'Dead Snow' review

Lasse Valdal (Credit: Sveinung Svendsen/Euforia)

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Easter vacation means one thing for a group of Norwegian med students: Ski trip! Too bad their chosen destination used to be a key harbor for German battleships during WWII, and Nazi zombies still roam the woods looking for fresh blood. You'd think that would have rated a mention in online reviews of the area.

The buzz: The movie seems like a missed opportunity from the start, since most people are probably less interested in seeing a horror flick called "Dead Snow" than they would be in seeing "Killer Nazi Zombies." That aside, hopefully Norway can rejuvenate the zombie movie with the same stylistic smarts that Sweden gave to 2008's "Let the Right One In."

The verdict: Finally a terrified 20-something has the opportunity to dangle off a cliff while hanging by the intestines of a Nazi zombie. If this doesn't sound like your kind of movie, you're right. If it does, "Dead Snow" is bloody fun—so bloody, in fact, that the constant splatter yields diminishing returns. Scant character development means you don't care who gets disemboweled, and director Tommy Wirkola can't decide if he wants to be silly or scary. Still, spring break hasn't looked this delightfully deadly in a while.

Did you know? Martin (Vegar Hoel) is a med student who's afraid of blood. This clearly makes him even more qualified because he'll probably do anything he can to make sure you don't bleed at all.

[“Dead Snow” is also available through “IFC In Theaters,” a video on demand service from select cable providers and DirecTV.]

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