Bridge of the Doomed (2022)

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Posted By: brian@brianschell.com November 4, 2022

Spoiler-Free Judgment Zone

A group of soldiers is ordered to hold a bridge during a zombie outbreak, but what lives underneath the bridge proves to be even more deadly.

It takes a while to get going, but it does, and it’s really good. A horrifyingly realistic situation of what it might be like for a decimated military trying to hold the line and keep things from getting worse.

Synopsis

Soldiers hear something in the darkness. Is it a rabbit? No, it’s zombies! The zombies soon overrun the base, but there are some survivors. General Vasquez is in charge, and he tries to get things put back in order, but there’s a good chance that many of the soldiers have been infected.

Meanwhile, three civilians fight for their lives in the zombie-infested streets of the town. The news is still reporting, but the military is telling people to stay inside, as everyone is doing their best.

General Vasquez asks the doctor about the men, and it’s not promising. They’re expecting reinforcements in 48 hours, but in the meantime, they have to make do. A small group is sent to hold a bridge to cut off the zombies, they are to blow it up as a last resort. The lieutenant orders the bridge to be wired up and prepared for demolition.

Colonel Charon arrives and reports to General Vasquez. It’s just Charon and his driver, there won’t be any more reinforcements. There’s only one way the enemy can cross the river– that one bridge. They find a group of civilian survivors in the woods, but they don’t want the soldiers’ help. By the time the soldiers return, the bridge is ready to expode on the general’s command.

That night, something pulls the detonator wire under the bridge and kills the man who went after it. It’s not a zombie, it was some kind of animal. The animal comes back later for the dead man’s body. The lieutenant is killed, and Sergeant Hernandez takes over the unit.

That night, the creature kills another soldier. It grabs him right off the bridge. There’s some more drama with the civilians the next day, and the following night, they run into the creature again. This time, it takes their supplies. The charges under the bridge are partially ransacked as well.

The zombies finally attack the bridge, but the detonators don’t work, so they can’t blow the bridge. The soldiers win pretty easily, but they don’t have much ammo left. They rewire the detonator so it’ll have to be exploded manually, at close range. Things also go badly at the civilian camp. The civilian explosives expert gets taken by the creature, and Hernandez goes off looking for it alone.

Privates Lin and Sanders want to help the civilians, but Sharrock is a jerk, so they fight with each other. Hernandez fights with the monster in its cave; it looks like the thing from the “Jeepers Creepers” films. She’s out of ammo, so she kills it with a knife. She is wounded in the fight, however.

Lin, Sanders, and three women from the civilian camp get in the car and drive off. Hernandez staggers to the road, and they find her. She still wants to detonate the bridge, cause she’s going to die anyway. The others drive off and leave her behind. The car gets stuck on the safe end of the bridge as the zombie horde approaches.

It’s all looking very grim until Colonel Charon comes out of nowhere with reinforcements. Vasquez also arrives, and he tells Hernandez that she has completed her mission well. She’s obviously infected, so he shoots her.

Commentary

The trailer didn’t do this one justice; it takes its time, but it’s not boring. It does really well for being a fairly low-budget film. The zombie makeup is excellent, and there’s a good variety of zombie types here.

It’s weird not seeing Robert LaSardo playing a lunatic or gang-banger. Michael Pare is here, but he doesn’t do very much. I didn’t recognize anyone else.

It’s well done, and we both liked it way more than we expected.