World War Z: 10 Unforgivable Cuts From The Book

8. The Redeker Plan

00211 One of the biggest themes in the book is that humanity will do anything to survive, and nothing embodied it more than the brutal pragmatism of the South African Redeker Plan. However, this feature integral part of the World War Z story was curiously omitted from the film. Put simply, the Redeker Plan was a set of pre-Apartheid directives laying down what the Afrikaners would do if the black population rose up to kill them, and could easily be re-fitted for a zombies-versus-humans situation. What was so chilling about it was that it instantly dismissed the notion of saving everyone, stating that if you sufficiently armed a small base elsewhere and filled it with people, it would provide a distraction long enough for everyone else to prepare properly. Grimly pragmatic, it was a solution adopted by every other country in an effort to survive. Its very existence offered a great insight into the human condition and the lengths we would go to ensure survival, but the film just dropped it in favour of Israel€™s €˜we put up a wall because we cottoned on quickest€™ strategy. Really, this was such a wasted opportunity €“ not only did the plan explain how humanity survived the onrushing hordes, but it also set out the practical-at-all-costs philosophy of the zombie world like nothing else before it. Now a vaccine€™s been discovered, I doubt it€™ll make an appearance at all in the sequels, and that€™s a shame. Speaking of which€
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Durham University graduate and qualified sports journalist. Very good at sitting down and watching things. Can multi-task this with playing computer games. Football Manager addict who has taken Shrewsbury Town to the summit of the Premier League. You can follow me at @Ed_OwenUK, if you like ramblings about Newcastle United and A Place in the Sun. If you don't, I don't know what I can do for you.