Rule No. 23 » Go see the outrageously hilarious "Zombieland."

Rule No. 24 » Prepare to cough up popcorn and Diet Coke from uncontrollable laughs.

Just when you thought the zombie apocalypse genre had run out of steam in Hollywood, a movie such as "Zombieland" springs out of nowhere and attacks you senseless like a shotgun blast to the funnybone.

Like other zombie adventures before it, including "Dawn of the Dead" and "28 Days Later," "Zombieland" is about surviving in an increasingly dangerous land where humans are few and the flesh-eating undead rule.

In the beginning, there is just Columbus ("Adventureland's" Jesse Eisenberg), a nerdish social outcast so nicknamed by other survivors because that's where he's headed to see his family.

In order to survive, Columbus has created a list of rules when dealing with the rash of undead, such as "check the backseat," because you never know when one of them might be hiding in the car, or "wear your seat belt," because you never know if you have to ram said car into a wall to cause the zombie to fly through the windshield). Introducing these seemingly innocuous rules is part of the fun in much of the film.

While traveling, Columbus encounters a wildly explosive but sentimental redneck he names Tallahassee (Woody Harrelson's funniest and most manic role in ages), and both decide to ride cross-country together.

Soon, the duo meets up with two sisters (Emma Stone and Abigail Breslin) who turn out to be con artists who steal and lie to stay alive.

Their journey together to a Los Angeles amusement park -- where it is rumored that remaining humans are living -- leads to more gory zombie killings and jump-out-of-the-closet moments that seem more typical than terrifying. While the scare tactics appear tame, "Zombieland" is really a comedy about creative zombie eradication instead of a horrorfest with gnashing teeth.

And even during their downtime, particularly while holed up in a Beverly Hills mansion, the wicked comedy and creative zip in the story jumps out and takes you by surprise.

The funniest and most inspired exercise in horror comedy since the laugh-out-loud "Shaun of the Dead," "Zombieland" is a juicy, bloody and hysterical escapade that breaks all the rules -- even when everyone in it is trying to follow them.

vince@sltrib.com