Dawn of the Dead Review

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Well, dead in the sense that they fell down. Then they got back up. Then they started eating each other. - Steve

Gaald sent in a review of Dawn of the Dead, a remake of the classic George Romero flick from back in the 70's. Can Ving Rhames carry this movie on his manly shoulders? Read on and find out!I saw 28 Days Later last summer and really enjoyed watching it, having seen Resident Evil not too long before and finding it lacking in certain areas I was thoroughly impressed with what 28 Days offered. When the opportunity to see yet another zombie movie came up I took it!

Braaaainsss!

Dawn of the Dead was a classic zombie movie Written and Directed by George A. Romero in 1978. He is considered one of the greats in the zombie movie genre. When I first saw the trailer for a new Dawn of the Dead I wasnÂ't sure what to think. There was plenty of opportunity to make this a great remake but as is often the case, Hollywood has a tendency to turn good ideas into bad realities! Not to mention the fact I had never heard of the director Zack Snyder before and that can sometimes spell disaster. I however was optimistic; how badly could you screw up a zombie movie?

Violence, gore, a smattering of comic relief and a lot of shock horror, mixed with a plot that serves one purpose, keep the movie going! Put those all together and you pretty much have all the ingredients found in every good zombie flick from the past. I thought the new Dawn of the Dead delivered on all fronts. It had the people in the theatre, including myself, jumping out of our seats, cringing in disgust and laughing out loud throughout the entire flick.

One of the things that I often find ruins a remake of a movie is the actors! More often than not Hollywood execs search for stars willing to sign on to the project. I can only imagine they hope the stars box office pull will help make the movie more successful, all of sudden the movie becomes more about who is in it than what it is about. Well Dawn of the Dead took the less is more approach in my opinion. All of the main actors in the film will be familiar to most people but thankfully the biggest recognizable start out of them all is Ving Rhames, (who is small time compared to most) although for a lot of us Canadians Sarah Polley will be just as familiar. This allowed me to see past who was playing the roles so that I could concentrate on the characters and the story being told. Otherwise, we all know how hard it can be with some of the bigger stars (Tom Cruise) and some of the movies they are in (Last Samurai), not that I would name any names!

Well thankfully I didnÂ't end up finding out how badly someone could screw up a zombie flick. I really enjoyed the new version of Dawn of the Dead. I dare say even hardcore followers of the genre might be hard pressed to find anything wrong with the film. Just remember I am still talking about a zombie movie here, if you have seen any of the other classic films in the genre and didnÂ't like them you will not like this one either. For those fans of the genre I encourage you to go check it out. These movies are at their best in the theatres with the volume jacked and a large screen. YouÂ're just on the edge of sensory overload and if youÂ're lucky a good crowed to enjoy it all with!

- Gaald

Comments

Just tell me the R rating is not because of nudity. If I have to see one more naked zombie I will literally throw up my can of nachos!

I really need to go see this movie.

Also the writer wrote the new Scooby Doo movies, which makes me even more suprised that it's good.

Well, apparently resurrected zombies can beat resurrected Jesus, at least at the box office.

It's a battle of the risen dead!!!!

The rated R is not for nudity. It is all about gore and violence.

Noice. I do like a good zombie flick.

Saw this today and thought it kicked ass. Totally fun. I love the new fast moving zombies. Really adds to the tension.

And how about the chainsaw on the bus scene? Awesome!

KrazyTaco[FO] wrote:

Just tell me the R rating is not because of nudity. If I have to see one more naked zombie I will literally throw up my can of nachos!

I'll go this far...its rated "R" because its got everything...sex, violence, and rock and roll! But mainly violence and lots of it in graphic details and at some points rather suttle leaving more to the imagination...which I thought was cool at the points they did it...anyhow I strongly recommend this movie!

Excellent Movie. Considering the absolute crapfests that have been Zombie movies as of late, its a breath of fresh air to see one done right.

I think this movie takes the record for most zombies squished by a semi truck

Judging by your reactions, it's good. Let's see how long it will take to get it here...

I understand that slow and fast zombies each have their merit, but I'm having trouble classifying these.
They start slowly, but multiply and work themselves into a frenzy.

It burns us, it burns.

My god.

*collapses on the floor from laughing too hard*