“New Era Z” is a Scottish director Colm McCarthy’s tape based on Mike Carey’s best-selling novel, The Gifts of Pandora, which won acclaim from literary critics and readers in 2014. The genre of the "New Era Z" is a zombie horror. Filming took place in different parts of the UK, panoramas of devastated London were shot in Pripyat. The film premiered in August 2016.
Production
In 2014, the British writer Mike Carey created the script for the film based on his own novel, The Gifts of Pandora. Work on the flight began in 2015. The director's place was taken by Colm McCarthy, for whom "New Era Z" was a real breakthrough. Prior to that, he worked mainly on television series, and his only feature film - the horror “Les Miserables” (2010) - did not gain much popularity.
Cast
In March 2015, the casting of the movie “New Era Z” (2016) began. Actors Glenn Close and Anamaria Marinka were approved for the roles of Dr. Caldwell and Dr. Selkirk, respectively. Glenn Close, a two-time Golden Globe Award winner, became the film's main star.
Despite her many years of acting in films, she had not had to work on horror films before, so it was an unusual experience for her. A little later, Gemma Arterton, star of Quantum of Solace and Clash of the Titans, joined the project. Prior to this, Gemma had to star in horror films - she played Gretel in the popular horror film “Witch Hunters” and Clara in the mystical film “Byzantium”.
The search for a suitable actress for the role of the main character Melanie was long. As a result, Sennia Nanua got this role. In the book, Melanie is a blue-eyed girl with fair skin, and Nanua did not fit this description at all. However, her film screenings impressed both director Colm McCarthy and screenwriter Mike Cash, who directed all stages of work on the film, so it was decided to take her for the lead role.
Interestingly, before that, Sennia Nanua did not act in films, for her the film “New Era Z” (2016) was her debut. Actors Patrick Considine and Dominic Tipper got supporting roles - the military roles at the base where experimental children are kept. Somewhat later, Fisayo Akinade and Anthony Welch joined the cast.
Filming
By the beginning of May 2015, all the actors of the film “New Era Z” (2016) were selected, the filming process began. Most of the scenes were shot in the West Midlands (Birmingham). Filming lasted seven weeks. Aerial panoramas of deserted London were shot by unmanned aircraft in the abandoned Ukrainian city of Pripyat.
In the original, both the film and the book have the same name - "The Girl with All the Gifts", but the rental name in the CIS countries was changed to "New Era Z", due to the recent success of the picture " War of the Worlds Z. " These two tapes have nothing in common.
Plot
The film takes place in post-apocalyptic Britain. Almost the entire population of the country was hit by a fungus that turns people into zombies. The cities were empty, the surviving people took refuge in military bases, fleeing the attacks of the "hungry", as they now call the infected people. The plot of "New Era Z" revolves around 10-year-old girl Melanie. She is one of those children who became infected with a fungus in the womb. Outwardly, such children look the same as ordinary children, but they are somewhat more capable and smarter than ordinary children. They are kept at a military base, scientists conduct experiments on them. The purpose of these studies is simple - to find out why the disease in the second generation of infected develops in an unusual way. Children are treated as especially dangerous criminals, preventing any contact with people. And the military, and scientists, and many teachers treat these children as material for experiments, and nothing more. However, when the situation at the base gets out of control, Melanie remains the only key to creating a cure for the fungus that has destroyed much of the world.
Critic reviews
Like the book “Gifts of Pandora,” the film “New Era Z” (2016), the actors and the director's work have earned critical acclaim. The verdict on the Rotten Tomatoes website says: “ The New Z Era raises provocative questions and contains quite a few frightening moments. The film boasts several fresh plot moves in the battered zombie horror genre .”
Crash Landed, a film commentator from Dave Robinson, described the film as an “intense and intriguing experience,” comparing it to a cult zombie horror movie like “28 Days Later.”
Of the actors involved in the film, Gemma Arterton and Sennia Nanua, who was awarded the Catalan Film Festival Prize as the best actress, received warm reviews from critics. For Senniya Nanui, “The New Era of Z”, no doubt, was a great start to an acting career.
Box office
Despite the approval of film critics, with a budget of $ 6.6 million, the movie "New Era Z" collected only $ 2.5 million at the box office. The reason for the box office failure was the complete lack of advertising - there were no trailers on television or movie announcements. Mike Carey’s book has become a bestseller, and the film might have been a box office hit if Warner Bros. tried to promote him.