It’s easy for a genre as specific as zombie movies to start feeling repetitive, no matter how many micro-variations on the story directors have explored. Whether the undead are lumbering or sprinting, whether the plague was human-made or seemingly random, the general notes remain: a sudden apocalypse, loved ones separated, society crumbling, “Brains!!!” You get the picture.
Enter Operation Undead, the 2024 Thai zombie movie from writer-director Kongkiat Komesiri, which is finally out digitally in the U.S. Komesiri has a unique spin on the genre: It’s 1941, and a group of Thai junior soldiers have to contend with both the invading Japanese army and an outbreak of the undead. While combining the war and zombie genres isn’t new (see: the very fun Overlord), Operation Undead stands out because it’s surprisingly thoughtful about war and the atrocities we inflict on each other, especially considering the premise and somewhat goofy title.
In classic war-movie fashion, Operation Undead opens with the teenage antics of extremely immature junior soldiers, shortly before the invasion. After Komesiri immerses the audience in that group and their youthful exuberance for life and its pleasures, Operation Undead cranks the stakes from zero to 60 in a heartbeat: The Japanese army invades, and the biological weapon they brought with them escapes, causing a zombie outbreak in the boys’ village.
Image: Well Go USA Entertainment
But these aren’t standard zombies. They can speak and use tools, and they have memories and emotions. Unfortunately, they still have very little control over their hunger for flesh, leaving them in psychic torment as they commit atrocities. They regret their actions, tearing apart their victims with immense sadness on their faces, howling their despair into the wind.
This allows Komesiri to bring in a particularly clever twist on the conventional zombie metaphors of capitalism and consumerism. Rather than mindless drones caught in cycles of consumption, these zombies are fully aware shells of themselves, robbed of their humanity and helpless to stop repeating the cycles of violence that caused this disaster in the first place. These zombies are cherishing fading memories, and reflecting on their hopes for the future that vanished when they turned.
Komesiri got his start working for Thai master Apichatpong Weerasethakul, as a crew member on Mysterious Object at Noon. That influence shows, even in a movie that delivers on more conventional genre thrills like violence and gore: A sense of melancholy pervades Operation Undead, and strong themes of family loyalty and community shine through the bloody action. (Especially through the characters of two brothers caught on opposing sides of the conflict.) And yes, the action does get extremely bloody: The zombie effects are appropriately gross, with parts of their faces peeling or fully off, plenty of gore, and visual representations of parts of the skull that don’t often turn up on screen.
Image: Well Go USA Entertainment
[Ed. note: Spoilers ahead for a major twist from the first act of Operation Undead. If you want to go in completely fresh, stop here — but I think it’s very cool and worth discussing.]
The boldest choice Komesiri makes is turning his principal group of teenage protagonists into zombies immediately after the invasion starts. Yes, like Warm Bodies and iZombie before it, Operation Undead makes zombies into primary protagonists. This deepens the movie’s themes by focusing on how war specifically robs young people of not only their lives, but their joy for living, and how cycles of violence perpetuate harm against both the perpetrators and innocents. Because the teens aren’t able to control their zombie desires, they tear apart Japanese soldiers and their fellow Thai villagers with equal viciousness.
Operation Undead is a stellar new entry in the zombie-movie canon that takes some real big swings: It respects the genre’s roots and need for thrills while providing a strong emotional backbone. It’s one of the standout horror movies of 2025 so far, and a must-watch for anyone interested in new twists on a tried-and-true genre formula.
Operation Undead is available for digital rental or purchase on Fandango.