The Battery
Blu-ray l DVD l Instant
Director: Jeremy Gardner
Screenwriter: Jeremy Gardner
Cast: Jeremy Gardner, Adam Cronheim, Niels Bolle, Alana O’Brien
Scream Factory
Not Rated | 101 Minutes
Release Date: September 16, 2014

After a zombie apocalypse has overtaken the entire New England area, two former baseball players, Ben (Jeremy Gardner) and Mickey (Adam Cronheim), travel the backroads of Connecticut with no particular destination in mind.

Written and directed by Gardner, The Battery is an apocalyptic zombie flick with a focus less on monsters and mayhem and more on the small pockets of humanity left in the world.

Mickey and Ben aren’t really friends, they’re just two guys who met at a baseball training camp when the outbreak began. Speaking of the outbreak, it’s never explained. There are no scientists or military men to explain how the apocalypse began – all we know is that the dead are up and walking around.

Mickey doesn’t want to accept the harsh realities of the zombie apocalypse and longs for the creature comforts he once took for granted. Ben, on the other hand is a lawless, nomadic survivalist who insists they stay on the move.

The two are content to smoke cigarettes and drink beer in-between braining zombies with baseball bats until Mickey stumbles upon a radio transmission from a seemingly thriving community. Mickey will stop at nothing to find it, even though it’s made perfectly clear that he and Ben are not welcome.

Shot in just 15 days for $6,000, Gardner’s directorial debut is a sincerely funny and beautiful film. Christian Stella‘s sun-drenched cinematography is gorgeous, and the film’s music – consisting of tracks from Rock Plaza Central, The Parlor, El Cantador, Sun Hotel, and Wise Blood – compliments the visuals perfectly. Music is a huge component of Gardner’s film – it’s the characters’ only remaining connection to life before the outbreak.

The Battery hits Blu-ray with a 1080p high-definition widescreen transfer and 5.1 DTS HD Master Audio. As for special features, this Scream Factory release is packed:

Audio Commentary: An insightful, hilarious track featuring Ben Gardner, Adam Cronheim, and Christian Stella.

The Music of The Battery: An 11-minute featurette that looks at Chris Eaton and Don Murray‘s music for the film, as well as the bands and songs featured in the film.

Tools of Ignorance: The Making of The Battery: This 90-minute documentary about the making of the film features clips of Gardner’s early short films, including “Bags,” about killer plastic bags. The cast and crew detail their experiences making the film and Gardner explains the origins of the film and how he gathered a bunch of friends to make a feature film.

Outtake Reel: A 12-minute reel of outtakes, including bloopers and behind-the-scenes stuff.

If you’re a fan of the undead (and who isn’t these days?), I absolutely recommend this indie zombie flick. Scream Factory is primarily known for releasing obscure cult horror and sci-fi films from the ’70s and ’80s, but every now and then they’re able to release a new low-budget indie flick to a large audience.

The Battery will no doubt benefit from this fantastic Scream Factory release, giving fans of flesh-eating reanimated corpses a different kind of zombie flick to digest. The Battery is currently available on Amazon.

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