Looking for something to watch on the UK’s biggest streaming services this weekend? Look no further!

ZOMBIELAND (Ruben Fleischer, 2009, USA) – Netflix – HD – 5.1

It’s amazing how fast time flies by as I’d swear this came out far later that it did.  But after a quick IMDB check,  lo-and-behold, it would appear I’m older than I thought I was!

Ruben Fleischer’s breakout feature debut sees a straight up comedic take on the zombie genre, something that in the realm of theatrically released entertainment doesn’t happen all that often. For all the jokes in Shaun of the Dead, that flick gets pretty downbeat in the final act. Instead, we are given a visually dynamic world where Jesse Eisenberg somehow manages to become adept at surviving in this world as he joins Woody Harrleson’s older figure in a hunt for an elusive Twinkie.

The Harrleson/Eisenberg team-up works as well as you’d expect, their chalk and cheese feeling natures rubbing against each other nicely and they are given decent support by both Abigail Breslin and Emma Stone, who was on her rise to super-stardom. An odd duck of an ensemble cast, which also benefits from a pretty brilliant cameo, shows just because this particular actor won’t go back on his old stomping grounds, it doesn’t mean he’s still not looking for fun roles to fill.

With Fleischer moving on to the big leagues with the forthcoming Gangster Squad and the passage of time moving ever onwards, it’s looking less and less likely that the mooted sequel will happen but as it is, this works perfectly well as a short, sharp and entertaining one-off which would be a great choice for a friday night in.

INFESTATION (Kyle Rankin, 2009, USA) – LOVEFiLM

With FrightFest kicking off next week, it could well be time to go through some of their old films – and what do you know, we’ve got one here, and a solid entry it is too as Chris Marquette’s slacker finds himself having to man up when a swarm of massive bugs knock the world’s population out an cocoons them. With our “hero” able to get out of this jam, he teams up with various survivors to try and get to his father (Ray Wise in an extended cameo) in an effort to work out how to stop all of this.

Infestation is one of those films that take you by surprise, one you stick on hoping it won’t be dire and being pleasantly surprised when it turns out to be a perfectly acceptable watch with well-handled low-budget action, decent comedic moments and a paciness which means you never get too bored. Fully exploiting the idea of giant bugs, the film takes a leaf from the book of Eight Legged Freaks, a gem of a film to check out if you haven’t, and makes proceedings often-times skin crawling and just plain.. icky, something I think most people can relate to really.

Lead Chris Marquette puts in an enjoyable if generic performance as the slacker who has to learn to take on responsibility but this film is all about Ray Wise, building him up as more than a mere man and utilising the supreme cheese that actor can, at times, give you with a performance which feels entirely appropriate.

Not a world changer and certainly the lesser of this week’s picks but a solid film to have beers with, Infestation will get you in the mood for more horror in a laid back and agreeable way.