• Review by Leo Mayr - February 4, 2019

Overlord was quite a surprise. In many ways, it’s your typical nazi zombie movie, following a group of soldiers who stumble across a secret laboratory in rural France. And while nothing in the film will really surprise you, the entire experience is polished surprisingly well. The film looks gorgeous, the characters are more engaging than you’d expect and Jed Kurzel’s score perfectly supplies the dark and tense atmosphere.

Following his recent efforts on Alien Covenant, Kurzel has proven himself to be more than capable of crafting moments of incredible tension, so his involvement in Overlord was welcome news. Kurzel’s unique blend of orchestra and sound design is a fantastic addition to the film’s haunting visuals, with more than a few moments where the music really stands out.

Overlord once again showcases Kurzels talent for slowly building up tension through minimalistic sounds and rhythms. When events do start to escalate, Kurzel delivers some of his finest action writing to date, spectacularly culminating in a couple of all out action cues. This time around, Kurzel employs a surprising amount of orchestral sounds, finding just the right balance between loud brass and more subtle synth textures, grounding the film in its semi historic setting while also embracing the sci-fi aspects.

While the movie doesn’t leave a lot of room for emotion, Kurzel does his best with what he’s given. While there aren’t a lot of standout moments, the score does its part in making you relate to what the characters are going through and their decisions, though at the end of the day, what you’re really here for is nazi zombies.

Overlord isn’t a revolutionary movie or score. It’s plain and simple fun. But the way every aspect of the film and its music has been polished is quite remarkable. There’s not a lot that’ll surprise you, but if two hours of nazi zombies is what you’re looking for, then Overlord won’t disappoint.

• 3.5/5