You are not prepared for “Overlord.” No matter what the trailers have shown you, the posters have promised, or what other reviews have said. Know this right here and right now: this film is a shock to every sense and a visceral powerhouse of terror, violence, and pulse pounding thrills. And it accomplishes everything it sets out to do in the most unexpected and satisfying of ways.
Following a group of soldiers assigned with taking out a communication jamming tower mere hours before D-Day, “Overlord” jumps right into the business of grabbing audiences by their shoulders and shaking them up. The opening ten minutes deliver a wonderfully pulpy sense of atmosphere before throwing characters straight into hell.
What glorious hell it is too. Every crackle and pop from gunfire and explosions sizzles with raw power. Sound effects and design are absolutely top notch, especially in the later half of the film, when things start to bend and crack in ways they were never meant to.
Cinematographers Laurie Rose (“Free Fire,” “High-Rise”) and Fabien Wagner (“Justice League”) turn the dank and decrypt halls of Nazi labs and a crumbling small French town into live wire fright scenarios. Thanks to subtle camera tricks, with angles bent just enough to cause anxiety without ever setting it off, the pair make even the quieter moments incredibly tense.
The entire cast is excellent, keeping the same composure and characterizations consistent, even as the weird hits the fan. Wyatt Russell (“Black Mirror,” “Everybody Wants Some!!”) and Jovan Adepo (“Fences (2016),” “mother!”) play off each other beautifully. John Magaro (“The Big Short”) and Dominic Applewhite (“The Inbetweeners”) are both charming and surprising in their smaller roles. Iain De Caestecker (“Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.”) gets bonus points for one scene in particular, about halfway through the film. You’ll know it when you see it.
“Overlord” is an incredibly hard film to write about. Every moment or item discussed risks giving something else away. That’s because everything in this film is wound so tightly, every moment so razor sharp, that even saying one detail about one event threatens to send the whole thing tumbling down.
Most miraculously of all though, director Julius Avery (“Son of a Gun”) and writers Billy Ray (“The Hunger Games,” “Captain Phillips”) and Mark L. Smith (“The Hole”) manage to keep the tonal balance rock solid throughout. Even when things barrel past the hour mark and things start to go from bad to buck-wild in an instant, it all feels solidly established, avoiding any sort of bizarre tone shift that a film like this could easily create.
However, if there’s one big thing worth mentioning above all else, its that this film is R rated with a capital “Gore.” This movie is the definition of body horror. Blood and guts spew quite a bit, and the crew isn’t afraid to let a smashed in head or exploding brain be seen in all its glory. This is war, after all.
Most impressively though, some of the sequences later in the film combine physical effects, prosthetics, animatronics and CGI in such ingenious and baffling ways. Its worth watching purely to see what kind of scenario is thrown out next, and how the crew will accomplish it from a technical standpoint.
This is not a film for the weak hearted or weak stomached. And its far darker and bloodier than even its own trailer seemed. It’s also best experienced with an audience, that way everyone can cry out, wince and shield their eyes all together.
“Overlord” is absolutely crazy. From frame one it throws audiences headfirst into the kind of action, horror, sci-fi, World War II mutation extravaganza that has to be seen to be believed. Every twist and turn feel expertly planned and intentional. The world and its tone are rock solid, with performances that catapult the film from pulpy fun into the realm of the sublime. Its gore is impressive and excessive, maybe to a fault. Regardless, “Overlord” is buck-wild and bonkers. That’s all there is to it. 4.5/5
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