The streaming giant's Surprising New Undead Flick Injects New Life into a Stale Style

Typically, I've grown tired of undead films. While classics like 28 Days Later and the early seasons of The Walking Dead were gripping, this category seems largely depleted at this point. Yet the much-awaited 28 Years Later has been gathering dust in my watchlist for months. But, the platform's new Indonesian zombie flick, The Elixir, succeeded in defy what I anticipated and proved remarkably enjoyable.

Superb Pacing and Character Development

One of this movie's strongest strengths is its superb rhythm. It kicks off using a striking opening sequence in which a peaceful family gathering gets suddenly interrupted by a vehicle crashes right into the seating section. From the wreckage, an extremely zombie-like individual stumbles out and begins assaulting the attendees. This dramatic scene is then followed by a flashback, allowing us to see the family prior to the tragedy struck.

Unlike numerous undead movies, The Elixir truly allows viewers enough opportunity to become acquainted with the primary personalities before the carnage begins. There's Nes, a married mother with a ex close friend, Karina, is now married to her dad—an obviously awkward situation. This has understandably led to a rift among the two women. We also see her sibling, Bang, who is kind-hearted yet a bit inept socially, and who loves gaming alongside his nephew, Raihan. Nes' husband, Rudi, seems to have lately been unfaithful to her. This household head is her dad, the owner of a well-known natural medicine company named Wani Waras, and he appears to care about only two aspects: his work and his marriage to Nes' former best friend. Unsurprisingly, this family reunion proves extremely tense.

Engaged in the Drama

I found myself so invested in the family's dynamics along with their personal conflicts that I nearly forgot I was watching a scary movie—which might sound like a drawback, yet ultimately worked well. The Elixir spends a considerable portion of its runtime to showing us who each relative represents, and how they add to the general dysfunction. This focus on clashing traits enabled the audience to connect with the characters sufficiently to be concerned for their outcome—a rare feat in a genre that often introduces characters only to kill them off shortly afterwards. The Elixir avoids portraying its characters as flat, expendable casualties for an army of zombies to devour, thus it's a real shock when things finally go wrong.

Evocative of Parasite

The initial scenes of the party and the multiple family interactions in fact bring to mind the film Parasite, a story which disguises itself as a K-Drama featuring somewhat morbid comedy prior to taking an abrupt shift into shocking territory. These early moments don't focus too heavily on humor compared to Parasite, yet The Elixir still gives sufficient opportunity to settle into its world prior to it gets turned upside down.

Original Zombification Source

The film also offers a quite intriguing explanation for the source of the contagious zombification. Instead of a unintended laboratory incident or some sort of biological weapon, the source of this contagious disease originates in a recent batch of Wani Waras natural medicines created by her dad. Although we do learn a bit about its origins, I wish the movie had spent additional time explaining how Wani Waras went from a reputable supplier of natural treatments to producing a lethal potion that appears to include an extremely infectious pathogen. Despite the lack of context, the effect this condition produces on humans proves utterly disgusting, and I love it. The Elixir's undead prove fast, bizarre in appearance, and, maybe most disturbingly, constantly grinning. This is a daring choice, but it works. The Elixir's physical effects and computer graphics are also very realistic, and they're practically certain to provoke a fear of holes.

Resourceful Personalities

More impressive compared to the disgusting moments is the cast themselves. Of course, we see a few examples of questionable decision-making (as in typical zombie movie), however for the most part, Nes and her family show themselves inventive and quick-thinking. Additionally, they don't hesitate to strike a zombie in the head, stab it with a pitchfork, or beat it on the skull with whatever blunt instrument is available rather than standing still like prey in headlights while danger approaches.

Believable Family Strike

The Elixir doesn't drop its focus on family conflict once individuals start turning to the undead, which was a welcome authentic deviation from that "We don't get along|"We have issues, but since you nearly died I immediately forgive you for everything! trope often seen in apocalyptic movies. Obviously, Nes cares for her relatives and cares about her husband, Rudi, but it's also apparent she remains holding onto resentment over his betrayal of their marriage vows. When the family becomes split up, they agree over the phone to meet up at a close location. However, once Bang admits he is unaware the way to the location, Nes expresses a massive level of irritation on her brother which has obviously been building for years. Nes isn't perfect, and her family—with all their imperfections—seem authentic and relatable since the movie avoids attempting to push the idea that a near-death experience immediately resolves family tensions. This makes those instances where these individuals express appreciation toward one another seem far more genuine.

Stereotypical Ending

In spite of The Elixir's strong efforts to innovate, the ending is admittedly somewhat formulaic. The Elixir isn't really offering up some profound message about family or society, as well. Rather, it's mostly serving up frights. But they're effective frights, and since the movie gives each character enough room to develop and avoids penalizing them for having flaws, the result proves a captivating and entertaining