Night of the Living Dead Movie Review
Back in 1968, George A. Romero directed one of the all-time great horror films, Night of the Living Dead. The film was ground-breaking, putting zombie movies at the forefront and creating the blueprint for the genre that has been followed since. In 1989, a group of movie people decided to remake this classic, and brought in special effects wizard Tom Savini to direct, making this his feature film directorial debut. They also brought in relative unknown, but soon to be horror icon, Tony Todd (Final Destination, Candyman) to play Ben, the lead character...and it worked. Released in 1990, this film was one that was seemingly on cable channels all the time by the mid 1990s--during the decade of the nineties, I must have watched this movie about a hundred times. This version was much more accessible at the time than the original, making many think of THIS movie, not the original, when they heard Night of the Living Dead--and that is not as tragic as it initially sounds.
"Wait...what did you just say?"
Seeing Todd as a sympathetic hero is kind of weird, but he pulls it off well. Patricia Tallman is memorable as Barbara--the performance isn't great, but something about it will leave an impression. Tom Towles (House of 1000 Corpses) really steals the show as Cooper, the villain you will want to reach through the television and choke. Towles truly makes you hate this character. The rest of the cast is hit or miss, with some of the acting bordering on unbearable, though Heather Mazur is creepy in her brief appearance as Zombie Sarah, pictured above. Savini and company pretty much stick to what we know from the original film, with more gore, and with the moral of the story intact, albeit more in your face. Imagine a world where rednecks are running things...I shudder to think. Is this movie as good as the original? Of course not. Is it a really, really good remake? Yes...yes it is.
On A Scale Of One To Ten: 7
Night of the Living Dead Movie Trailer
Now that Romero's original Night has attained omnipresence by dint of its situation in the public domain and consequent dissemination via online archives and budget DVDs, it's nigh difficult to imagine its eclipse by this remake, but I also recollect the latter's ubiquity via cablecast and VHS rentals.
ReplyDeleteA few months ago, I watched this for the first instance in a score with my girlfriend because she execrates the original and I promised her that she'd prefer it (she did). You're hardly kidding in reference to this cast's inconsistency, but I like Savini's divergent approach, forbearing undue ambition and drawing on his strengths by substituting his polished craft for Romero's raw energy, and eschewing much of the source's social commentary to produce a conclusion that's less predictable or didactic. Also, Tallman's far easier on the eyes than O'Dea, and her boyish metamorphosis from carping pearl-clutcher to hardened survivalist is far more credible than most damsels in distress who assume an aggressive primacy.
I'm still of the opinion that O'Bannon's Return is this genre's ne plus ultra, but I do like this one.