A new virus has broken out and infected most of the population, turning them into cannibalistic zombies. Maggie Vogel (Breslin) has been bitten and has only two weeks to live, forcing her loving father Wade (Schwarzenegger) to fight for every final moment he has with her until to the very end.

“Maggie” is not your usual zombie horror movie. There are no Rick Grimes in this film’s world. There are groups of people huddling together to survive. This is a more realistic and dramatic take on the zombie genre that not many people will be used to.

Schwarzenegger is also not his usual one-liner action hero. In this film, he is a father struggling with the fact that his daughter is infected and there is nothing he can do to reverse the disease or slow it down.  All he can do is cherish the final moments he has with his daughter and fight to keep her by his side to the end.

This is arguably Schwarzenegger’s best performance since the nineties and shows that he is more than capable of being a dramatic actor. This is especially true considering he is reaching his seventies and may no longer be able to keep up with the demands of the usual action movie.

Breslin also gives a great and heartbreaking portrayal of a teenager trying to be strong for her father, but is equally terrified of her situation and the harm she may cause to the ones she loves. Breslin and Schwarzenegger play off one another with grace and subtlety as the movie does not focus entirely on one or the other, but both.

Without a doubt, this is one of the best looking films to come out this year as the cinematography is beautiful and captures the dark tones throughout the film while also managing to capture what essence of beauty is left in the world.

Now without a doubt, this is a slow burner. This is a film that is deliberately slow paced and takes time to portray its characters trying to cope with the situations around them specifically Maggie and Wade. There is not a lot of action in the film and what zombies are killed are done so with regret and heartbreak unlike the endless slaying of zombies in shows like “The Walking Dead”.

The only true negatives that can be found within this film is that the audience is not given a lot of information about the main characters which does make it somewhat difficult to truly to connect with the characters, but still, the performances given more than make up for it. There is also the matter of the tone in the film. Throughout the film, there is very little happiness or comedic moments to be found. It might be too dark for some and distracting for others as the tone may make the film joyless.

Nevertheless, this is a well-crafted directorial debut from Harry Hobson that features strong performances from Breslin and Schwarzenegger as well the supporting cast. The cinematography is gorgeous, the music is dark and emotional, and the ending is handled well for what the film was building up to. This is truly a film that should not be missed by any means.