | 56 | Comedy / Action |
| Deadsight | 2018 | 55 | Suspense / Infection |
| Anna And The Apocalypse | 2017 | 55 | Musical / Infection |
| Amigo Undead | 2015 | 54 | Comedy / Horror |
| Bong of the Living Dead | 2017 | 54 | Action / Infection |
| Black Friday | 2021 | 53 | Action / Horror |
| The Dead Undead | 2010 | 53 | Action / Infection |
| Redcon-1 | 2018 | 52 | Action / Horror |
| Deadheads | 2011 | 52 | Comedy / Romance |
| Dead Don't Die in Dallas | 2019 | 51 | Action / Infection / LGBTQ |
| Day of the Dead: Bloodline | 2018 | 51 | Action / Infection |
| Road Wars | 2015 | 50 | Action / Infection |
| Disaster L.A. | 2014 | 50 | Action |
| Zombie Strippers! | 2008 | 49 | Horror / Comedy |
| Within the Woods of Undead County | 2016 | 49 | Action / Infection |
| Day Zero | 2023 | 48 | Horror / Infection |
| Rise of The Zombies | 2012 | 48 | Action / Infection |
| I Am Alone | 2015 | 48 | Action / Infection |
| Valentine DayZ | 2018 | 47 | Action / Infection / Awesomely Bad |
| Lethal Virus | 2021 | 46 | Action / Horror |
| Savageland | 2015 | 46 | Horror / Drama |
| Zombie Warz: Falls The Shadow | 2011 | 45 | Action / Horror |
| Infected | 2019 | 45 | Shorts |
| Bridge of the Doomed | 2022 | 44 | Horror / Infection |
| Block Z | 2020 | 44 | Action / Infection |
| Resident Evil: Welcome to Raccoon City | 2021 | 43 | Action / Horror |
| The Dead Don't Die | 2019 | 43 | Spoof / Drama |
| The Plague | 2006 | 42 | Action / Horror |
| Strain 100 | 2020 | 42 | Action / Infection |
| Infected | 2021 | 41 | Action / Horror |
| Before Dawn | 2013 | 41 | Drama / Action |
| When the Fever Breaks | 2019 | 41 | Suspense / Infection |
| Zombie Undead | 2010 | 40 | Action / Infection |
| Hostile | 2017 | 40 | Action / Infection |
| Dead Before Down | 2012 | 39 | Horror / Supernatural |
| Gangs Of The Dead | 2006 | 38 | Action / Infection |
| Zombies | 2017 | 37 | Action / Infection |
| American Zombieland | 2020 | 36 | Comedy / Infection |
| Cannon Fodder / Battle Of The Undead | 2013 | 35 | Action / Horror |
| Zombie Diaries 2 | 2011 | 35 | Action / Infection |
| Dead Trigger | 2017 | 35 | Action / Infection |
| Deadlocked | 2020 | 35 | Action / Infection |
| Another World | 2014 | 35 | Action / Infection |
| Evilution | 2009 | 34 | Action / Horror |
| KL24: Zombies | 2017 | 34 | Action / Infection |
| Re-Elected | 2020 | 33 | Comedy / Suspense |
| Antisocial 2 | 2015 | 33 | Action / Infection |
| Aquarium of the Dead | 2021 | 32 | Comedy / Horror |
| Antisocial | 2013 | 32 | Action / Infection |
| By Day's End | 2020 | 31 | Suspense / Infection |
| Dead 7 | 2016 | 31 | Action / Infection |
| Pandemic | 2016 | 30 | Action / Infection |
| Attack of the Southern Fried Zombies | 2017 | 29 | Comedy / Action |
| Zombie Hood | 2013 | 28 | Action / Infection |
| The Dustwalker | 2019 | 27 | Action / Parasite |
| Day of the Dead 2: Contagium | 2005 | 26 | Action / Infection |
| Solar Impact | 2019 | 25 | Action / Horror |
| Anger Of The Dead | 2015 | 25 | Action / Infection |
| The Last Hope | 2017 | 24 | Action / Infection |
| The Day of the Living Dead | 2014 | 23 | Drama / Detective |
| Zombie Road | 2018 | 22 | Shorts |
| Zombie Wars | 2007 | 21 | Action / Infection |
| Army of Thieves | 2021 | 20 | Heist / Horror |
| Last Rites Of The Dead | 2019 | 20 | Drama / Thriller |
| The Mad | 2007 | 19 | Comedy / Infection |
| The Living Dead | 2020 | 18 | Horror / Drama |
| Zone of the Dead | 2009 | 17 | Action / Infection |
| Killer Weekend | 2018 | 16 | Comedy / Not Zombies |
| G Zombie | 2021 | 15 | Drama / Infection |
| Quarantine L.A. | 2013 | 14 | Action / Infection |
| Driven | 2020 | 13 | Drama / Suspense |
| The Hive | 2014 | 12 | Demonic Possession / Horror |
| The Horde | 2016 | 11 | Action / Gore |
| Rebirth | 2020 | 10 | Action / Horror |
| The Last Starship | 2017 | 10 | Action / Infection |
| Rising Undead / Rise of the Undead | 2005 | 9 | Action / Horror |
| Rise of the Zombie | 2013 | 9 | Drama / Action |
| Plague | 2014 | 8 | Suspense / Drama |
| Flu | 2013 | 8 | Infection / Not Zombies |
| Red Days | 2016 | 7 | Action / Infection |
| The Returned | 2013 | 6 | Drama / Romance |
| Apocalypse Nerds | 2012 | 5 | Comedy / Action |
| Zombie with a Shotgun | 2019 | 4 | Infection / Drama |
| Soon Enough | 2018 | 3 | Action / Drama |
| Army of the Dead | 2008 | 2 | Action / Horror |
| Range 15 | 2016 | 2 | Comedy / Action |
| Nazi Undead | 2018 | 1 | Paranormal / Horror |
| Pandemic | 2009 | 1 | Drama / Action |
| Eyes Of The Dead | 2015 | 1 | Action / Infection |
| All My Friends Are Dead | 2021 | 0 | Horror / Not Zombies |
| Curse of the Blind Dead | 2020 | 0 | Horror / Not Zombies |
| Carriers | 2009 | 0 | Drama / Not Zombies |
| Afflicted | 2013 | 0 | Drama / Infection |
| Broadcast Dead | 2018 | 0 | Horror / Thriller |
| Dead End | 2003 | 0 | Horror / Thriller |
