Zombi Child

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1:49

Zombi Child

Released Jan 24, 2020

1h 43m

Drama

Horror

Fantasy

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Tomatometer

Popcornmeter

85%

Tomatometer

82 Reviews

52%

Popcornmeter

Fewer than 50 Ratings

In 1962 Haiti, a man is brought back from the dead to work on a sugar cane plantation; many years later, a teen tells her friends her family secret, not suspecting that it will push one of them to commit the irreparable.

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Critics Consensus

If the strain of its ambitious juggling act sometimes shows, Zombi Child remains an entertainingly audacious experience, enlivened with thought-provoking themes.

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Justin Chang

Los Angeles Times

"Zombi Child" seeks to interrogate the bitter legacy of French colonialism, from its brutal applications in the past to its spiritual and psychological reverberations in the present.

Feb 20, 2020

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Kathleen Sachs

Chicago Reader

Bertrand Bonello blends his singular style with his fascination with voodoo for an exceptional film.

Rated: 3/4

Feb 1, 2020

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K. Austin Collins

Vanity Fair

Zombi Child amounts to a curiously fragmented display of [filmmaker Bertrand Bonello's] talent. But much of the good stuff is here.

Jan 27, 2020

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Eddie Harrison

film-authority.com

The weight of the past, and of French colonialism in particular, loom large over Zombi Child, a horror film of rare intelligence and wit; the final scenes are frightening, but also satisfying, and the long wait for the pay-off is more than worthwhile...

Rated: 4/5

Jun 11, 2025

Full Review

Brian Eggert

Deep Focus Review

Thoughtfully conceived and performed, the film is a mesmerizing experience that approaches Haitian culture with openness and the French treatment thereof with a critique stemming from the country’s colonial history

Rated: 3.5/4

Jun 8, 2024

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Matthew St. Clair

Cinema Sentries

[Director Bertrand] Bonello still admirably goes against the ongoing customs within the zombie genre by depicting its roots and making Zombi Child an instructive mood piece.

Sep 23, 2020

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Christina

Visually beautiful. The story lost the main character, but I enjoyed watching a lot.

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

02/02/20

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Cristina B

The scenes and storyline from Haiti are truly beautiful. It seemed like the French schoolgirl plotline was warming up to something but did nothing with the characters it took the trouble to develop. The ending feels unfinished. I wouldn't reccomend it to anyone.

Rated 2 out of 5 stars

05/20/25

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Alec B

Until the end, Bonello mostly suppresses traditional horror elements while favoring a more intriguing slow burn approach. This does make the finale a bit jarring but that does not undermine the film's interrogations of history.

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

01/09/24

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paul s

Strange movie. It wasn't without a creative spark or some intrigue though. I felt bored for much of it before it got interesting. I appreciated the human emotional dynamic that felt real. It felt as though it was for a long time two different stories that didn't comprehensibly weave together until the end. It was barely worth the once over. I'm glad I only paid 1.99 to see it, but even that felt about 2x as much as it was worth to see.

Rated 2.5 out of 5 stars

03/31/23

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andy h

It may not catch your attention right away, but it clearly has plenty to look out for.

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

03/31/23

Full Review

Audience Member

Until the end, Bonello mostly suppresses traditional horror elements while favoring a more intriguing slow burn approach. This does make the finale a bit jarring but that does not undermine the film's interrogations of history.

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

02/13/23

Full Review

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Zombi Child: Trailer 1

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Synopsis

In 1962 Haiti, a man is brought back from the dead to work on a sugar cane plantation; many years later, a teen tells her friends her family secret, not suspecting that it will push one of them to commit the irreparable.

Director: Bertrand Bonello
Producer: Bertrand Bonello
Screenwriter: Bertrand Bonello
Distributor: Film Movement
Production Co: Les Films du Bal, Playtime, My New Picture, arte France Cinéma
Genre: Drama, Horror, Fantasy
Original Language: French (France)
Release Date (Theaters): Jan 24, 2020, Limited
Release Date (Streaming): Jan 24, 2020
Box Office (Gross USA): $25.9K
Runtime: 1h 43m
Aspect Ratio: Flat (1.85:1)

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