I'm probably not the best judge of films like this because I just don't care about zombie flicks. There's something iconic about the original "Night of the Living Dead" that couldn't be duplicated in this sequel; part of it could be the use of iconic black and white in filming NOTLD, part of it could simply be the attempt at exploiting a formula that worked in the past. There was hardly even a story here, as it was all about four people trapped in a shopping mall knocking off the undead, and doing a poor job of it in many cases. I couldn't count the number of times I would have used a handgun or a rifle to dispatch a zombie only a few feet away that the principal characters allowed to walk on by. And not too quickly either I might add. Gosh but these zombies were slow. In the future, I think I'll take my zombie cinema in the way of pictures like "Shaun of the Dead", that is, with a great big heaping of satirical fun. Not to mention deadpan humor, although I just did.

Writer/Director George A. Romero introduced the film world to the modern day version of zombies with his 1968 horror classic "Night of the Living Dead" and with this 1978 sequel he takes the living dead horror sub-genre he created to the next level, introducing the living dead to a much wider post-apocalyptic world where civil order has completely broken down. There are a handful of movies like "A Boy and His Dog" or "The Omega Man" or "The Ultimate Warrior" that were made earlier and showed a destroyed world with scavengers living off the remnants of our ruined world, but Romeo's vision of the apocalypse shows the actual breakdown (a pre-apocalypse, if you will) that led to that broken post-apocalyptic world. The only other film I can think of that did something similar to this was Ray Milland's "Panic in Year Zero," although that film was nowhere as harrowing and by the end of the film order was restored. As with all of Romero's Dead films, this second film in the series follows a new set of characters. A TV news station manager is working as things begin to fall apart. That's when she and her "Flyboy" helicopter pilot boyfriend take off for somewhere safe, along with a pair of SWAT Team deserters, one of whom is played by genre mainstay Ken Foree, the only real name actor in the film (unless you count Tom Savini in a memorable bit part near the end of the film) in an early acting role. The group flies out into the night when it becomes clear that the police and national guard have lost control and it's everyone for themselves. There's a great moment at one point that subtly underscores frightening nature of the breakdown when Flyboy asks a police officer loading supplied on a boat where he's going and the office replies, "Down river. We got an idea maybe we can make it to the island!" When asked what island, he replies "Any island." The foursome also fly off without any idea where they are going, but eventually stumble upon a shopping mall and quickly figure out that this place is loaded with everything they need to survive. Before they can move in though, they have to clear the mall of zombies, which is the film's high point and extremely entertaining. This portion of the film is likely why "Dawn of the Dead" is the most popular of the Dead films, because of the wish fulfillment aspect of being able to have your run of a mall, taking what you want, eating what you want, and having everything you ever wanted without any consequences. I think this was the first post-apocalyptic film to make the end-of-the-world seem fun. This kind of wish fulfillment was revisited memorably in "Night of the Comet" and a few other last-man-on-earth and end-of-the-world stories, but Romero uses this story element to make a political statement about consumerism and capitalism, something he's done with all of his Dead films, using the zombie story as an avenue to make a socio-political statement. It's this subtext that sets Romero's zombie films apart from others. Not only are they entertaining, but they also have something to say. Asked why zombies seem to be covering on the mall, Ken Foree replies, "They're after the place. They don't know why; they just remember. Remember that they want to be in here." To which Francine asks "What the hell are they?" Flyboy replies "They're us, that's all." Mindless consumers drawn to the mall, which is what our foursome also becomes once they clear out the mall and find themselves rich, bored, and left empty once they've accumulated everything they've ever wanted. However, as with all capitalist societies, there's always someone else who's envious of what you have and they don't, so enter Tom Savini and is biker gang who want to break into the mall and loot their peaceful sanctuary. This may make "Dawn of the Dead" sound very quite intellectual and thought provoking, which I believe it is, but it's also bloody, cartoony fun on a straight entertainment level, delivering some excellent horror suspenseful movie moments as well. The film contains a number of iconic horror movie moments, including a zombie getting the top of his head sliced off with a helicopter blade, a notorious shotgun head explosion, a blood pressure machine, and really too many classic moments to mention. Tom Savini's cartoony, yet horrifyingly gory special effects are a real treat for fans of old-school practical effects. And in regards to straight up zombie action, there are some unique situations, including one where I was quite taken aback upon rewatching the film where Ken Foree finds himself fighting off two child-zombies and having to shoot them, which was more shocking of a scene than I remember. Another part of the film that has to be given it's due is the terrific score by Gobin (billed as The Goblins) and Dario Argento. The pounding synthesizers over the film's opening help establish the dour and hopelessness of the zombie onslaught, while at the same time the campy mall muzak is a hilarious ear-worm that you cannot get out of your head. One unpleasant surprise rewatching this film was how bad the photography was. There seemed to be many scenes that were out of focus or the lighting was off, that I was did not remember. You could argue that this helps with the film's grunginess and punk rock attitude, but it mainly just looks amateurish. However, that's a minor blemish on what is otherwise a classic horror film that surpasses the original and remains of the best zombie flicks ever committed to film.

I am generally not a fan of horror movies, but I really do make exceptions for zombie films. I absolutely adore them and think they're wonderfully creative. I used to say that "Night Of The Living Dead" was my favorite horror movie and it would obviously be a tough act to follow. They did in fact top it with one of the best movies I've seen in my life! The first one was great because of the psychological horrors the characters went through and this manages to make it even better. It's not so much a horror movie as more of an action movie with pretty funny scenes and even great drama with characters I truly care about. It really is the horror movie for everybody.I remember watching the final scene and thinking that it could only get better if the last guy lived and decided not to commit suicide...and he did! It's certainly a much happier ending than the previous movie. It was great to see how ten years of special effects have improved the series. This really doesn't have much connection to "Night Of The Living Dead", probably because that movie killed off every main character! Instead, they give us a much nicer ending which really did work out better, if it was bittersweet. What's great about this movie is that there are so many scenes where the characters are just having fun.Seriously, there's a point where this whole zombie thing just becomes casual for them. They even manage to find a nice lifestyle in the mall they hang out in. It's great to change the location because we get a whole lot more room for the characters and us viewers to explore. It still manages to get that feeling of an enclosed space, only bigger. It's great to see the different ways the zombies die. It's hard to tell if we're supposed to feel sympathetic to them. It's like the bikers are the only truly evil people. Then again, they do help get rid of a lot of them, but there's always more. The fact that this movie is so unwilling to take sides is what makes it a classic.This is one of the best depiction of zombies I've ever seen. There's only a few subtle references to the original movie, but that's fine. It's great to see the mythology of something being expanded so much. There were even some interesting thoughts on racism here. It seemed to wander around for the first 15 minutes, but even those parts were great! A lot of us know what it's like to want to be alone in any scenario. Loved the dialogue, loved the music, loved the action, just loved everything! ****

George A. Romero's follow-up to his cult classic NIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD arrived some ten years later and featured a greatly expanded budget. While DAWN OF THE DEAD is a direct continuation of where the previous one left off (it's a few weeks later, the zombie virus is spreading rapidly, the rescue stations are closing down), the style of the two films couldn't be more different. While NIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD was a basically a low-budget movie, filmed on just one set, DAWN OF THE DEAD in comparison feels like an epic; a huge setting, tons of zombies and plenty of special effects. We can only be grateful that Romero finally got the budget to do his zombie movies justice.This time around the film doesn't really concentrate on the conflict between the band of survivors (everybody gets along). Romero injects many of his own political views on feminism, society, etc., and also puts the film on multiple levels. In the first instance it's an action/horror movie, in the second it's a scathing satire on consumerism. Thankfully all this subtext don't detract from the main story, and once again the film succeeds in giving us characters to care about. While some might complain that the film might be a little long, cutting would have resulted in us perhaps losing some sympathy with the characters, losing their little ticks and habits, their expressions, their mentalities.To a mainstream viewer, the cast is completely obscure and unknown. However, Romero picks his actors well and everybody fits their role like a glove. Scott H. Reiniger plays probably the most one-dimensional character of the bunch, a SWAT man who gradually loses his grip with reality and suffers the consequences. David Emge is charismatic as an atypical action man with a conscience, who starts off as a novice and learns how to fend for himself throughout the course of the film. Gaylen Ross is the realist of the group, always in touch with the situation, excluded because of her gender, seeing that the mall they occupy isn't a play area but a prison. However it's Ken Foree who excels as the action man who's also intelligent, quick thinking and kind. The only other notable cast members are Tom Savini, SFX master, cameoing as a biker, and a small role for Joe Pilato, who went on to play Captain Rhodes in the next dead film, DAY OF THE DEAD.The special effects are emphasised as the real star of this film, and much is made of the high gore content. Not five minutes go by without zombies getting shot in the head and blood splattering, although all the real cannibalistic gore is saved until the finale and immediately follows some light relief, Romero cruelly playing with our feelings. Arms are torn off, sockets spraying gore, flesh is ripped from legs and necks. It's all pretty horrible and gruesome, and in some ways depressing too. So many zombies and people get killed in this film that you'll need a strong stomach to watch the prolonged bloodshed. It's most horrible when characters we care about get bitten, and Romero works up a lot of suspense from putting them in danger; the truck driving scene being a prime example, plus the lift bit at the end.The music is by Goblin, and is excellent; simplistic, yes, but catchy and downbeat. There are many comedic moments in the film to counter the horror (Romero obviously believed that comic relief should be included intentionally, so that rather than having viewers laugh at a film, they laugh with it instead), such as a zombie getting the top of his head sliced off by a helicopter rotor blade, or zombies falling off balconies and stumbling on escalators. However these silly bits never get in the way of the violence or true horror of the situation, and some bits are painful to watch, especially one scene where a sympathetic character is due to come back from the dead. The wait is unbearable. It is in these moments that we see the genius of Romero's film, as he explores all possibilities and facets of life in a world full of monsters. It's a huge film, it requires a concentrated effort to get through, but will reward on many levels depending on how you watch it.