‘Our greatest threat is our only hope’
The Girl with All the Gifts is a 2016 British post-apocalyptic zombie horror drama film directed by Colm McCarthy (Doctor Who; Ripper Street) from a screenplay by M.R. Carey, adapted from his novel of the same name. It stars Gemma Arterton, Paddy Considine (The World’s End; Hot Fuzz), Glenn Close (Fatal Attraction) and Sennia Nanua.
The plot depicts a dystopian future following a breakdown of society after most of humanity is wiped out by a fungal infection and focuses upon the struggle of a scientist, a teacher and two soldiers who embark on a journey of survival with a special young girl named Melanie…
Half of the film’s £4 million budget came from the BFI Film Fund and Creative England, making it the biggest investment that the latter had ever made and one of the largest ever for the BFI.
Warner Bros. bought the United Kingdom distribution rights, while the film is being distributed in the United States by Saban Films. It is released January 26, 2017 via DirecTV and on VOD on February 24, 2017.
Reviews:
“The Girl with All the Gifts is clearly influenced by the genre greats such as 28 Days Later, crafted with just a small budget and some grounded CG work, it manages to pull off a tense experience that once again puts British crafted undead movies on the map, and even create a future star with a breakout performance from Sennia Nanua.” David Robinson, Crash Landed
“The movie is a coming-of-age story, but whose age is coming? That’s the profound question we’re left with, in a stellar adaptation that balances gore with black humor, ethical quandary, hope and—yes—plenty of brains.” Joshua Rothkopf, Time Out New York
“The best zombie-ish apocalypse in years. Sennia Nanua is a major discovery, but it’s the dense social commentary and moral dilemmas that will haunt you.” Helen O’hara, Empire
“The Girl With All the Gifts manages to deliver everything you could possibly want from a zombie movie: Tons of scares, memorable characters, creative variations of the genre’s classic tropes, and serious subtext about what it means to be alive.” Matt Singer, ScreenCrush
“What really separates The Girl with All the Gifts from the genre pack, however, is its moral intelligence, clever thematic consistency (drawing on the Greek myth of Pandora’s box) and emotional heft, the latter component rooted in the truly captivating breakout performance of young Nanua…” Charles Gant, Screen Daily
“The only one going all out is Close, whose character is a mad scientist, loquacious exposition dispenser and all-round explainer and generally a will-stop-at-nothing crazy woman. At the frustratingly vague end of the film, you realize that the zombie movie she signed up for in her head was a lot pulpier and more fun than the one she actually ended up playing in.” Boyd van Hoeij, The Hollywood Reporter
“Ultimately, our monster child’s coming-of-age holds more interest than slamming together science-fiction babble with the drone of more gunfire. At least the ending teases something akin to that of Richard Matheson’s I Am Legend, as well as a wholly better film: one where conflict has manifested into something wholly different than another fight for the future.” Ethan Vestby, The Film Stage
“Chilean composer Cristobal Tapia de Veer’s pounding soundtrack creates a constant sense of uneasiness, while the film’s vibrant imagery pairs immersive master shots of the empty landscapes with telling closeups that hint at divided allegiances. In the spectacular finale, the movie takes on the haunting, expressionistic dread of a Bosch painting.” Eric Kohn, IndieWire
Cast and characters:
- Gemma Arterton as Helen Justineau
- Paddy Considine as Sgt Eddie Parks
- Glenn Close as Dr Caroline Caldwell
- Sennia Nanua as Melanie
- Anamaria Marinca as Dr Selkirk
- Dominique Tipper as Devani
- Fisayo Akinade as Pvt Kieran Gallagher
- Anthony Welsh as Pvt Dillon
- Amy Newey and Elise Reed as Feral children
Filming locations:
Birmingham city centre, Cannock Chase, Dudley and Stoke-on-Trent. Aerial views of a deserted London were filmed with drones in the abandoned Ukrainian town of Pripyat, which has been uninhabited since the 1986 Chernobyl disaster
