The Beginning of the End is a Zombie Streaming Hit on Prime Video

Apocalypse Z: The Beginning of the End has made a surprising appearance at the top of the Prime Video global chart. The Spanish zombie action thriller is making a big impact on the platform since dropping with dozens of other titles on November 1, currently now in second place behind Mark Wahlberg’s sci-fi movie Infinite.

The film, which has the original title of Apocalipsis Z: El principio del fin, follows a man’s attempts to get back to his family while trying to avoid people who have been infected by a global pandemic that turns them into crazed creatures. If all of this sounds like the plot of several other zombie movies, then you would be right, but according to the film’s reviews, that doesn’t make much difference if you are someone who devours this kind of fast-paced horror.

The film is based on the novel by Manel Loureiro, and several reviews have noted that those who have read the book will find a pretty faithful adaptation here. This includes Rotten Tomatoes user Yar Y, who commented:

“I thoroughly enjoyed the books. And stoked they did a stellar job with the film. Beautifully done, tension and fear factor high, great acting, great cinematography. Great story telling. It’s rare to feel connected to the main character(s) from the get go.”

Apocalypse Z: The Beginning of the End Has Overcome Its Familiar Story

Like many streaming successes, Apocalypse Z has not received unanimously positive reviews from either audiences or critics. Only four critics reviews have been added to Rotten Tomatoes, and it has resulted in a split 50% score. In the reviews, both positive and negative, the recurring theme is that there are many aspects of the movie that have been seen many times before, but as Archi Sengupta of LeisureByte.com said:

Apocalypse Z on Prime Video is something new in an old packaging and leaves you thoroughly entertained, in spite of some boring moments.

It seems that how someone will take the movie depends mainly on how much the “old packaging” becomes an issue for them. For those who don’t mind seeing a greatest hits package of zombie movie tropes being played out in a new setting, then there looks to be plenty to like here. For everyone else, it may just end up annoying you.

Related This Zombie Movie Tricked Audiences Into Thinking It Was a Dawn of the Dead Sequel

Fulci’s effort returns the zombie to its roots in Voodoo and provides a rich palette of action, violence, and effects that are visceral.

When it comes to audience reviews, there are many more in the former category than the latter. On the whole, the reaction from those who have sent the movie to the top end of Prime Video’s chart has been massively positive, to the point that many cannot wait for a sequel to happen. Similar to critics, there are some small gripes that the film starts off slow, and there are a few “boring” scenes scattered throughout that just take off the edge a little, but viewers like Jeremy W have still been very impressed. He wrote:

“I found this gripping, entertaining and nail biting from start to end. Sure, there are plenty of formulas and genre clichés but how can there not be in a zombie apocalypse? This movie excels through clever context building, strong charaterisation and a well paced and satisfying plot, all of which suspends disbelief and creates a thrilling seat of your pants horror experience.”

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