Wood imbues his character with the sort of casual condescension that parcels away self-loathing and failure. It’s no wonder he’s back, subbing in a summer classroom, when his own mother (Kate Flannery) qualifies her “love” for the first draft of his book with a list of critical barbs that would make a Penguin editor proud. The Best Sex Scenes of the 21st Century Ranked, from 'Midsommar' to 'Titane'Ĭlint Hadson (Elijah Wood) had been doing the aspiring writer thing in New York. 'Firestarter' Review: Zac Efron Can't Ignite a Stephen King Adaptation Totally Devoid of Heatīest True Crime Shows on Amazon Prime, Hulu, HBO Max Netflix Might Have the Model to Fix a Major Film Festival Flaw (Column) The sequence’s climax is as repulsive as anything since Asami’s dog bowl delicacy in “Audition.” Hello, “Cooties.” We watch one particular nugget, with oversized black veins like a spoiled shrimp, make its way to a cafeteria in Fort Chicken Elementary. The opening credits roll show chickens being turned into meaty putty and eventually school lunch nuggets. As with most post-9/11 zombie films, the movie deploys a virus that deteriorates the brain to its most primal motor functions and creates an appetite for human flesh. “Cooties” opens with a title sequence for the ages. Yet, when Milott and Murnion dial it up, we forget we spent the last ten minutes cracking up. Whannell and Brennan’s unapologetically absurd script pairs nicely with Jonathan Milott and Cary Murnion’s terse direction in this solid midnight movie, where the laughs outnumber the body count tenfold. Fortunately, the team behind “ Cooties”-which includes “Saw” creator Leigh Whannell” and “Glee” creator Ian Brennan-manage to pit comedy and horror together in a satisfying package. Gore can only go so far in the service of humor.