NIGHT OF THE LIVNG DEAD (1968)

This is George Romero's ground breaking zombie flick from 1968.   

Shot on Black and White film, and filmed on what can only be described as a shoe-string budget this film is singlehandedly responsible for bringing zombies as we know them today  (as opposed to the haitian/voodoo zombies in movies like White Zombie that had previously been depicted in movies until then) into the mainstream of modern culture and spawning countless zombie films just like it, some better and many immeasurably worse. It is also the earliest film I can think of that uses explicit gore, levels of gore which now have been rendered "cute" by todays standards but were revolutionary by late 60's standards.

Basically the plot revolves around a scenario where the dead are coming back to life and a small group of survivors are trapped in a farmhouse left to defend themselves with whatever weapons they can find, while the undead around them are literally "chomping at the bit" to take a bite out of them.

While much of  it now would be considered outdated and the special effects used rather plain this is still quite a watchable film and something that you could use to introduce your kids to the world of horror without traumatizing them. Featuring none of the over the top gore that the following films in the franchise (Day of the Dead, Dawn of the Dead etc....) were renowned for, this can probably be considered one of the safer films for the horror newbie, where I guess hardened gore-fiends might find the pace of this one a bit slow.

Over all its a great watch, and historically important to gain an understanding where the zombie infection first took a hold on mainstream cinema audiences

It is presented below in all its glory on you tube for those that haven't had the pleasure!

For more great horror movie reviews be sure to check out http://www.gorenography.com on a regular basis

DAY OF THE DEAD (1985)

Day of the Dead

Day of the dead marks George Romero's third outing into the world of the undead the first of course being Night of the living dead waaaaay back in 1968, then Dawn of the Dead in 1978 and now this one...

From what I gather Night of the Living Dead gained some notoriety for its gore content, well this would have given those same cry babies a coronary attack! The gore content has been upped ten fold from NOTLD and is another step beyond Dawn of the Dead, the gore and special effects are looking great which results in one hell of a blood bath, and fun ride for the viewer!



The movie itself fasts forwards to a point where zombies have taken over much of the free world the last remaining humans some military and some research staff have been isolated in a military bunker / research facility type thing and trying to figure out how they are going to survive. Despite the fact the undead have decimated the world population the research staff are still conducting experiments on how the zombies work, and trying to domesticate them. This of course sits at odds with the military staff, and results in tension between the last of the humans and creates a cool sub-plot to the story. In a way this is really cool as it analyses the zombies and allows the viewer to understand what makes them tick, their memories of their past lives and the instincts that keep them hunting human flesh. I think its a good departure from the first two films and gives the horror fan a more cerebral look at the zombie. Some might think the film is a little slow paced, as it is fairly long... but for the conclusion of the original zombie trilogy I think its fitting.

Over all its a fun, but more intelligent look at the brainless undead creatures we have all come to love. Definately worth a watch for any gore / zombie fan!

We managed to find  a good copy of this on you tube so go check it out while you can!

Also be sure to check out our reviews of George Romero's work on later films Night of the Living Dead  and  Dawn of the Dead


For more great horror movie reviews check out:
http://www.gorenography.com

DAWN OF THE DEAD (1978)

Dawn of the Dead represents a huge step forward in filming technology and budget for director George A Romero. I have to admit that revisiting "Night of the Living Dead" as an adult gore-fiend left me a little underwhelmed, I do love the movie and I know it was a groundbreaking film for its time but really its hard going from the visually spectacular horror films we have today back to the rudimentary execution of NOTLD.

Mr Romero's second venture into the world of the undead, this one from 1978 still holds up remarkably well against the zombie flicks of today. despite being over 2 hours long this one holds the viewers interest, of course being shot in colour played no small part in this.  The film allowed Romero to go a little wild on the gore, rendering it one of the more graphic american films to have been released at the time. The VHS copy I have shows it to have an "R" rating (restricted to adults) but by todays standards it would most likely have earned the 15 year old rating which to me makes it good wholesome family fun that you can let your older kids watch without the exploitational nudity and sex that other european films being released at the same time were saturated in.

Plot wise it doesn't have anything really to do with "Night of the Living Dead" save the fact that zombies have risen from the dead and are devouring anything and everything in their path. This time round much of country seems to have been overrun with the reanimated corpses. The story itself revolves around a small group of survivors who have taken refuge in a shopping mall and attempt to survive off the supplies within the mall for months while civilization around them (presumably) collapses and the undead around the mall attempt to break in and consume them. There is some cool interpersonal play within the characters and its a film that keeps the viewers interest the whole way through, and the gore effects would have been second to none at the time, and still hold up reasonably well today I have to say!

Also be sure to check out our reviews on Night of the Living Dead and Day of the Dead

For more great horror movie reviews check out:
http://www.gorenography.com