The peace and quiet of a small town shatters as, one by one, its citizens don blank faces and go on killing sprees.

“The Crazies” is another average movie to be initiated into the zombie genre club. It’s a good movie to watch while munching on a bag of popcorn, but it won’t raise the bar on horror.

Sheriff David Dutton (Timothy Olyphant) and Dr. Judy Dutton (Radha Mitchell) grab guns and ammo and join a few acquaintances in an attempt to escape the zombie infection.

The film’s script plays it safe by making the Duttons the most likable characters possible. Such archetypes leave little room for the cast to flaunt whatever acting skills they may have.

There is an adequate amount of violence and gore, though some of it borders on the territory of the “Saw” franchise in terms of graphic exhibitionist violence.

The movie does have a few qualities that allow it to stick out in the zombie genre. The zombies are more intelligent than the run-of-the-mill undead horde. They use guns, gasoline and even car washes to kill.

“The Crazies” also paints the military as an extension of a heartless government working to cover up the problem rather than solve it.

“The Crazies” does not rise above the crowd of zombie films, but it does entertain the audience that still enjoys a classic zombie attack.

“The Crazies” was written by Scott Kosar and Ray Wright and directed by Breck Eisner.