Writer/director Kieran Andrino seems to know that to create a memorable zombie apocalypse movie, there has to be something more than the undead munching on brains. His short film, Mary Jane’s Last Dance, certainly features groaning zombies, but it also focuses on character and elevates the humans above all else. There are real stakes and real human emotions in this film.
The short stars Lydia Fitzwilliams as Mary. By the time the film opens, the outbreak has spread. Mary, desperate to find her sister, hauls up in a warehouse, trying to fend off zombies, while pondering a plan to find her sister. However, Mary isn’t alone. The undead pound on the doors outside, and inside, there’s a pregnant woman, Sara (Kayley Rainton), who’s been bitten. Meanwhile, Sara’s husband, Danny (Matthew Martin), busts inside to try to save his wife and their unborn child. Mary isn’t sure if he’s friend or foe, but eventually, in a pulse-pounding scene, the two join forces to ensure the safe birth of the child.
Likely, most viewers will know Sara’s fate from the get-go, since the camera zooms in on her huge bite mark and the bruises on her neck, so it’s left to Danny, the baby, and Mary to make it out alive and survive, one day at a time. Like other zombie narratives, the apocalypse throws people together, making them unlikely allies, in this case Mary and Danny. Both Fitzwilliams and Martin do a good job in their respective roles, selling the characters and the dire stakes of their grim situation.
Andrino takes another shift in its last few minutes, with a brutal and sad surprise. But again, this is a zombie movie, so no one is safe. Even still, the writer/director focuses on the human emotion and story more than anything. There’s also the running theme of family that’s paramount to the film. Sometimes, we can’t always choose our families.
Overall, Mary Jane’s Last Dance is a zombie movie with a lot of heart and a gut punch of an ending. It elevates character and story over blood and gore, though there’s plenty of zombie action, too. I’d love more adventures with Mary fending off the undead. Here’s hoping Andrino gets the chance to turn this into a feature-length film.
