Alongside the vampire, it seems that zombies are the movie monster that seemingly never goes out of fashion. The fascination really took hold with George. A Romero’s Night of the Living Dead, and is still going strong thanks to the likes of Zombieland and The Walking Dead television franchise. Given the countless versions of zombie outbreaks that we’ve seen, it isn’t often that we see something that offers the viewers a new direction or perspective on the sub-genre. Writer and director Jeff Barnaby has done just that though with his feature film Blood Quantum.
Blood Quantum tells the familiar zombie apocalypse story, but from a new vantage point, that of a group of Indigenous Americans. Our story unfolds in the typical and expected way; first animals start reanimating and soon enough people aren’t staying dead for long, but then we’re presented with a much more political statement. It transpires that members of the Mi’gmag reserve are immune to zombie plague, which sees the balance of power shift in their favour for the first time in centuries. The leaders of the community then find themselves figuring out what the best course of action is – seal their borders and go it alone, or let in the white man who has been the master of their oppression. With conflicting sides forming, it’s only a matter of time before the ticking time-bomb goes off, with catastrophic results.
Rather than jump right into the action our writer/director Jeff Barnaby opts to start at the beginning. Here we join Red Crow Sheriff Traylor (Michael Greyeyes) on what should be a typical day at the office. Things don’t get off to the best start however, after finding out his sons Joseph () and Lysol (Kiowa Gordon) are both in jail. Then his dad calls him to show him some very not dead salmon, and things quickly escalate to all out zombie mayhem. Just as this part of the story peaks, it jolts forwards six months. It is in this second half of the narrative that Blood Quantum gets interesting. It would have been all too easy to create a film set purely in the first half, but here we get to look at the aftermath.
Of course there are just as many films dealing with the repercussions of a zombie virus as there are set in the initial outbreak, but Blood Quantum doesn’t bog itself down too much with the usual ‘what are we going to eat? What about the electricity?’ etc. worries as this community, and their ancestors have been living off of the land forever. Rather, the intrigue comes from the opposing sides on whether or not to let the outsiders in. These two opposing factions are lead by half-brothers Joseph and Lysol. The decision to have both of them being Traylor’s sons adds an extra layer of fracture; Lysol having all but been abandoned by Traylor as a boy.
Don’t worry, Blood Quantum isn’t a dreary, preachy, talk-heavy affair. Barnaby pays proper homage and attention to the zombie genre, and as such the film is packed full of gore. There’s plenty of guns, chainsaws, and enough blood and viscera to sate even the most bloodthirsty out there.
It’s an odd world to release a zombie film into, and I’ll admit that watching a film about a deadly virus sweeping the planet during our current world climate doesn’t make for the most comfortable of watches. It takes on an extra resonance with the recent news that people from certain ethnic groups are at a higher risk of dying from Covid-19. But these facts shouldn’t deter you from seeking out Blood Quantum, it’s merely a warning for those that are feeling a little more sensitive at the moment. We have to remember though that the film was written and made well before we found ourselves in these dire circumstances.
Blood Quantum offers a fresh vantage point on a familiar genre and demonstrates that Jeff Barnaby is a new voice to pay attention to.
Blood Quantum is available on Shudder now.
