User Reviews

Civil War zombies! Yes, EXIT HUMANITY has the distinction of being a historical zombie flick, an extremely limited sub-genre at present, so it has novelty value going for it. Unfortunately it turns out that this ultra-cheap Canadian quickie was filmed in the woods without a whole lot of originality or indeed direction despite the intrigue raised by the premise.

The main character is a former soldier who wanders around some very mundane locales while battling a few zombies here and there. The lack of budget really hurts this film, as it's often forced to descend into dodgy animation in order to portray key sequences. The effect is amateurish to say the least and the main actor doesn't really inspire much confidence in the viewer either.

There are a few conversations on the nature of war and the like before this descends into characters stumbling around in near-darkness and killing each other. There are a few familiar faces here (Dee Wallace and Bill Moseley, along with Brian Cox providing the narration) but otherwise nothing much to recommend it.

Exit Humanity is an interesting approach to a typical zombie outbreak story. It is told by a narrator (Brian Cox) and in chapters from a journal by Confederate soldier, Edward Young (Mark Gibson) who details the story of a zombie outbreak that occurs just as the Civil War is ending. Director/writer John Geddes does give us a lot of the traditional zombie movie elements like the flesh eating, the shot to the head and the humans who are worse then the ravenous zombies but, also gives us a unique setting, some nicely visualized dream sequences and even some really cool flashbacks and montage sequences done with animation. The make up effects are good, although the film lacks the abundant gore fans look for, and Gibson makes a nice hero trying to keep his humanity despite what is happening around him. But, there are some flaws that keep the film from being a really strong entry in the zombie sub-genre, the pace is rather slow, the film is a tad long, and despite his novel touches and setting, there really isn't anything new story wise here or themes that others haven't touched on before in these films, although, the cause of his zombie plague was a cool twist once revealed. His cast also includes genre favorites Dee Wallce as "Eve" a healer thought to be a witch and Bill Mosley as "General Williams" a megalomaniac who wants to find a cure to the zombie plague so he may become rich and powerful and doesn't care how many innocents die while his outmatched doctor (Stephen McHattie) experiments on both the dead and the living. All in all it's not bad and certainly worth a watch if you like zombie movies and, most of all, John Geddes shows some nice potential as a filmmaker. He utilizes his more unique touches well, he frames his shots very nicely and pulls off some effective moments. A nice horror debut for Mr. Geddes.

Exit Humanity is not a movie to watch for action, blood and gore. It's a slow period piece that follows one man's journey of survival through an undead outbreak after the civil war.

It's got a great 1860's feel to it, pretty good acting and script, a plot with lots of potential, and is interspersed with some superb narration & animated sequences.

But there are 2 major flaws to Exit Humanity:

1) It is Slow. This movie is about 110min long, and it should have been 80. Long periods given to the protagonist's grief should have been pared down.

2) The script/plot touches onto the history and ancient origin of the undead, and a possible cure, but doesn't go further. I was hoping the protagonist would continue his journey of discovery concerning the undead - which via his journal, would connect & help fight the 20th century outbreaks. But no, this potentially exiting avenue was left unexplored.

Pretty good movie: I give Exit Humanity 6 out of 10.

A narrator (Brian Cox) reads a journal from the 19th century about the outbreak of the dead returning to life. It's 1865 Tennessee. Edward Young (Mark Gibson) is a Confederate soldier who encounters undead Union soldiers. Six years later, his home is attacked, his wife killed, and his son Adam goes missing. He finds him turned and has to destroy the body. He is in despair after losing everything. He finds Isaac in a desolate farmhouse.

This small Canadian horror indie is too slow and too long. There isn't enough to justify the extended length. I can deal with the indie factor but it needs to be tighter. The lengthening of every scene strips away much of the needed intensity. I would also definitely eliminate reading the journal aspect. This concept of a zombie apocalypse in Civil War era is intriguing and could be compelling for an indie. The execution here is unable to make this good enough to seek out.

"Exit Humanity" is one of the best zombie movies in its genre; that being a zombie movie set in a Western setting, more specifically during and in the aftermath of the American Civil War. Far better than "Undead or Alive", "Abraham Lincoln vs Zombies" and "Cowboys vs Zombies", "Exit Humanity" is a definite must if you are planning to watch a zombie/western movie.

I sat down to watch "Exit Humanity" with no particular expectations as I had honestly never heard about the movie prior to finding it by sheer luck. And being a fan of all things zombie, I was intrigued and just had to watch it. And now that I have, I must admit that I am more than pleasantly surprised.

The story in the movie is about an outbreak of undead starting in 1865 as the Civil War is at its last chapter. Flash forward six years, we find Edward Young in a small farm house, where his wife is dead and his son is missing in a country ravaged by hordes of the walking dead. Edward sets out to find his son, embarking on a task in a world that is dying.

I found the story to be rather good actually, and it managed to keep me interested all the way up to the very end. There weren't any particular surprise story twists or turn of events, and the movie went on straight ahead at a good pace. And that worked out nicely enough.

The people cast for "Exit Humanity" were doing great jobs, and if you are a movie fan, you will see a couple of familiar faces. I am not familiar with Mark Gibson (playing Edward Young), but he did a good job with his role. And I was more than surprised (and thrilled) to find Bill Mosely (playing General Williams)in the movie, as I've always enjoyed his movies. Then you also have Dee Wallace (playing Eve), Stephen McHattie (playing Medic Johnson) and Brian Cox (the Narrator). So there were some familiar faces and voices around.

As for the zombies in the movie, well most of them were really nice. Lots of good make-up and details. And there were also plenty of gore and wounds to go around to keep most of the gorehounds out there more than satisfied. And thumbs up on not having super agile zombies that run and jump around, I am most definitely not a fan of those type of zombies. Two things to point out about the zombies; I didn't get the black shark-like eyes, what was up with that? Wouldn't eyes glaze over and become milky-grayish after death occurs? And the tone of gray they used on the faces (but sometimes forgot to put on the zombies hands and necks) was a bit too gray, standing out in contrast. That sort of reminded me of the old 70's zombies movies. But aside from those two minor things, then the zombies were good, nicely put together and worked out well.

Being a big zombie fan, then I found "Exit Humanity" to be rather good. I was thoroughly entertained by this movie.

Zombies. They're everywhere. They're on our DVD shelves, on our television screens and in our Netflix queue's. Their hunger for human flesh seems only equaled by their hunger for our entertainment viewing time.

We've long thought and wrote that zombies, by nature, are a boring antagonist. Whether fast (28 Days Later) or slow (Night of the Living Dead), zombies have little character, can do little more than moan, and are usually only scary when accompanied by a horde of other flesh eating zombies.

A quick Google search of zombie films listed over 700 titles which would suggest that the genre from which George Romero made a career has been done (dare we say it….) to death.

The oversaturation of the zombie genre mustn't have been lost on writer/director John Geddes. His awareness of the 'been there, done that' factor must have been electrifying the talented Canadian's synapses when he began scripting Exit Humanity – a zombie film set shortly after the American Civil War in the 1870's.

Exit Humanity follows a solider by the name of Edward Young (Mark Gibson in a thoroughly convincing role) who is returning to his homeland after the American Civil War. The War might be over, but the fight as just begun. Zombies run the landscape and when Edward's wife turns, Edward is forced to kill her in gruesome fashion. Edward then embarks on a journey to find his son – a journey that will be fraught with the undead.

Director John Geddes does a fantastic job of making the landscape and the era a character unto itself in the film. The location shoots standing in for America circa 1870's is what gives Exit Humanity a creative edge in a tired genre. But where praise can be lauded for the setting, issue can be stated for the length of the film combined with a seriousness that alienates a bloodthirsty audience hungry for splatter. Long stretches of monotone description and explanation fell flat and left us bored and indi-glowing our wristwatch to determine the remaining minutes of the ordeal.

There is a good story to be told here, it is just executed with such a lack of urgency that it wears down its audience and wastes supporting roles by Bill Moseley, Dee Wallace and Stephen McHattie not to mention a fascinating narration by Brian Cox that supports the animated sections of the film which are unarguably the film's high points.

While waiting in line and reading the Toronto After Dark program and their description of the film, we were hoping for a Dead Birds (2004) type of horror periodic. Instead, we got an interesting but ultimately defective experiment. One that slipped more than it gripped and was flawed more than it gnawed.

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A unique and well done dramatic zombie period piece. The rustic technology free setting creates nice isolation which helps increase the tension. I love zombies, and these zombies are the best I've seen in a long time. Not just the makeup, which was great, but the acting and serious tone of the movie, help it excel. The music was wonderful, while the acting and narration was well done. The animation added an art-house feel, yet not overused. Not a typical horror film, but a serious drama about humanity. Definitely going to keep an eye on this director. I wish there was more of a scare element. I give it 7 out of 10 stars.

A very ambitious movie, that has great cinematography and with Brian Cox one of the best narrators it could've hired (Morgan Freeman excluded, though I doubt he'd do a movie like this). It tries to go the philosophical road and almost completely convinces. The acting is good and if you liked something like Stake Land, than you have to watch this too of course.

I think that the movie does not live entirely up to its high goals, but at least it did set them high. The filmmakers really wanted to say more and not only make another horror movie. So if you're looking for cheap scares, you should go look elsewhere! Not everyones cup of tea and with some major flaws, you might want to rent, before you buy it

I would probably consider this the best zombie movie of 2012. Keep in mind that there weren't much going against it. The latest Resident Evil movie was decent, but nothing really new.

Exit Humanity it a total B-Budget zombie movie done right. It is slow paced, which I know some people would hate on, but I enjoyed. The director got the atmosphere right with this one. You end up caring about the characters. Acting is well done, along with the settings and music score. Make-up was the only thing that really showed this as a B-Budget endeavor.

I would be willing to invest in a future film effort by this director. He's going to go up in Hollywood. Other directors have tried to do historical zombie movies, but this was the first one to actually do it well.

He obviously strived for "epic" movie, and managed to succeed. Well done sir!

I'm a huge fan of zombie movies and the trailer and premise of this movie seem so awesome that it was too good to be true, it was. The film is riddled with bad acting (the actress playing Eve was painful), bad accents, bad attempts at character development, bad dialogue – I guess the main antagonist is supposed to be a pirate, he sure says "scallywags" a lot. And why the hell is the movie narrated by an entirely different actor, I presume we're to take it that it's the protagonist who has grown old. But then, why even do that, what is the point? It adds nothing.

However, with that said I have seen worse and there are some high points such as the makeup, which is actually pretty good, probably the best part of the movie along with the musical scores and short animated sequences. There is definitely an outline here for something that could've been great though it ultimately felt like a discombobulated amateur flick with no real direction where the director/writer decided to lift scenes from good movies and mash it into the theme hoping it'd be good, but it all felt very superficial.

Someone mentioned in a previous review that there are over 700 zombie films out there. Well, this is one of the better ones.

To be honest the zombies are just a background element to the story. The real story is in the relationship of the characters and their interaction.

The special effects may not be top notch (I believe they only had a $300k budget), but the acting in superb. At no point was I taken out of the story by a poorly delivered line or unbelievably stupid plot device or action on the part of the characters. And, as low key as it was, even the setting was believable. I'm sure only a true Civil War enthusiast would find any fault.

Truly an entertaining film. A real rose amongst the thorns.

I usually pass up anything that is described as horror or says zombie in the title since the original zombie movies like "Dawn of the dead".

I'm not sure why I chose to watch Exit Humanity. I think it was for a lack of anything interesting to watch. I'm happy for this lack in judgment. Exit Humanity turned out to be nothing like I had expected. It is well written and well acted. I wanted to give it more than 7 stars but then I am very hard to please.

I think the failure of most zombie movies is the idea that there needs blood, guts and more blood and guts instead of intelligent dialog and story line. Exit Humanity is worth watching.

What a dismal film. The Civil War setting promises something new in the zombie film genre, but the filmmakers blow it. What story there is takes an age to get going, the narration is ludicrously heavy-handed and trite - aiming for profundity and repeatedly missing - and the film far outstays its welcome. The actors do their best, and credit goes to actor Adam Seybold as Isaac for getting something decent out of a clunky screenplay that reduces the excellent Stephen McHattie to doing comedic drunken grunts. Crucially, the zombies are a bit rubbish, painted in grey stuff that washes off in any scenes that include water, and despatched with that disappointing post-production haze of digital blood. There's a good film in the idea of Civil War zombies somewhere, but this isn't it by a long stretch

Unfortunately, Geddes trots out every zombie cliché, hoping that a little 'Ken Burns' gloss can make it seem like an original take. Sorry – after the previous decade of 3rd-party perspective, secondary characterexploration and vampire/zombie treatments of classic literature, the POV is waaay beyond played.

Just trying to view the film on as a straightup zombie tale , ignoring the borrowed comic-book flourishes and delusions of Tarantino - it still becomes unwatchable. A hero with an endless supply of ammo, wary of attack yet constantly and obviously strolling into danger....it would be a snore – except the threadbare plot is too annoying to let the viewer sleep.

I am a fan of all things zombie so when I saw this on Netflix I knew I'd watch it! From the start I knew this looked like it would be a decent movie which drew me in even more. It's one of those that's a nice unexpected surprise and those are the ones I love! Although the gore is not as heavy as some movies what is there is tastefully done and a strong storyline helps that right along! If you are looking for ultra gore this may not be for you but if you are looking for a zombie movie with a strong plot to boot, this ones for you! It's a bit of horror,drama,and a touch of romance all rolled into one! Also, the main character is someone that as far as I found is little known but seems to carry his role very well! Well acted, well scripted, effects pretty well done! This to me is one I'd watch again!

One man's journey beings in 1885 as he makes his way through the zombie infested American West.

Mark Gibson as Edward Young deserves a mention for his performance as he carries the film. Brian Cox adds weight as 'old' Edward, narrating a journal doing a good Johnny Cash voice impersonation though-out but its odd that director/writer John Geddes would use a Scottish man in such an American tale. Dee Wallace, Bill Moseley and the great character actor Stephen McHattie (of zombie flick Pontypool) also appear.

It's a slow burning, drama, zombie, period piece conventional filmed with some narration. It also includes snippets of animation, dreams and flashbacks to tell the story which gives it an indie-film feel.

The Canadian location successfully doubling for the American West gives the film an authentic feel which is complemented by the melodic eerie score. There's plenty of shooting and biting. The effects, SFX and zombie make-up are quite well executed. However, it's not as tight as it could be and loses impact with its lack of a cinematic quality due to it's TV look.

While it's yet another zombie film it's good production and more interesting than many of other living dead films out there.

This appeared to be a promising film, but I am unable to get past the first 15 minutes or so because the sound track is so dreadful, often with music and "FX" running loudly in the background.

Where the technical people placed the microphones, I don't know, but this presentation is unforgivable.

The narrator has a very low, mumbly voice ~~ to make matters worse.

I give this film 4 out of 10, cannot be more generous I'm afraid. There is little more that I can add to make this review up to 10 lines, other than my absolute amazement at the stupidity of the producers in allowing this motion picture to be released as is. Yes, it had great promise, but it has been utterly ruined by the sound track and the MUMBLY voiced narrator who is overly-dramatic and sounds silly.

Not your typical horror flick or even to state not a normal zombie flick. But I liked it because it had a great story and the acting was sublime as did the effects used for the zombies and the way they narrated this flick.

North and South are at the end of the war but in one of the final battles suddenly some soldiers appear with an unusual look, zombies. From there on we see how Edward Young (Mark Gibson) survives and sees that the world has been overtaken by the walking dead. His wife and son are bitten, his son is out there as a walker, and he just got one goal, to find his son. From there on the zombies are second in the story and Edward Young becomes the main lead. We follow him by narrating (Brian Cox) and even in cartoon style.

The way it was filmed and the way John Geddes (director) directed it was really a relieve to see. It clocks in at 108 minutes and it never bored me. And just when you thought, what's next suddenly it changes completely.

But what a great performance by Mark Gibson. His first big lead and only his second feature, One to watch. Also nice to see was Dee Wallace as Eve and Bill Moseley as General Williams. I even didn't recognize Dee here as the so-called witch. Finally, Bill is back on the track after 2001 Maniacs:Fields Of Scream also as a soldier (mayor in fact). A small part for Stephen McHattie who did a great job a while ago in Pontypool (2008). Here he is again great with his typical face.

Yes you noticed it, I can't say anything bad about this 'zombie' flick even as they aren't the main cause to go watch this gem. There isn't really anything gory here to see but still the zombies looked really great. If you liked I Am Legend (2007) or The Road (2009) or Stake land (2010) then be sure to pick this one up.

Gore 2/5 Nudity 0/5 Effects 4/5 Story 4/5 Comedy 0/5

Pros: Good cinematography, strong acting, excellent infection/outbreak subtext foundation built from the beginning & well progressed throughout the film, wardrobe is great, civil war context is intriguing and quite refreshing for the genre, music is solid & adds well to the emotions of the characters' environment, the narration allows you to feel more connected to the main character and more involved with what he's going through in the film

Con: There are some scenes in the middle of the film that feel somewhat slow and that can be frustrating with a plot subtext that demands a fast paced sense of urgency from the characters

For a zombie/infection movie circa Civil War era, this outshines any other by far, though it may not quench the thirst of fans of non-stop zombie action

Actually no. It was just boring. Really, really boring. Good camerawork. I'm waffling on to reach the minimum length. This film just went on and on. It is a film I wish I died instead of them.

Terence Malik wannabe. Director wanted to make statement which came at the expense of the non existenr story