TL;DR – Outbreak shows early promise, but weak character work and mounting frustrations prevent its ending from landing as intended.

Post-Credit Scene – There is no post-credit scene.

Disclosure – I sent a screener of this film.

Warning – Contains scenes that may cause distress.

Outbreak Introduction –

2025 continues to be a standout year for the old Zombie romp. We have old franchises return with 28 Years Later, The Last of Us came out swinging with its second season, and even Star Trek has had a try. – Despite the crowded field, there’s always room for a surprise and Outbreak came close.  

So, to set the scene, Neil Morris (Billy Burke) is a local ranger at Mourning Rock State Park, going on what they thought was a routine callout to a dog with rabies. But Neil is not at ease with what is going on, as this is the third dog in weeks to become infected, which is made worse by the fact that Chief Mike Cortez (Raoul Max Trujillo) got bitten by the dog in the scuffle and Neil is still dealing with the death/disappearance of his son Ben (Kylr Coffman). But as Neil was out walking in the state park, he was attacked by a woman in partial decomposition, and she was not alone, as screams of others puncture the day.

Plot Analysis

While I don’t feel the film stuck its landing, I do think there were some good takeaways to explore. The zombies are giving their all, and there is an intensity to their movements that you need in a film like this. A lot of this comes from the frantic camera work, which races through the scene to replicate the speed of the creatures. But also, the stunt players are not messing around as they throw their whole bodies into this. Focusing on the more contortionist version of the creatures which adds a unique feel to the Zombies. All of these facets help smooth over some of the budget issues that pop up, for example the musical score not quite having the impact it could have.

Unfortunately, while Billy Burke is working as best he can with the material, there are some significant issues with the story that hold it back. The first is the structure around the narrative. While you expect things to go wrong in a film like this, everything going wrong becomes frustrating as you continue watching. They must be the worst radios in cinematic history. These inconsistencies continue to build throughout the film, and they lead to some truly frustrating moments. But if there was one profoundly annoying thing, it was that so much of this film would have been easier if someone just said the word ‘zombie’ instead of dancing around it. Then there is the character of Abby (Alyshia Ochse). I get what they were trying to do with her, the trauma, and pain of losing someone. However, I am not sure if it was the writing, directing, or acting. But they turn her into one of the most infuriating characters I have watched on screen and I say this even knowing what I am about to talk about in the next paragraph.   

Ending Exploration

However, all of this that I have just talked about needs to be contextualised with the ending of the film, which we must discuss, but to do that, there will be [SPOILERS] from here to the end. The big reveal at the end of the film is that all the zombies were a hallucination of Neil Morris, who has had a psychotic break after internalising the death of his son. Which means that every person/zombie he has interacted with was a real human. This reveal could have recontextualised the entire film as you work through the ramifications, and it is a profoundly good idea. However, it is a reveal that comes unfortunately too late in the proceedings to offset all of the frustration that had built throughout the rest of the runtime, which blunts its impact.

Conclusion

In the end, do we recommend Outbreak? Look, I don’t want to be mean here because they took some big swings, and I want to commend them for not taking the safe option. However, many of those swings missed, and I walked away from the film with more frustration than appreciation. Have you watched Outbreak? Let us know what you thought in the comments below. If you liked Outbreak, we would recommend to you Cargo.

By Brian MacNamara: You can follow Brian on Twitter Here, when he’s not chatting about Movies and TV, he’ll be talking about International Relations, or the Solar System.

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Credits – All images were created by the cast, crew, and production companies of Outbreak
Directed by – Jeff Wolfe
Written by – Lance Ochsner & Jeff Wolfe
Story by – Erik Aude, Lance Ochsner & Jeff Wolfe
Music by – Michael A. Levine
Cinematography by – Cary Lalonde
Edited by – Arman Tahmizyan & Matthew Woolley
Production/Distribution Companies – Wolfepride Productions, Silver Crest Entertainment & Defiant Screen Entertainment
Starring – Billy Burke, Alyshia Ochse, Taylor Handley, Jessica Frances Dukes, Kylr Coffman, Dani Oliveros, Elisabeth Carpenter & Raoul Max Trujillo with Sophie Cook, Matthew Osborne, Ashton Moio, Devyn LaBella, Mercy Malick, Thomas Vu, Erik Aude, Kevin Burke, Bzxter Muby, Terrence Julien & Robert Sean Burke
Rating – Australia: MA15+; Canada: na; Germany: 16; New Zealand: na; United Kingdom: 15; United States: R