Written and directed by David Moreau, a teenager who stops off to see his dealer to test a new drug before heading off for a night of partying. On the way home, he picks up an injured woman and the night takes a surreal turn. Starring: Lucille Guillaume, Laurie Pavy, Milton Riche, Yovel Lewkowski, Sasha Rudakova, Vincent Pasdermadjian, Jeremiah Bourgeois, Najim Zeghoudi and Valentine Goujon.
Cutting straight to the heart of MadS, if you ever wondered what it would be like to have 28 Days Later made through the lens of Gen Z, now you have your answer. It has that manic, attention deficit quality of TikTok, with a classically drug-fuelled atmosphere. David Moreau creates a style that’s hectic and in your face, which has its ups and downs. The energy and force to it has the best of intentions, but the quality of the aesthetic isn’t always there to back it up.
The cinematography and overall feel are missing something to heighten the violence and dark, twisted nature to the story. It’s modern and does have a nice texture to it, especially with the majority of the film taking place at night but it doesn’t have that extra something to elevate it. Part of that struggle is the writing is very simple, there’s little backstory and interestingly, the film splits itself between the characters rather than continuing with one lead. The baton is passed on throughout MadS alongside the spread of its mysterious virus.
It’s not necessarily a bad choice, it’s a little bit unusual and leans into the downward spiral of the story. However, it can move quite slowly, it dedicates a big chunk of time to just building up to the chaos and doesn’t really do it justice. It can also feel like as it passes through each character that we’re treading over the same ground. It’s stuck within this bloody, deadly game but not adding anything to it. It’s something that does work, it just doesn’t make for an entirely memorable experience.
Although, part of its big energy definitely comes from the performances, it’s a very young, vibrant cast that add a nicely incessant quality. They can be a touch vain and it definitely leans into the privilege which is a mix of realistic and irritating but the cast do capture that vibe well. Unfortunately, we just never really get to know these characters, Moreau dives headfirst into the story and despite its fairly slow progress, there’s never the space to unpack their personalities.
MadS is a manic and modern interpretation of a classic zombie flick. David Moreau manages to add something new to a particularly well-travelled sub-genre, which is undeniably an achievement in itself. However, it struggles to move at a fast pace despite its fervent energy and the characters don’t feel fleshed out.
The style is absolutely solid work but unable to push itself to a unique or elevated height. It does a great job of tapping into that feel of modern youth and has plenty of bloody scenes for horror fans to enjoy but there’s something missing to really send it out with a bang. It feels as if we were still getting to the heart of this story when the credits rolled.
FilmCarnage.com 