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WOW!
This movie is something special for horror and, especially, violence fans. One thing to keep in mind while going to see this film is that it is NOTHING like the original. A remake of Night of the Living Dead- which was superior to the original (the original is just too dated and lackluster, IMO)-- followed the original screenplay to almost a tee. This remake, however, is totally different. The only thing these two movies-- separated by 26 yrs-- have in common are zombies and a mall. And even these two facets are superficial in their similiarities. Totally different film.
Let me say this: Romero's Dawn of the Dead has always been one of my top 5 horror movies-- although it really is closer to action/adventure than horror. I love the film; even in it's occasional cheesiness it displays a sort of brilliance or charm. I have see the film prolly more than 10 times, and recently purchased the new Divimax dvd and watched it last night, in total anticipation of the remake.
Having said all this, the new Dawn of the Dead is probably a superior film. This is coming from a bona fide DOTD groupie, folks. Two separate movies, and the new one is better.
These are some of my thoughts on the new film, and I won't give away ANY of the plot:
a) For sheer qualitative AND quantitative violence, it is up there with anything else ever made, at least for an R-rated movie. Maybe Jackson's campy Dead Alive had more gore in it, but that was pure cheeseball/comic book gore. That movie blew. The new DOTD was scary-violent, like 28 Days Later on some seriously bad-ass steroids.
b) There was plenty of INTENTIONAL humor in it, provided mostly by some wise-cracking, shallow Southern-Calif type. He was somewhat likeable in some ways. I actually laughed out loud in a few parts.
c) There are some really cool sub-plots that are nicely fleshed out with some interesting characters and together they make the movie that much more entertaining. You will know them when you see them.
d) The scenes shot during the ending credits are NOT to be missed. They include some of the creepiest moments of the film, and allow the movie to end on a really uncertain note.
e) Look for cameos by Ken Foree, Scott Reiniger, and Tom Savini, all actors from the original DOTD. For those familiar with Romero's film, these brief appearances are the most palpable connection between the two movies, as opposed to anything written in the screenplay.
f) Listen to this whiny-ass, hoplophobic review of the film. This endorsement alone is enough to take me to the movie:
by Steve Rhodes
""Playing like a cross between a National Rife Association ad and the infinitely better 28 DAYS LATER, DAWN OF THE DEAD is actually a remake of the 1978 film of the same name.......Thanks to their second amendment rights, Ana (Sarah Polley), Kenneth (Ving Rhames) and the rest of our rag-tag team are able to collect an arsenal of arms to fend off the zombies....""
Ha ha ha. What a pansy! God forbid anyone should have 2nd amendment rights during an apocalyptic zombie plague. (?????) Which leads me to the next item....
g) One of the few GOOD zombie movies I've seen that doesn't fall into that predictable, overly-cliched trap of having the armed folks-- whether they be military or cops or rednecks or what have you-- becoming ambiguously moral simply because they have the arms and the balls to successfully defend themselves. Even the Independent-- and inferior-- 28 Days Later fell into that hackneyed trap. In this fine remake, everyone who has a gun-- including civilians-- is treated with respect by the writer. Why....what a novel idea!! That might be reason alone why the gun-fearing moron above didn't like the flick.
h) So many critics have complained that this remake didn't possess the social-commentary aspects of the original. Who cares? Hello?....it's a HORROR movie! I really don't care if there is any metaphor in this movie, and if you enjoy seeing decaying, terribly- injured zombies brutally attacking terrified human beings, neither should you! And I'm really not thrilled with some horror writer insinuating that I am some mindless, shambling humanoid simply because I like to spend money and act like a consumer. Oh, God-forbid, Capitalism!! What a horror! (Go to hell, Marxist insects.)
i) The choice of Johnny Cash's The Man Comes Around in the opening credits-- well after the tone and violence has been set on a local scale-- is brilliant in emphasizing that the plague is completely global and apocalyptic in scale, when played in conjunction with the horrific images of grainy, world-wide doom: chaos, confusion, and horror wrought upon man in the blink of an eye.
To sum it up, this movie is King of the Hill in overall violence, suspense and action that is not without its humor, poignancy and interesting character developments. It's really not for Socialists since it treats gun owners and those who are willing to utilize self-defense in a rare, favorable light. And this new version gave up on the metaphor of consumerism since the writer probably believes Capitalism might not be a bad thing; or at least mocking it is totally irrelevant in a good zombie flick.
A must see, indeed.
This movie is something special for horror and, especially, violence fans. One thing to keep in mind while going to see this film is that it is NOTHING like the original. A remake of Night of the Living Dead- which was superior to the original (the original is just too dated and lackluster, IMO)-- followed the original screenplay to almost a tee. This remake, however, is totally different. The only thing these two movies-- separated by 26 yrs-- have in common are zombies and a mall. And even these two facets are superficial in their similiarities. Totally different film.
Let me say this: Romero's Dawn of the Dead has always been one of my top 5 horror movies-- although it really is closer to action/adventure than horror. I love the film; even in it's occasional cheesiness it displays a sort of brilliance or charm. I have see the film prolly more than 10 times, and recently purchased the new Divimax dvd and watched it last night, in total anticipation of the remake.
Having said all this, the new Dawn of the Dead is probably a superior film. This is coming from a bona fide DOTD groupie, folks. Two separate movies, and the new one is better.
These are some of my thoughts on the new film, and I won't give away ANY of the plot:
a) For sheer qualitative AND quantitative violence, it is up there with anything else ever made, at least for an R-rated movie. Maybe Jackson's campy Dead Alive had more gore in it, but that was pure cheeseball/comic book gore. That movie blew. The new DOTD was scary-violent, like 28 Days Later on some seriously bad-ass steroids.
b) There was plenty of INTENTIONAL humor in it, provided mostly by some wise-cracking, shallow Southern-Calif type. He was somewhat likeable in some ways. I actually laughed out loud in a few parts.
c) There are some really cool sub-plots that are nicely fleshed out with some interesting characters and together they make the movie that much more entertaining. You will know them when you see them.
d) The scenes shot during the ending credits are NOT to be missed. They include some of the creepiest moments of the film, and allow the movie to end on a really uncertain note.
e) Look for cameos by Ken Foree, Scott Reiniger, and Tom Savini, all actors from the original DOTD. For those familiar with Romero's film, these brief appearances are the most palpable connection between the two movies, as opposed to anything written in the screenplay.
f) Listen to this whiny-ass, hoplophobic review of the film. This endorsement alone is enough to take me to the movie:
by Steve Rhodes
""Playing like a cross between a National Rife Association ad and the infinitely better 28 DAYS LATER, DAWN OF THE DEAD is actually a remake of the 1978 film of the same name.......Thanks to their second amendment rights, Ana (Sarah Polley), Kenneth (Ving Rhames) and the rest of our rag-tag team are able to collect an arsenal of arms to fend off the zombies....""
Ha ha ha. What a pansy! God forbid anyone should have 2nd amendment rights during an apocalyptic zombie plague. (?????) Which leads me to the next item....
g) One of the few GOOD zombie movies I've seen that doesn't fall into that predictable, overly-cliched trap of having the armed folks-- whether they be military or cops or rednecks or what have you-- becoming ambiguously moral simply because they have the arms and the balls to successfully defend themselves. Even the Independent-- and inferior-- 28 Days Later fell into that hackneyed trap. In this fine remake, everyone who has a gun-- including civilians-- is treated with respect by the writer. Why....what a novel idea!! That might be reason alone why the gun-fearing moron above didn't like the flick.
h) So many critics have complained that this remake didn't possess the social-commentary aspects of the original. Who cares? Hello?....it's a HORROR movie! I really don't care if there is any metaphor in this movie, and if you enjoy seeing decaying, terribly- injured zombies brutally attacking terrified human beings, neither should you! And I'm really not thrilled with some horror writer insinuating that I am some mindless, shambling humanoid simply because I like to spend money and act like a consumer. Oh, God-forbid, Capitalism!! What a horror! (Go to hell, Marxist insects.)
i) The choice of Johnny Cash's The Man Comes Around in the opening credits-- well after the tone and violence has been set on a local scale-- is brilliant in emphasizing that the plague is completely global and apocalyptic in scale, when played in conjunction with the horrific images of grainy, world-wide doom: chaos, confusion, and horror wrought upon man in the blink of an eye.
To sum it up, this movie is King of the Hill in overall violence, suspense and action that is not without its humor, poignancy and interesting character developments. It's really not for Socialists since it treats gun owners and those who are willing to utilize self-defense in a rare, favorable light. And this new version gave up on the metaphor of consumerism since the writer probably believes Capitalism might not be a bad thing; or at least mocking it is totally irrelevant in a good zombie flick.
A must see, indeed.
__________________
"Taking my gun away because I might shoot someone is like cutting my tongue out because I might yell `Fire!' in a crowded theater." --Peter Venetoklis
Last edited by Karl Childers; 03-21-04 at 06:06 AM.
