Night of the Zoopocalypse Review

Night of the Zoopocalypse pays a loving tribute to classic horror movies of Hollywood’s Golden Age. The movie was released in American theaters on March 7, 2025, and received positive reviews from most critics, praising its vivid animation. I watched it in theaters with my friend, and we both thoroughly enjoyed it.

The film’s premise is very unique in terms of its characters and setting. The plot involves a group of zoo animals attempting to survive and cure the zombie animals, which the latter were infected by an alien virus. The story seems simple, but it’s surprisingly intriguing, especially with the film’s characters, which leads me to my next point.

The characters are personally one of the major highlights in this film for me. Interactions and dynamics between each of the individual characters are very well-written. I especially love the animals chosen by the film’s production team to be the main protagonists. Since the film’s setting is a zoo, more exotic and foreign animals were chosen to represent the cast’s recurring characters, including: capybara, ostrich, red-ruffed lemur, proboscis monkey, pygmy hippo, and more. Additionally, the characters have unique personalities and designs from each other, which are both further exemplified through the writing, animation/art direction, and voice acting in the film.

This film contains multiple clever pieces of writing throughout its story and comedy as well. Each of the characters’ personalities is reflected through their dialogue, and each one feels distinct from the other. I also enjoyed some of the references to the animals’ real-life counterparts. For example, Frida is a capybara. Capybaras are native to South America, which primarily comprises Spanish-speaking countries. So, the production team gave her a Spanish accent and small bits of Spanish dialogue, which surprisingly represent the character very well. Also, Xavier the lemur is a movie aficionado. With this in mind, I enjoyed it whenever he provided exposition or insight into what he and the animals were experiencing, and would compare it to being in a movie. Labeling certain events as “Act 1” or “Act 2” was actually very fitting to what the characters were experiencing. The movie has clever comedy and various brilliant jokes. The film’s climax was definitely the most exciting and intriguing moment, and contained multiple memorable jokes and clever forms of writing. There’s a scene featuring Gracie the Wolf (the film’s main protagonist) about to give a speech, but the characters continue to interrupt her with what she plans on saying, which was pretty funny. Additionally, after the “speech” had finished, the majority of the animals confidently stepped into the light, but one was still hesitant and remained in the dark, which I found to be a clever visual form of writing.

To put it simply, the animation in this film is fantastic. The characters’ expressive countenances and dynamic body movements truly bring them to life. There’s never a scene where the characters are completely still, and each of the characters’ animations exemplify their personalities. The characters’ designs are also uniquely distinct from each other, and are very cartoony and appealing. More specifically, I enjoyed the smooth animation and brilliant design of the “gummy zombies”, since it allowed the animators to use a somewhat rubber-hose technique, with the zombies’ disposable limbs and appendages. I also love the movie’s zoo setting. My favorite visual design from the setting was probably how the zoo’s clock consisted of different animal illustrations representing each number, including the clock’s arms being two separate snakes.

The film’s score is cleverly composed as well. Each of the compositions matched the tone of each of the movie’s scenes. Since the movie is inspired by classic horror movies, the score has a lot of compositions incorporating synthesizers, which reminded me of how those aforementioned horror movies utilized the theremin in their scores. Also, the Colepper Song “Goodbye” has a very catchy melody, and I especially enjoyed its reprise at the end of the film, since the song was extended, the characters sang along to it like a choir, and the song included an orchestral accompaniment as well. Overall, the movie’s soundtrack is epic.

Both the cinematography and visual effects did a wonderful job at referencing their source material (classic horror movies) as well. The different camera angles, shots, and perspectives helped create a sense of anticipation whenever the characters fled from the zombies. There was even an immersive section from Gracie’s point of view, which I enjoyed too. The movie’s opening scene also has marvelous cinematography. The lighting and occasional fog seen throughout the movie also reminded me of the classic horror movies as well. Since the movie’s setting primarily takes place at night (hence the film’s title), I especially enjoyed the lighting and usage of different colored lights in certain scenes.

The voice acting for all of the characters was phenomenal. Each of the voice actors truly did an amazing job at displaying and portraying the characters’ personalities and emotions through their vocal performance. Some of the highlights for me were Gracie’s Appalachian accent, Frida’s Spanish accent, and Felix’s (the monkey) voice actor sounding like a real monkey whenever he screamed in fear. I didn’t really know why Xavier was given a French accent, but since he was knowledgeable about movies and provided a lot of the exposition to the other characters, I suppose the French accent made him sound more sophisticated and eloquent in his speech. I also enjoyed how Frida would pronounce Xavier’s name as “Javier,” which is the Spanish translation of his name.

Besides the film having a clear lesson about teamwork and trusting others, I was surprised at how it subtly tackled the topics of discrimination and prejudice. Throughout the film, the animals have to work together, but the majority are initially hesitant due to being different species. However, they gradually learn to accept and embrace each other’s differences, which I thought was done in a very clever way.

Night of the Zoopocalypse’s references to horror, stunning animation, and engaging narrative demonstrate the film’s high quality. The film’s themes on teamwork and embracing each other’s differences serve as a reflection of its international production teams in Canada, France, and Belgium. As an indie animated film, the artists truly poured their love and hard work, which is clearly represented in the film. Overall, this film is a contemporary masterpiece.

___

For more information or news tips, or if you see an error in this story or have any compliments or concerns, contact [email protected]