Cockneys v Zombies - bloomin' hillarious

I can't quite remember where I got the idea for watching this film from.  I don't know if there was an advertising campaign last year at some point or if I saw a trailer on the internet, but I'm glad I put this film on my LoveFilm list at some point in the recent past - because last week I had a bloody brilliant time watching Cockneys versus Zombies.  A film that does exactly what it says on the tin, it pits a family of Lock Stock rejects against a  growing horde of zombies from the Romero school of shambling intestine-eaters.  This machine gun-wielding group of cor blimey ne'er-do-wells escape on a Double Decker Routemaster, but not before stopping off at their Grandad's old people's home to rescue the old folks in the middle of a right ol' knees up (mother Brown).

The film stars a number of well-known East Londoners including Michelle Ryan (who stared in Eastenders for 6 years), Alan Ford (played Bricktop in Snatch) and Honor Blackman (please don't tell me I have to explain who she is) of all people.  Cockney clichés litter the dialogue aplenty in a film that has borrowed a lot from Shaun of the Dead and references a number of contemporary issues affecting Britain's deprived inner city areas.  The 'gang' robbing the banks aren't hardened Cockney criminals, rather they're a group of chancers who are trying to save their Grandad's old people's home by stealing enough money to save it from Cameron's austerity.  Granted they come from a family of petty thieves, have a cousin who can pick locks and know a total nutter who keeps an arsenal of heavy weapons in a container on Docklands - but they're robbing the bank for a good cause.  Honest guv!

The 80 minute long film is a silly comic romp that goes through the usual zombie clichés and adds a lot of funny touches.  It's impossible not to laugh at a moment when a character tries to save a baby, but then realises that the baby has turned into a zombie and so drop-kicks it into a huge bill-board warning against child abuse.  When it all comes down to it though, even if you're not into cheesy comic zombie piss-takes at least you get to see Honor Blackman swearing.  And that in itself is cinema gold.