Customer Reviews:
fantastic film.......2006-06-13
This film is fantastic, the acting is superb. It rings out the standard "ZOMBIE PREDICTABLE HORROR", which most of us love anyway, that's why we watch it! Zombies run (SPRINT) in this, and although to me it wasn't scary, there was ALOT of tense moments 'edge of your seat moments'. As a huge resident evil fan (games), i'm a bit of a zombie purist, "zombie's shouldn't run GRR" but this film is just fantastic. If you like zombie films i recommend it.
I do recommend this, although i'd say get it on DVD not UMD, I'm happy with my UMD though, since i like watching it out and about. If you don't specifically want to take it out and about or don't have a dvd player, just get it on dvd.
Oh, and the only language is in English.. so no foreign languages if you need it. (I don't, but it's something i noticed)
4.5 star film
DAWN OF THE DEAD! ! ! ! !.......2005-12-13
The origonal Dawn of the Dead is far better than this and is on UMD DVD now but that doesn't mean this isn't a great film!
This is obviously a better filmed and has better music and acting in it but still never will be as good as the origonal.
If you like zombie films you'll love this, if you don't then you might but this is definetly a better film for people who aren't big zombie film fans.
This is definetly a film for anyones UMD DVD collection!
Amazon.co.uk Review
Are you ready to get down with the sickness? Movie logic dictates that you shouldn't remake a classic, but Zack Snyder's Dawn of the Dead defies that logic and comes up a winner. You could argue that George A. Romero's 1978 original was sacred ground for horror buffs, but it was a low-budget classic, and Snyder's action-packed upgrade benefits from the same manic pacing that energized Romero's continuing zombie saga. Romero's indictment of mega-mall commercialism is lost (it's arguably outmoded anyway), so Snyder and screenwriter James Gunn compensate with the same setting--in this case, a Milwaukee shopping mall under siege by cannibalistic zombies in the wake of a devastating viral outbreak--a well-chosen cast (led by Sarah Polley, Ving Rhames, Jake Weber, and Mekhi Phifer), some outrageously morbid humor, and a no-frills plot that keeps tension high and blood splattering by the bucketful. Horror buffs will catch plenty of tributes to Romero's film (including cameos by three of its cast members, including gore-makeup wizard Tom Savini), and shocking images are abundant enough to qualify this Dawn as an excellent zombie-flick double-feature with 28 Days Later, its de facto British counterpart. --Jeff Shannon
Customer Reviews:
BEST OF THE BUNCH.......2007-10-26
Brilliant film. I've seen several 'living dead' films but this one is by far the best.
A group of uninfected survivors barricade themselves inside a shopping centre which is duly surrounded by thousands of walking, flesh craving zombies. The story follows their efforts to escape to an uninhabited island, but to do this they must run the gauntlet of zombies.
Great special effects and story.
Quick Reviews!.......2007-09-15
*** This comment may contain spoilers ***
Being a zombie movie fan i have much enjoyed the recent (continuing) resurgence of the genre. As i believe that Romero's Dawn is not only the best zombie movie ever, but one of the best horror movies, i was both excited and sceptical to hear about a remake. Reasons for excitement- 1. It's zombies. 2. A big budget. 3. If done right, could be brilliant. Reasons for scepticism- 1. A big budget. 2. Less gore, less shock value. 3. If done wrong could be awful, and possibly tarnish the name of the original in some people's eyes.
I soon heard that the zombies would be able to run- a source of many arguments among fans and purists. On one side, the zombies were scarier because their slow speed was irrelevant, they would probably get you in the end through sheer numbers or by the fact that they don't get tired. Slow zombies were scary because they were falling to pieces. However, on the other side, people who have recently turned may still be in good shape so should be able to run until they begin to decay. Fast zombies make the threat more immediate and therefore give rise to more jumpy moments. Fast zombies mean we have an even smaller chance of survival as we may not be able to outrun them. Some have said the zombies in this are 'super-fast', but this is nonsense. A zombie should only be as fast as it was before it turned, more likely slower, but will not get out of breath. All this running will however mean quicker decay. What it all boils down too in the end is whether you can make your choice effective, and in both films, both directors succeed.
A Nurse, Ana, during and after a heavy shift fails to notice the news reports that the dead are attacking the living. It is probably rubbish anyway, and she just wants to get home to suburbia. The next morning, her young neighbour enters her bedroom; She seems to be hurt. When her husband investigates, she attacks him, biting off part of his throat. He dies, the phone is engaged, but he quickly rises again and goes for his wife. When she escapes the house she witnesses chaos, people screaming, houses on fire and being attacked, her neighbour with a gun, promptly run over by an ambulance. She escapes in her car only to crash after seeing the scale of the madness. Soon she meets with a cop- Kenneth, Michael, Andre and his pregnant girlfriend Luda. They decide to hide in a local mall only to find that Store guards have claimed it for their own. However, they work out a compromise and soon other survivors join them. As the days pass, they try to work out a solution, how to maintain their safety and sanity. When an attempt to send food to Andy, a survivor on the roof of a gun shop a few hundred yards away goes wrong, the zombies get into the mall, and the remaining survivors flee. Their plan to escape to an island by boat seems good, but it is based on pure hope, and the desire to get out of their present situation, rushed, and the hordes continue to chase.
The film lacks the brains and atmosphere of Romero's masterpiece. But it makes up for this by giving an excellent view of how contemporary people would likely react to the situation. The film begins quickly, and to the director's credit, the pace continues throughout. Anytime something good happens, something worse happens to bring the characters to an even lower state. It is frantic, but never out of control, and their is a fair amount of tension. Once we realise the zombies are fast, we are on edge, prepared for one or one hundred to come racing round the nearest shadowy corner. The actors all do well, particularly Polley and the excellent Weber. His character is just a normal guy, a failure at many things, but who will not give up. Rhames is tough, but doesn't set out on his own, knowing that he is needed. The soundtrack is more conventional,with booming rock songs being played over each attack, but this heightens the chaos. There is little hope left at the end, and little time for discussion over why this has happened. There are a few good set pieces, and the gore is good for a modern mainstream film. There are a few funny moments, and of course, another staple of zombie films, an annoying character-Steve. The best of the recent serious zombie films by a wide margin, lets see if Romero can regain his crown.
The DVD has a few good extras, the commentary is amusing, and the last days of Andy feature is well worth watching.
An impressive reinvention of the zombie sub-genre that keeps your adrenalin pumping.......2007-09-01
I had seen this movie a couple of times and it's just great. The plot is pretty straightforward, even though it relies mostly on cliché themes to move the story along. So as a rule, most films such as this tend to be predictable and quite tepid. Luckily, `Dawn of the Dead' has strong personalities to fall back on, making it thankfully every bit a character-driven drama as it is a horror-action piece.
Sarah Polley convincingly plays a waif turned survivor with just the right amount of emoting. She is strong and vulnerable at the same moment, trying to remain reasonable in unreasonable times. Weber also fits this bill as Michael, a man with a shady past full of regret who tries to fill others with hope while remaining a stark realistic. Rhames' performance clearly commands the most attention. As Kenneth, he becomes the group's de facto leader and top man of action. He keeps the clearest head when trouble is afoot and leads the group out of one scrape after another. Rhames gives the character a silent strength that provides the film with a much needed human edge. I just wished the zombies were bit slower because at times it seem a little bit unnatural of the things that they were able to do.
First time director Zack Snyder moves the film along briskly and effectively though, keeping the action scenes tight and the dramatic scenes quiet. There is no heavy-handed sermonizing here that tends to infiltrate most big-budget horror movies -- Snyder wisely lets the images speak for themselves. The horror itself is shocking and grabs your attention, which is a plus considering most of the recent crop of thrillers. The fact that it is happening to sympathetic characters that we care about is another feather in the movie's cap. What really impressed me about this film was towards the end when they took the boat and landed on an island.... Fulci's next zombie flick took place on an island... nice hand off, someone did their homework.
`Dawn of the Dead' is a very bloody and terrifying film .Good acting and smart thinking elevates the proceedings among most horror offerings that is dressed to kill. Not as persist as Romero's original (thank goodness), but still one heck of a shot in the arm to cure the memory from most modern horror misfires.
An absolutely STUNNING remake........2007-08-28
I really knew nothing of Dawn of the Dead 2004 until I saw the preview. No trailers, no TV spots, no hype. So I was quite surprised at how breathtaking it is, moving at a neck-breaking pace and not letting up on the gut-wrenching tension for the entire running time. The critics and majority of the audience agreed, something damn rare for a remake.
While many remakes are easy, pointless cash-ins on previous success and a quick way to mooch a few dollars off fans, DOTD 2004 is something quite different. Both Dawn of the Dead movies are great for their own reasons. And while most will judge this a remake only and do nothing but compare it with its 1978 counterpart, it's really best to watch them a two separate stories happening at the same time.
Young Nurse Ana (Sarah Polley) is living the suburban dream: perfect house, loving husband, well-manicured cul-de-sac. All that is about to change. As she drives home after a long shift dozens of clues surrounding the brewing trouble literally fall on deaf ears as Ana is too tired to notice. Overnight, her life is changed forever (as anyone's life can) when a lethal virus, that causes the dead to come back to life, spreads with alarming speed all over the world. Utterly, completely, hopelessly outnumbered, Ana flees her perfect life and hooks up with a bunch of other survivors who take refuge in a huge shopping mall.
I will not pretend that the satire of the original is something of my own discovery (as so many, many other reviewers have) and complain that it's pretty much absent in the remake because DOTD 2004 has so many other levels to it.
First of all, the zombies (the word is never mentioned in the film) can be seen as the perfect society. There is no conflict between them, no hate, no prejudice, and no grudges. They exist only to create more, as humans invariably do. The survivors barricaded in the shopping mall are rebels. They are refusing to conform and fight for their life, for their right to be different. And with this right to be different comes conflict and turmoil. The barricade between inside the mall and outside the mall is the line between the western world and the third world. Indulgent, ignorant and wasteful on one side and starving masses grabbing for whatever food they can on the other.
DOTD 2004 offers a wider range of characters (more zombie nosh!) boarded up in the mall: cop, nurse, hoodlum, survivalist old lady, pregnant woman, security guards, gay guy, arrogant playboy millionaire, pretty girl and average Joe. It could be argued that they're a far more PC assortment of characters than the original (DOTD 1978 had 2 SWAT cops and 2 reporters-the very people we rely on to protect and inform us in times of crises-chickening out of their utterly futile duties to fend for themselves) but it ends up with character arcs and a sense of sticking together to survive, despite differences, that the original didn't have.
The cast is well chosen and all act their parts brilliantly. Horror films have severely declined in recent years with most being turned into 20-something teen soap-opera trash. In DOTD 2004 you'll see a realistic group of people dealing enormous pressure with sense and reason. However, there is one particular moment in which a complete idiot character jeopardizes the security for everyone else for the dumbest and stupidest of reasons. It really bugs me that this device is in the film and it damages DOTD 2004 and prevents it from having any everlasting integrity.
There are a few references to the original (I'd hate to call them 'in-jokes' as that term would be kind of inappropriate for a film of this nature) that fans will have fun picking up on. But mostly the characters and situations featured in DOTD 2004 are completely new. The most interesting of which is the gun store owner across the street from the mall who communicates with Ving Rhames with his whiteboard and marker pen.
Writer James Gunn (Scooby Doo, Scooby Doo 2: Monsters Unleashed) unleashes an entirely new monster this time. Many people have strongly complained at the 'fast zombie' type seen in this movie and (the absolutely awful) 28 Days Later. But they are far, far, FAR more terrifying than the slow, sluggish, rigger-mortis stricken corpses in the original. They'd be on you, ripping you're throat out before you can say 'crikey!' Yes, the 'turning times' vary wildly in the movie, but it all depends on the bite and how bad it is.
I had never heard of Zack Snyder before seeing this movie, but for a debut feature he sure has impressed me. Every scene in this film is shot and lit from an identifiable point of view. This could be YOUR shopping mall in YOUR town. Not some fantasy happening far away. It's these kind of qualities that make DOTD 2004 stay with you longer than Darkness Falls or Scream 86. I'm glad that Hollywood can still make horror films as bloody and relentless as this, though there were several cuts made to the theatrical version.
This new Directors Cut DVD runs 110 minutes and features more gore, bridging scenes, more character development, more violence and the odd restored shot here and there. It really is the definitive cut of the film to have and I urge you to buy this version.
Filmed in Super-35 the HD DVD presents the film in 2.35:1 1080P widescreen with Dolby THD sound. The picture is flawless and Zack Snyder's high contrast, blown-out cinematography looks utterly perfect. A truckload of extras include Commentary by director Zack Snyder and Producer Eric Newman, The Lost Tape: Andy's Terrifying Last Days Revealed, Special Bulletin: We Interrupt This Program!-complete news coverage of the attacks, deleted scenes, Raising the Dead and Attack of the Living Dead featurettes and Splitting Headaches: Anatomy of Exploding Heads.
Almost as Good as the Landmark Original.......2007-07-16
The first ten minutes of this remake of George A. Romero's Dawn of the dead should have been flaunted on television as it was on the Monday before it's opening on the USA network. What an amazing start, few times am I moved by actions or horrors, (as this is both) but the sheer power and fear generated by this opening sequence is what sets the stage for this film. It is all down hill from there but the film does manage to do what few remakes do, and that is stand on it's own as a decent movie overall.
The original Dawn of the Dead kept the zombies in slow motion but never turned away when they got a victim pinned down and the remake doesn't even come close to the violence or pure horror of the original (nothing does, it's one of the greatest horror films ever made). It does however remain a suspenseful action/horror film that has you rooting for the good guys...and sometimes the zombies. It is entertaining despite it's flaws. Director Zack Snyder has a tremendous amount of mainstream appeal. All of the film's outstanding strengths are directorial in nature. The cast was also strong. Ving Rhames revisits his type castings here but is enjoyable despite being written inconsistently. Sarah Polley breaks her independant film mold and chooses a strange film to do so. She is a good screamer (albeit very cliche) character. She pulls it off well enough to conveniently veil the film's writing flaws. The film has a decent cast in the forefront but drops off big time from there. You will see the screenplay's very worst lines delivered the way they would be delivered in a Sleepaway Camp film.
Speaking of the screenplay, it is the only real stand-out problem. Dawn of the Dead is unique in that the screenplay is really sort of bunched up in bad dialogue and cheap copied ideas from bad movies, but it is forgiven for the most part by it's surprising aforementioned strengths. We go by the action/horror film book page by page in this film but it manages to come off as different because of the new zombies we have, compliments to the mainstream success of the remarkably refreshing 28 Days Later. I will admit laughing out loud at least a half dozen times at some one liners and busting a gut at the celebrity shooting scene on the roof of the mall. You will too but if you plan on taking this remake seriously you may feel guilty about it.
So how does it compare to the original? Well, Snyder and company played it safe and made a very different film with fast zombies, no consistent or obvious social commentary, a wider and more diluted cast and some very fancy and super cool action shots. It's colorful, it's packed with explosions, blood and shooting; it's creepy and the zombies are almost as much fun as they were in Return of the Living Dead. Unfortunately it sacrifices the depth and sheer terror of the original so it simply cannot be compared.
All in all the film's flaws can be ignored because this film worked for me.
Amazon.co.uk Review
Are you ready to get down with the sickness? Movie logic dictates that you shouldn't remake a classic, but Zack Snyder's Dawn of the Dead defies that logic and comes up a winner. You could argue that George A. Romero's 1978 original was sacred ground for horror buffs, but it was a low-budget classic, and Snyder's action-packed upgrade benefits from the same manic pacing that energized Romero's continuing zombie saga. Romero's indictment of mega-mall commercialism is lost (it's arguably outmoded anyway), so Snyder and screenwriter James Gunn compensate with the same setting--in this case, a Milwaukee shopping mall under siege by cannibalistic zombies in the wake of a devastating viral outbreak--a well-chosen cast (led by Sarah Polley, Ving Rhames, Jake Weber, and Mekhi Phifer), some outrageously morbid humor, and a no-frills plot that keeps tension high and blood splattering by the bucketful. Horror buffs will catch plenty of tributes to Romero's film (including cameos by three of its cast members, including gore-makeup wizard Tom Savini), and shocking images are abundant enough to qualify this Dawn as an excellent zombie-flick double-feature with 28 Days Later, its de facto British counterpart. --Jeff Shannon
Customer Reviews:
BEST OF THE BUNCH.......2007-10-26
Brilliant film. I've seen several 'living dead' films but this one is by far the best.
A group of uninfected survivors barricade themselves inside a shopping centre which is duly surrounded by thousands of walking, flesh craving zombies. The story follows their efforts to escape to an uninhabited island, but to do this they must run the gauntlet of zombies.
Great special effects and story.
Quick Reviews!.......2007-09-15
*** This comment may contain spoilers ***
Being a zombie movie fan i have much enjoyed the recent (continuing) resurgence of the genre. As i believe that Romero's Dawn is not only the best zombie movie ever, but one of the best horror movies, i was both excited and sceptical to hear about a remake. Reasons for excitement- 1. It's zombies. 2. A big budget. 3. If done right, could be brilliant. Reasons for scepticism- 1. A big budget. 2. Less gore, less shock value. 3. If done wrong could be awful, and possibly tarnish the name of the original in some people's eyes.
I soon heard that the zombies would be able to run- a source of many arguments among fans and purists. On one side, the zombies were scarier because their slow speed was irrelevant, they would probably get you in the end through sheer numbers or by the fact that they don't get tired. Slow zombies were scary because they were falling to pieces. However, on the other side, people who have recently turned may still be in good shape so should be able to run until they begin to decay. Fast zombies make the threat more immediate and therefore give rise to more jumpy moments. Fast zombies mean we have an even smaller chance of survival as we may not be able to outrun them. Some have said the zombies in this are 'super-fast', but this is nonsense. A zombie should only be as fast as it was before it turned, more likely slower, but will not get out of breath. All this running will however mean quicker decay. What it all boils down too in the end is whether you can make your choice effective, and in both films, both directors succeed.
A Nurse, Ana, during and after a heavy shift fails to notice the news reports that the dead are attacking the living. It is probably rubbish anyway, and she just wants to get home to suburbia. The next morning, her young neighbour enters her bedroom; She seems to be hurt. When her husband investigates, she attacks him, biting off part of his throat. He dies, the phone is engaged, but he quickly rises again and goes for his wife. When she escapes the house she witnesses chaos, people screaming, houses on fire and being attacked, her neighbour with a gun, promptly run over by an ambulance. She escapes in her car only to crash after seeing the scale of the madness. Soon she meets with a cop- Kenneth, Michael, Andre and his pregnant girlfriend Luda. They decide to hide in a local mall only to find that Store guards have claimed it for their own. However, they work out a compromise and soon other survivors join them. As the days pass, they try to work out a solution, how to maintain their safety and sanity. When an attempt to send food to Andy, a survivor on the roof of a gun shop a few hundred yards away goes wrong, the zombies get into the mall, and the remaining survivors flee. Their plan to escape to an island by boat seems good, but it is based on pure hope, and the desire to get out of their present situation, rushed, and the hordes continue to chase.
The film lacks the brains and atmosphere of Romero's masterpiece. But it makes up for this by giving an excellent view of how contemporary people would likely react to the situation. The film begins quickly, and to the director's credit, the pace continues throughout. Anytime something good happens, something worse happens to bring the characters to an even lower state. It is frantic, but never out of control, and their is a fair amount of tension. Once we realise the zombies are fast, we are on edge, prepared for one or one hundred to come racing round the nearest shadowy corner. The actors all do well, particularly Polley and the excellent Weber. His character is just a normal guy, a failure at many things, but who will not give up. Rhames is tough, but doesn't set out on his own, knowing that he is needed. The soundtrack is more conventional,with booming rock songs being played over each attack, but this heightens the chaos. There is little hope left at the end, and little time for discussion over why this has happened. There are a few good set pieces, and the gore is good for a modern mainstream film. There are a few funny moments, and of course, another staple of zombie films, an annoying character-Steve. The best of the recent serious zombie films by a wide margin, lets see if Romero can regain his crown.
The DVD has a few good extras, the commentary is amusing, and the last days of Andy feature is well worth watching.
An impressive reinvention of the zombie sub-genre that keeps your adrenalin pumping.......2007-09-01
I had seen this movie a couple of times and it's just great. The plot is pretty straightforward, even though it relies mostly on cliché themes to move the story along. So as a rule, most films such as this tend to be predictable and quite tepid. Luckily, `Dawn of the Dead' has strong personalities to fall back on, making it thankfully every bit a character-driven drama as it is a horror-action piece.
Sarah Polley convincingly plays a waif turned survivor with just the right amount of emoting. She is strong and vulnerable at the same moment, trying to remain reasonable in unreasonable times. Weber also fits this bill as Michael, a man with a shady past full of regret who tries to fill others with hope while remaining a stark realistic. Rhames' performance clearly commands the most attention. As Kenneth, he becomes the group's de facto leader and top man of action. He keeps the clearest head when trouble is afoot and leads the group out of one scrape after another. Rhames gives the character a silent strength that provides the film with a much needed human edge. I just wished the zombies were bit slower because at times it seem a little bit unnatural of the things that they were able to do.
First time director Zack Snyder moves the film along briskly and effectively though, keeping the action scenes tight and the dramatic scenes quiet. There is no heavy-handed sermonizing here that tends to infiltrate most big-budget horror movies -- Snyder wisely lets the images speak for themselves. The horror itself is shocking and grabs your attention, which is a plus considering most of the recent crop of thrillers. The fact that it is happening to sympathetic characters that we care about is another feather in the movie's cap. What really impressed me about this film was towards the end when they took the boat and landed on an island.... Fulci's next zombie flick took place on an island... nice hand off, someone did their homework.
`Dawn of the Dead' is a very bloody and terrifying film .Good acting and smart thinking elevates the proceedings among most horror offerings that is dressed to kill. Not as persist as Romero's original (thank goodness), but still one heck of a shot in the arm to cure the memory from most modern horror misfires.
An absolutely STUNNING remake........2007-08-28
I really knew nothing of Dawn of the Dead 2004 until I saw the preview. No trailers, no TV spots, no hype. So I was quite surprised at how breathtaking it is, moving at a neck-breaking pace and not letting up on the gut-wrenching tension for the entire running time. The critics and majority of the audience agreed, something damn rare for a remake.
While many remakes are easy, pointless cash-ins on previous success and a quick way to mooch a few dollars off fans, DOTD 2004 is something quite different. Both Dawn of the Dead movies are great for their own reasons. And while most will judge this a remake only and do nothing but compare it with its 1978 counterpart, it's really best to watch them a two separate stories happening at the same time.
Young Nurse Ana (Sarah Polley) is living the suburban dream: perfect house, loving husband, well-manicured cul-de-sac. All that is about to change. As she drives home after a long shift dozens of clues surrounding the brewing trouble literally fall on deaf ears as Ana is too tired to notice. Overnight, her life is changed forever (as anyone's life can) when a lethal virus, that causes the dead to come back to life, spreads with alarming speed all over the world. Utterly, completely, hopelessly outnumbered, Ana flees her perfect life and hooks up with a bunch of other survivors who take refuge in a huge shopping mall.
I will not pretend that the satire of the original is something of my own discovery (as so many, many other reviewers have) and complain that it's pretty much absent in the remake because DOTD 2004 has so many other levels to it.
First of all, the zombies (the word is never mentioned in the film) can be seen as the perfect society. There is no conflict between them, no hate, no prejudice, and no grudges. They exist only to create more, as humans invariably do. The survivors barricaded in the shopping mall are rebels. They are refusing to conform and fight for their life, for their right to be different. And with this right to be different comes conflict and turmoil. The barricade between inside the mall and outside the mall is the line between the western world and the third world. Indulgent, ignorant and wasteful on one side and starving masses grabbing for whatever food they can on the other.
DOTD 2004 offers a wider range of characters (more zombie nosh!) boarded up in the mall: cop, nurse, hoodlum, survivalist old lady, pregnant woman, security guards, gay guy, arrogant playboy millionaire, pretty girl and average Joe. It could be argued that they're a far more PC assortment of characters than the original (DOTD 1978 had 2 SWAT cops and 2 reporters-the very people we rely on to protect and inform us in times of crises-chickening out of their utterly futile duties to fend for themselves) but it ends up with character arcs and a sense of sticking together to survive, despite differences, that the original didn't have.
The cast is well chosen and all act their parts brilliantly. Horror films have severely declined in recent years with most being turned into 20-something teen soap-opera trash. In DOTD 2004 you'll see a realistic group of people dealing enormous pressure with sense and reason. However, there is one particular moment in which a complete idiot character jeopardizes the security for everyone else for the dumbest and stupidest of reasons. It really bugs me that this device is in the film and it damages DOTD 2004 and prevents it from having any everlasting integrity.
There are a few references to the original (I'd hate to call them 'in-jokes' as that term would be kind of inappropriate for a film of this nature) that fans will have fun picking up on. But mostly the characters and situations featured in DOTD 2004 are completely new. The most interesting of which is the gun store owner across the street from the mall who communicates with Ving Rhames with his whiteboard and marker pen.
Writer James Gunn (Scooby Doo, Scooby Doo 2: Monsters Unleashed) unleashes an entirely new monster this time. Many people have strongly complained at the 'fast zombie' type seen in this movie and (the absolutely awful) 28 Days Later. But they are far, far, FAR more terrifying than the slow, sluggish, rigger-mortis stricken corpses in the original. They'd be on you, ripping you're throat out before you can say 'crikey!' Yes, the 'turning times' vary wildly in the movie, but it all depends on the bite and how bad it is.
I had never heard of Zack Snyder before seeing this movie, but for a debut feature he sure has impressed me. Every scene in this film is shot and lit from an identifiable point of view. This could be YOUR shopping mall in YOUR town. Not some fantasy happening far away. It's these kind of qualities that make DOTD 2004 stay with you longer than Darkness Falls or Scream 86. I'm glad that Hollywood can still make horror films as bloody and relentless as this, though there were several cuts made to the theatrical version.
This new Directors Cut DVD runs 110 minutes and features more gore, bridging scenes, more character development, more violence and the odd restored shot here and there. It really is the definitive cut of the film to have and I urge you to buy this version.
Filmed in Super-35 the HD DVD presents the film in 2.35:1 1080P widescreen with Dolby THD sound. The picture is flawless and Zack Snyder's high contrast, blown-out cinematography looks utterly perfect. A truckload of extras include Commentary by director Zack Snyder and Producer Eric Newman, The Lost Tape: Andy's Terrifying Last Days Revealed, Special Bulletin: We Interrupt This Program!-complete news coverage of the attacks, deleted scenes, Raising the Dead and Attack of the Living Dead featurettes and Splitting Headaches: Anatomy of Exploding Heads.
Almost as Good as the Landmark Original.......2007-07-16
The first ten minutes of this remake of George A. Romero's Dawn of the dead should have been flaunted on television as it was on the Monday before it's opening on the USA network. What an amazing start, few times am I moved by actions or horrors, (as this is both) but the sheer power and fear generated by this opening sequence is what sets the stage for this film. It is all down hill from there but the film does manage to do what few remakes do, and that is stand on it's own as a decent movie overall.
The original Dawn of the Dead kept the zombies in slow motion but never turned away when they got a victim pinned down and the remake doesn't even come close to the violence or pure horror of the original (nothing does, it's one of the greatest horror films ever made). It does however remain a suspenseful action/horror film that has you rooting for the good guys...and sometimes the zombies. It is entertaining despite it's flaws. Director Zack Snyder has a tremendous amount of mainstream appeal. All of the film's outstanding strengths are directorial in nature. The cast was also strong. Ving Rhames revisits his type castings here but is enjoyable despite being written inconsistently. Sarah Polley breaks her independant film mold and chooses a strange film to do so. She is a good screamer (albeit very cliche) character. She pulls it off well enough to conveniently veil the film's writing flaws. The film has a decent cast in the forefront but drops off big time from there. You will see the screenplay's very worst lines delivered the way they would be delivered in a Sleepaway Camp film.
Speaking of the screenplay, it is the only real stand-out problem. Dawn of the Dead is unique in that the screenplay is really sort of bunched up in bad dialogue and cheap copied ideas from bad movies, but it is forgiven for the most part by it's surprising aforementioned strengths. We go by the action/horror film book page by page in this film but it manages to come off as different because of the new zombies we have, compliments to the mainstream success of the remarkably refreshing 28 Days Later. I will admit laughing out loud at least a half dozen times at some one liners and busting a gut at the celebrity shooting scene on the roof of the mall. You will too but if you plan on taking this remake seriously you may feel guilty about it.
So how does it compare to the original? Well, Snyder and company played it safe and made a very different film with fast zombies, no consistent or obvious social commentary, a wider and more diluted cast and some very fancy and super cool action shots. It's colorful, it's packed with explosions, blood and shooting; it's creepy and the zombies are almost as much fun as they were in Return of the Living Dead. Unfortunately it sacrifices the depth and sheer terror of the original so it simply cannot be compared.
All in all the film's flaws can be ignored because this film worked for me.
Amazon.co.uk Review
Are you ready to get down with the sickness? Movie logic dictates that you shouldn't remake a classic, but Zack Snyder's Dawn of the Dead defies that logic and comes up a winner. You could argue that George A. Romero's 1978 original was sacred ground for horror buffs, but it was a low-budget classic, and Snyder's action-packed upgrade benefits from the same manic pacing that energized Romero's continuing zombie saga. Romero's indictment of mega-mall commercialism is lost (it's arguably outmoded anyway), so Snyder and screenwriter James Gunn compensate with the same setting--in this case, a Milwaukee shopping mall under siege by cannibalistic zombies in the wake of a devastating viral outbreak--a well-chosen cast (led by Sarah Polley, Ving Rhames, Jake Weber, and Mekhi Phifer), some outrageously morbid humor, and a no-frills plot that keeps tension high and blood splattering by the bucketful. Horror buffs will catch plenty of tributes to Romero's film (including cameos by three of its cast members, including gore-makeup wizard Tom Savini), and shocking images are abundant enough to qualify this Dawn as an excellent zombie-flick double-feature with 28 Days Later, its de facto British counterpart. --Jeff Shannon
Customer Reviews:
BEST OF THE BUNCH.......2007-10-26
Brilliant film. I've seen several 'living dead' films but this one is by far the best.
A group of uninfected survivors barricade themselves inside a shopping centre which is duly surrounded by thousands of walking, flesh craving zombies. The story follows their efforts to escape to an uninhabited island, but to do this they must run the gauntlet of zombies.
Great special effects and story.
Quick Reviews!.......2007-09-15
*** This comment may contain spoilers ***
Being a zombie movie fan i have much enjoyed the recent (continuing) resurgence of the genre. As i believe that Romero's Dawn is not only the best zombie movie ever, but one of the best horror movies, i was both excited and sceptical to hear about a remake. Reasons for excitement- 1. It's zombies. 2. A big budget. 3. If done right, could be brilliant. Reasons for scepticism- 1. A big budget. 2. Less gore, less shock value. 3. If done wrong could be awful, and possibly tarnish the name of the original in some people's eyes.
I soon heard that the zombies would be able to run- a source of many arguments among fans and purists. On one side, the zombies were scarier because their slow speed was irrelevant, they would probably get you in the end through sheer numbers or by the fact that they don't get tired. Slow zombies were scary because they were falling to pieces. However, on the other side, people who have recently turned may still be in good shape so should be able to run until they begin to decay. Fast zombies make the threat more immediate and therefore give rise to more jumpy moments. Fast zombies mean we have an even smaller chance of survival as we may not be able to outrun them. Some have said the zombies in this are 'super-fast', but this is nonsense. A zombie should only be as fast as it was before it turned, more likely slower, but will not get out of breath. All this running will however mean quicker decay. What it all boils down too in the end is whether you can make your choice effective, and in both films, both directors succeed.
A Nurse, Ana, during and after a heavy shift fails to notice the news reports that the dead are attacking the living. It is probably rubbish anyway, and she just wants to get home to suburbia. The next morning, her young neighbour enters her bedroom; She seems to be hurt. When her husband investigates, she attacks him, biting off part of his throat. He dies, the phone is engaged, but he quickly rises again and goes for his wife. When she escapes the house she witnesses chaos, people screaming, houses on fire and being attacked, her neighbour with a gun, promptly run over by an ambulance. She escapes in her car only to crash after seeing the scale of the madness. Soon she meets with a cop- Kenneth, Michael, Andre and his pregnant girlfriend Luda. They decide to hide in a local mall only to find that Store guards have claimed it for their own. However, they work out a compromise and soon other survivors join them. As the days pass, they try to work out a solution, how to maintain their safety and sanity. When an attempt to send food to Andy, a survivor on the roof of a gun shop a few hundred yards away goes wrong, the zombies get into the mall, and the remaining survivors flee. Their plan to escape to an island by boat seems good, but it is based on pure hope, and the desire to get out of their present situation, rushed, and the hordes continue to chase.
The film lacks the brains and atmosphere of Romero's masterpiece. But it makes up for this by giving an excellent view of how contemporary people would likely react to the situation. The film begins quickly, and to the director's credit, the pace continues throughout. Anytime something good happens, something worse happens to bring the characters to an even lower state. It is frantic, but never out of control, and their is a fair amount of tension. Once we realise the zombies are fast, we are on edge, prepared for one or one hundred to come racing round the nearest shadowy corner. The actors all do well, particularly Polley and the excellent Weber. His character is just a normal guy, a failure at many things, but who will not give up. Rhames is tough, but doesn't set out on his own, knowing that he is needed. The soundtrack is more conventional,with booming rock songs being played over each attack, but this heightens the chaos. There is little hope left at the end, and little time for discussion over why this has happened. There are a few good set pieces, and the gore is good for a modern mainstream film. There are a few funny moments, and of course, another staple of zombie films, an annoying character-Steve. The best of the recent serious zombie films by a wide margin, lets see if Romero can regain his crown.
The DVD has a few good extras, the commentary is amusing, and the last days of Andy feature is well worth watching.
An impressive reinvention of the zombie sub-genre that keeps your adrenalin pumping.......2007-09-01
I had seen this movie a couple of times and it's just great. The plot is pretty straightforward, even though it relies mostly on cliché themes to move the story along. So as a rule, most films such as this tend to be predictable and quite tepid. Luckily, `Dawn of the Dead' has strong personalities to fall back on, making it thankfully every bit a character-driven drama as it is a horror-action piece.
Sarah Polley convincingly plays a waif turned survivor with just the right amount of emoting. She is strong and vulnerable at the same moment, trying to remain reasonable in unreasonable times. Weber also fits this bill as Michael, a man with a shady past full of regret who tries to fill others with hope while remaining a stark realistic. Rhames' performance clearly commands the most attention. As Kenneth, he becomes the group's de facto leader and top man of action. He keeps the clearest head when trouble is afoot and leads the group out of one scrape after another. Rhames gives the character a silent strength that provides the film with a much needed human edge. I just wished the zombies were bit slower because at times it seem a little bit unnatural of the things that they were able to do.
First time director Zack Snyder moves the film along briskly and effectively though, keeping the action scenes tight and the dramatic scenes quiet. There is no heavy-handed sermonizing here that tends to infiltrate most big-budget horror movies -- Snyder wisely lets the images speak for themselves. The horror itself is shocking and grabs your attention, which is a plus considering most of the recent crop of thrillers. The fact that it is happening to sympathetic characters that we care about is another feather in the movie's cap. What really impressed me about this film was towards the end when they took the boat and landed on an island.... Fulci's next zombie flick took place on an island... nice hand off, someone did their homework.
`Dawn of the Dead' is a very bloody and terrifying film .Good acting and smart thinking elevates the proceedings among most horror offerings that is dressed to kill. Not as persist as Romero's original (thank goodness), but still one heck of a shot in the arm to cure the memory from most modern horror misfires.
An absolutely STUNNING remake........2007-08-28
I really knew nothing of Dawn of the Dead 2004 until I saw the preview. No trailers, no TV spots, no hype. So I was quite surprised at how breathtaking it is, moving at a neck-breaking pace and not letting up on the gut-wrenching tension for the entire running time. The critics and majority of the audience agreed, something damn rare for a remake.
While many remakes are easy, pointless cash-ins on previous success and a quick way to mooch a few dollars off fans, DOTD 2004 is something quite different. Both Dawn of the Dead movies are great for their own reasons. And while most will judge this a remake only and do nothing but compare it with its 1978 counterpart, it's really best to watch them a two separate stories happening at the same time.
Young Nurse Ana (Sarah Polley) is living the suburban dream: perfect house, loving husband, well-manicured cul-de-sac. All that is about to change. As she drives home after a long shift dozens of clues surrounding the brewing trouble literally fall on deaf ears as Ana is too tired to notice. Overnight, her life is changed forever (as anyone's life can) when a lethal virus, that causes the dead to come back to life, spreads with alarming speed all over the world. Utterly, completely, hopelessly outnumbered, Ana flees her perfect life and hooks up with a bunch of other survivors who take refuge in a huge shopping mall.
I will not pretend that the satire of the original is something of my own discovery (as so many, many other reviewers have) and complain that it's pretty much absent in the remake because DOTD 2004 has so many other levels to it.
First of all, the zombies (the word is never mentioned in the film) can be seen as the perfect society. There is no conflict between them, no hate, no prejudice, and no grudges. They exist only to create more, as humans invariably do. The survivors barricaded in the shopping mall are rebels. They are refusing to conform and fight for their life, for their right to be different. And with this right to be different comes conflict and turmoil. The barricade between inside the mall and outside the mall is the line between the western world and the third world. Indulgent, ignorant and wasteful on one side and starving masses grabbing for whatever food they can on the other.
DOTD 2004 offers a wider range of characters (more zombie nosh!) boarded up in the mall: cop, nurse, hoodlum, survivalist old lady, pregnant woman, security guards, gay guy, arrogant playboy millionaire, pretty girl and average Joe. It could be argued that they're a far more PC assortment of characters than the original (DOTD 1978 had 2 SWAT cops and 2 reporters-the very people we rely on to protect and inform us in times of crises-chickening out of their utterly futile duties to fend for themselves) but it ends up with character arcs and a sense of sticking together to survive, despite differences, that the original didn't have.
The cast is well chosen and all act their parts brilliantly. Horror films have severely declined in recent years with most being turned into 20-something teen soap-opera trash. In DOTD 2004 you'll see a realistic group of people dealing enormous pressure with sense and reason. However, there is one particular moment in which a complete idiot character jeopardizes the security for everyone else for the dumbest and stupidest of reasons. It really bugs me that this device is in the film and it damages DOTD 2004 and prevents it from having any everlasting integrity.
There are a few references to the original (I'd hate to call them 'in-jokes' as that term would be kind of inappropriate for a film of this nature) that fans will have fun picking up on. But mostly the characters and situations featured in DOTD 2004 are completely new. The most interesting of which is the gun store owner across the street from the mall who communicates with Ving Rhames with his whiteboard and marker pen.
Writer James Gunn (Scooby Doo, Scooby Doo 2: Monsters Unleashed) unleashes an entirely new monster this time. Many people have strongly complained at the 'fast zombie' type seen in this movie and (the absolutely awful) 28 Days Later. But they are far, far, FAR more terrifying than the slow, sluggish, rigger-mortis stricken corpses in the original. They'd be on you, ripping you're throat out before you can say 'crikey!' Yes, the 'turning times' vary wildly in the movie, but it all depends on the bite and how bad it is.
I had never heard of Zack Snyder before seeing this movie, but for a debut feature he sure has impressed me. Every scene in this film is shot and lit from an identifiable point of view. This could be YOUR shopping mall in YOUR town. Not some fantasy happening far away. It's these kind of qualities that make DOTD 2004 stay with you longer than Darkness Falls or Scream 86. I'm glad that Hollywood can still make horror films as bloody and relentless as this, though there were several cuts made to the theatrical version.
This new Directors Cut DVD runs 110 minutes and features more gore, bridging scenes, more character development, more violence and the odd restored shot here and there. It really is the definitive cut of the film to have and I urge you to buy this version.
Filmed in Super-35 the HD DVD presents the film in 2.35:1 1080P widescreen with Dolby THD sound. The picture is flawless and Zack Snyder's high contrast, blown-out cinematography looks utterly perfect. A truckload of extras include Commentary by director Zack Snyder and Producer Eric Newman, The Lost Tape: Andy's Terrifying Last Days Revealed, Special Bulletin: We Interrupt This Program!-complete news coverage of the attacks, deleted scenes, Raising the Dead and Attack of the Living Dead featurettes and Splitting Headaches: Anatomy of Exploding Heads.
Almost as Good as the Landmark Original.......2007-07-16
The first ten minutes of this remake of George A. Romero's Dawn of the dead should have been flaunted on television as it was on the Monday before it's opening on the USA network. What an amazing start, few times am I moved by actions or horrors, (as this is both) but the sheer power and fear generated by this opening sequence is what sets the stage for this film. It is all down hill from there but the film does manage to do what few remakes do, and that is stand on it's own as a decent movie overall.
The original Dawn of the Dead kept the zombies in slow motion but never turned away when they got a victim pinned down and the remake doesn't even come close to the violence or pure horror of the original (nothing does, it's one of the greatest horror films ever made). It does however remain a suspenseful action/horror film that has you rooting for the good guys...and sometimes the zombies. It is entertaining despite it's flaws. Director Zack Snyder has a tremendous amount of mainstream appeal. All of the film's outstanding strengths are directorial in nature. The cast was also strong. Ving Rhames revisits his type castings here but is enjoyable despite being written inconsistently. Sarah Polley breaks her independant film mold and chooses a strange film to do so. She is a good screamer (albeit very cliche) character. She pulls it off well enough to conveniently veil the film's writing flaws. The film has a decent cast in the forefront but drops off big time from there. You will see the screenplay's very worst lines delivered the way they would be delivered in a Sleepaway Camp film.
Speaking of the screenplay, it is the only real stand-out problem. Dawn of the Dead is unique in that the screenplay is really sort of bunched up in bad dialogue and cheap copied ideas from bad movies, but it is forgiven for the most part by it's surprising aforementioned strengths. We go by the action/horror film book page by page in this film but it manages to come off as different because of the new zombies we have, compliments to the mainstream success of the remarkably refreshing 28 Days Later. I will admit laughing out loud at least a half dozen times at some one liners and busting a gut at the celebrity shooting scene on the roof of the mall. You will too but if you plan on taking this remake seriously you may feel guilty about it.
So how does it compare to the original? Well, Snyder and company played it safe and made a very different film with fast zombies, no consistent or obvious social commentary, a wider and more diluted cast and some very fancy and super cool action shots. It's colorful, it's packed with explosions, blood and shooting; it's creepy and the zombies are almost as much fun as they were in Return of the Living Dead. Unfortunately it sacrifices the depth and sheer terror of the original so it simply cannot be compared.
All in all the film's flaws can be ignored because this film worked for me.
UK DVD:
- Dawn Of The Dead [Director's Cut] [UMD Mini for PSP] [2004]
- Day Of The Dead [1985]
- Dead Silence [2007]
- Doctor Who - Robot [1974] [1963]
- Don't Look Now - Special Edition [1973]
- Dreamcatcher [2003]
- Final Destination 1 - 3 Box Set [2000]
- Final Destination 1 - 3 Box Set [2000]
- Final Destination 2 [2003]
- Final Destination 3 [2006]
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