Netflix's new zombie movie is the undead love child of ‘28 Years Later' and ‘The Raid' — and it's just as intense as that sounds

Tom's Guide

3 days ago

Streaming Netflix's new action-horror 'Ziam' has taught me something about myself: I can forgive a lot of narrative cliches when a movie offers me the chance to see a martial artist roundhouse-kick a zombie in the face.
It's hard to get too hung up on predictable plotting and the overreliance on genre cliches when 'Ziam' also contains some of the most exciting zombie beatdowns I've ever seen.
Playing out like a mix between "28 Years Later" and "The Raid," this new Netflix original thrives because it understands what its core audience wants to see: brutal zombie mayhem above all else.
Part of me does wish that 'Ziam' could have paired its seriously well-choreographed carnage with a more compelling cast of characters and a story that serves as more than window dressing between intense action sequences, but what we got is still enjoyable.
If you're a simple man like me, and can't resist the elevator pitch of 'former Muay Thai fighter beats the snot out of the walking dead,' then you'll want to get this new Netflix movie on your watchlist pronto.
But if you need more details, here's the full scoop on 'Ziam.'
Set in a grim future where society is on the verge of collapse due to severe food shortages and dwindling resources, Singh (Prin Suparat) is a former professional fighter, now struggling to make ends meet and provide for his girlfriend, Rin (Nychaa-Nuttanicha Dungwattanawanich), who works in an overcrowded hospital.
The two dream of escaping the dystopian city, but these plans are put on hold when Rin's hospital becomes the epicenter for a zombie outbreak. Singh rushes to the scene and embarks on a dangerous mission to rescue Rin before the ultra-aggressive zombie can get to her.
Along the way, he meets a young boy, Buddy (Vayla-Wanvayla Boonnithipaisit), and adds this orphaned child to the list of people he's determined to protect at all costs. With a horde of zombies in his path, Singh must use his Muay Thai skills to fend off the savage undead and escape the hospital from hell.
'Ziam's' USP is pretty simple. In most zombie movies, the core cast of survivors fend off the hordes with firearms and maybe a blunt instrument or two, but here our protagonists get seriously up close and personal with their flesh-munching enemies.
It turns out that you don't need an automatic assault rifle when your fists can muster enough power to send the walking dead back to the hellscape from which they spawned.
And if brawls against zombies aren't enough, the second half of the action-horror movie sees Singh crack the skulls of some (slightly) more intelligent foes, namely a squad of armed cops trying to extract a high-value executive.
Netflix's marketing materials for the movie are keen to stress its use of practical effects and the fact that its nameless cast of zombies were created with intricate makeup, not CGI, and this helps ratchet up the intensity nicely. Each blood-covered, grotesque, zombie face looks pleasingly disgusting, and the visceral violence can often be enough to turn your stomach.
I particularly enjoyed 'Ziam's' balls-to-the-wall third act, a good deal of the first half is dedicated to scene-setting, and introducing the main players. But once this is all out of the way, the carnage takes center stage, and it's here that 'Ziam' shines.
The final showdown on a rooftop bathed in early morning sunlight is particularly memorable and brings proceedings to a fitting close (or at least, it feels satisfying until a mid-credits final stinger ruins the emotional stakes).
Where 'Ziam' falters is how rigidly it sticks to the classic zombie formula. Singh takes on the young Buddy as a sort of ward, protecting him at all costs, and even suggesting that they could adopt him once this madness is over. It's not exactly groundbreaking stuff for the genre.
This feeling of 'been there, seen that' is extended to the movie's overarching theme, that of the regular folks being exploited by the upper class. This is most seen in the inclusion of the smarmy executive, who is deemed worthy of being extracted, even if that means putting more lives in danger. Meanwhile, the everyday citizens are deemed expendable and little more than zombie chow.
Furthermore, a scene where the military debates the scorched-earth solution of bombing the hospital to prevent the zombie virus from spreading further, regardless of the lives lost, doesn't crackle with moral complexity. Instead, it feels painfully paint-by-numbers, almost included out of obligation.
Of course, I'm not sure 'Ziam' is really concerned with flipping the well-worn zombie-movie script on its head. When the focus is on brutal brawls, flesh on fire and punches flying at the speed of bullets, the movie is quite a thrill ride. Just don't come looking for more than a gorefest.
If you come into 'Ziam' with the right expectation, then it's very possible to enjoy this very bloody action-horror on its own terms.
At a zippy 90 minutes long, the movie doesn't overstay its welcome, and while the first act does a fair bit of narrative heavy-lifting, once the outbreak begins, the carnage kicks off, and from here, 'Ziam' is solid, but unquestionably mindless, fun.
Without wanting to veer into spoilers, the ending stinger leaves things on a bum note, with a tacked-on final scene that makes little logical sense and hints towards a possible sequel (do we need one?).
While this left me with a vaguely sour taste, for the most part, I enjoyed 'Ziam.' All I was really looking for was a badass martial artist kicking the living daylights out of zombies, and this new Netflix original delivers that, so I'm happy to overlook its flaws.
Meanwhile, thriller fans will be pleased to hear that Netflix just added a new mystery movie about a couple trapped in their apartment by a strange brick wall. Though it's another streaming original that requires viewers to tolerate some major flaws to find the enjoyment.
Alternatively, for even more options, here's a guide to everything new on Netflix in July 2025.
Watch "Ziam" on Netflix now