Zombieland: Double Tap (2019) * * *

Directed by:  Ruben Fleischer

Starring:  Woody Harrelson, Jesse Eisenberg, Emma Stone, Abigail Breslin, Rosario Dawson, Zoey Deutch, Avan Jogia, Luke Wilson, Thomas Middleditch

My biggest gripe against zombie movies is how no matter how you approach the material, whether comically or as horror, the climactic scene is usually the heroes battling the zombies and blowing their heads off.     Give it to Zombieland: Double Tap for creating a fresh take on the final battle.   I won't reveal what happens, but no guns are used.

Zombieland: Double Tap is the sequel to the 2009 zombie film starring the four players from the original movie (Harrelson as Tallahassee, Eisenberg as Columbus, Stone as Wichita, and Breslin as Little Rock), plus some new cast members, including the daffy blonde Madison (Deutch) and Nevada (Dawson), who runs an Elvis Presley shrine in the middle of the zombie wasteland.    Elvis figures heavily into the Zombieland: Double Tap narrative.  

Ten years after the original, the four heroes have formed a family unit of sorts, with Tallahassee as the father figure and Columbus and Wichita engaged in a relationship forged more out of desperation than love.    Little Rock, Wichita's kid sister, is experiencing wanderlust and takes off with Berkley (Jogia), a pacifist, which is the last thing you want to be in a zombie apocalypse.    The gang takes us residence in the vacant White House for a while, but soon go on a mission to find Little Rock.  

Yes, there are brutal battles with zombies with heads exploding from being shot, but Zombieland: Double Tap wisely keeps things light, with a romantic subplot involving Wichita, Columbus, and Madison, and some sly comedy.   We also meet Albuquerque (Wilson) and Flagstaff (Middleditch), and no one would blame you for thinking they behave precisely like two other characters we've gotten to know so well.  

I wasn't crazy about Zombieland.   It started out as a funny parody of zombie movies, but then became one like all the others.    A sequel wasn't necessary, but this is an instance in which I enjoyed the sequel more than the predecessor.  

Footnote:   If you recall, Bill Murray appeared as himself in Zombieland before meeting a sudden demise.    He also starred in the weak The Dead Don't Die from earlier this year, a zombie comedy in which the title is funnier than anything else in the movie, and it isn't exactly a spoiler to learn he appears in Zombieland: Double Tap.