Dawn of the Dead

To my surprise I really liked "Dawn of the Dead," even in this no holds barred unrated director's cut. Like many others I considered George A. Romero's original version of "The Night of the Living Dead" to be the classic low budget horror film of all time and I also have a strong sense of affection for the original version of "Dawn of the Dead," with its wry commentary on American consumerism. So I was wary of a remake, especially given that director Zack Snyder was a feature film novice and writer James Gunn wrote both of the Scooby Doo movies. But by the end of this film I was grooving to "Down with the Sickness" during what is one of the most unsettling end credits ever. This had to be one film where everybody stayed in the theater until the light came on and then thought twice before they went outside to their cars, especially if they went to the late show (like a true horror fan ever goes out before dark to see a movie). The basic story is the same as the original. A group of people fleeing from the zombies get into a shopping mall, where they find another group of people, security guards, who are not really happy to see them. So they have to hole up in the mall while the number of zombies outside trying to get in grows and grows. Ana (Sarah Polley) a nurse meets up with Kenneth (Ving Rhames), a cop. They then find Michael (Jake Weber), Andre (Mekhi Phifer), and his pregnant wife, Luda (Inna Korobkina). They barely get into the mall ahead of a small group of zombies and then butt heads with CJ (Michael Kely), and his and his sidekicks Terry (Kevin Zegers) and Bart (Michael Barry). Later on a truck shows up driven by tough lady Norma (Jayne Eastwood), Frank (Matt Frewer) and his daughter Nicole (Lindy Booth), sexy Monica (Kim Poirier), smartass Steve (Ty Burrell), and good ol' Tucker (Boyd Banks). Basically the movie is divided into two parts. Most of the movie the group is just trying to keep things together inside the mall. Then in the final act they make a break for it. The best bits are in that first section and what helps during the great escape attempt is that these people are not too stupid, which is quite an accomplishment for a horror film where stupidity often runs rampant. In the mall there are two intense scenes, the first involving the decision to kill one of their members who has been bit, and the second involving Luda going into labor (yes, what happens then is even worse than you can imagine). In between there are some moments of black comedy as they find way to kill time and kill zombies. Across the street at Andy's Gun Shop poor Andy (Bruce Bohne) is on the roof, all alone, able to communicate with the mall rats by writing messages on boards. There is some nice pathos with Andy to go with the black comedy of the games he plays with his new friend Kenneth. Of course, there are also a couple of memorable muzak moments involving grotesque irony. Because this is a 2004 film the zombies have to be seriously upgraded. Forget the lumbering ghouls of the original films, because these zombies are not only faster but not as stupid. There are also a lot more of them and the film has a couple of chilling shots and sequences where we get to see wall to wall zombies (or the entire parking lot of the mall filled with zombies at night). I approve of the changes because it allows Snyder to up the pacing and the horror. There is also a corresponding upgrade of what the living at able to throw at the dead that would make ol' Hank Hill pretty happy. Add to this the effective use of the "Aliens" rule, which is that as long as what you are shooting with your big gums are not human, you can blow them to bits and the blood and gore does not really count. You know what special effects are like today and there are enough zombies getting blown away for everyone to find one or two demises that appeal to their inner warped little child. Fortunately the three principles, Polley, Rhames and Weber, are all decent people, even in the face of the end of the world as we know it, so you do not feel like you are wallowing in the depths of human degredation (besides the flesh eating zombies). However, given what works in the film several of the DVD bonus features are pretty lame in comparison. There is "The Lost Tape" that reveals Andy's terrifying last days and basically turns that interesting character into a joke. Equally painful is the "Special Bulletin" segment, where nobody comes closer in terms of performance or effectiveness to what we get in the opening credits as bits and pieces of information about the collapses of society flash by. In contrast, the beginning of "Raising the Dead," where we see a hundred extras lined up in zombie makeup, is better than those other two bits. Then we get the director and prosthetic makeup designer David LeRoy Anderson delineating the differences between Stage 1, Stage 2, and Stage 3 zombies in terms of makeup that makes it seem like a totally reasonable way of approaching the universe. There are other features on the special effects (e.g., "Splitting Headaches: Anatomy of Exploding Heads") and a commentary track with director Zack Snyder and producer Eric Newman where they both seem rather pleased with the result, and while this remake of "Dawn of the Dead" is a lot slicker than its competition in the 21st century zombie movie category (to wit, "28 Days Later"), it does have its moments.

Awesome unrated DVD it's a must-see highly recommended

A great zombie movie sounds like an oxymoron; the two words practically don’t belong together. I’ve been a fan since “Night of the Living Dead” and was very energized when they finally began to catch on in the 2000s. That gradually turned to disappointment as one low-budgeted, incompetent film after another was released. I stopped counting when I reached 100, but I’m sure I’ve sat through at least half as many more since then. In all that there are only a very few that can be called great but this is one of them. This 2004 film is a remake of the great 1978 original of the same title and I won’t even try to compare them. They have similar plots with survivors escaping to a shopping mall during a sudden zombie outbreak but differ after that. All I can say is that both are good and well worth seeing if you are into zombies. This was fairly well-budgeted, even after Universal got cold feet and cut budget because the didn’t think there was an audience for zombie movies. (It ended up making back four times its budget just in movie theater tickets). It’s well-written, and even though the characters are mostly “types”, they seem authentic and they change and grow, some developing heroic traits as events unfold. The actors are all committed to their roles and play them seriously, without irony. The level of acting here is far above what you usually find in the zombie and horror genre. These people were already professionals and the fact that most went on to many other projects is no surprise. Ving Rhames is, of course, a terrific heroic warrior, as Kenneth. Sarah polley as Ana goes from terror-filled victim to competent member of the group. Jake Weber (who I remember as a scheming bad fellow in “Meet Joe Black”) makes an effective leader. Kevin Zagers and Lindy Booth make a nice young couple. Everyone else is good too, and it’s funny to see Ty Burrell (Modern Family dad) playing a sleazy rich guy who Ana eventually calls “a total dick”. What really makes the film is, director Zack Snyder. This, believe it or not, was his first feature film after only directing music videos. How he got the job I don’t know, but he was the right guy for it. He has since become a major director and though some don’t care for his DC Comics-Justice League movies, those are plot issues rather than style. Right from the beginning he has everything. Pacing, camera angles, editing, storytelling, lighting, setting up scenes, well-chosen music - it’s all there. There is so much going on, but it all flows smoothly without looking like a bunch of director’s tricks. The film has one of the great horror/action openings of all time that runs about eleven minutes before the opening credits. A quiet beginning at work with only a few hints of anything going on, a ride home to a loving husband and peaceful suburb then turns on a dime into a series of quick jolts and developments that are as fast as they are unexpected. The harrowing opening before the credits is beautifully framed by two almost identical overhead shots of the suburb with its circular streets: one peaceful and very ordinary and one of complete chaos. There are jump scares, a couple good fake-outs (where the camera seems to be setting you up for one thing and something totally different happens), good montages and the often shown Zombiegeddon scene of the tricked-out buses (parking shuttles) trying to plow through a parking lot jammed with angry zombies. The zombies here are of the fast and ugly variety and are always a serious threat. Every aspect of this film works.it’s an amazing film from a first-time director. This is truly a must for fans of the genre.. A great zombie movie sounds like an oxymoron; the two words practically don’t belong together. I’ve been a fan since “Night of the Living Dead” and was very energized when they finally began to catch on in the 2000s. That gradually turned to disappointment as one low-budgeted, incompetent film after another was released. I stopped counting when I reached 100, but I’m sure I’ve sat through at least half as many more since then. In all that there are only a very few that can be called great but this is one of them. This 2004 film is a remake of the great 1978 original of the same title and I won’t even try to compare them. They have similar plots with survivors escaping to a shopping mall during a sudden zombie outbreak but differ after that. All I can say is that both are good and well worth seeing if you are into zombies. This was fairly well-budgeted, even after Universal got cold feet and cut budget because the didn’t think there was an audience for zombie movies. (It ended up making back four times its budget just in movie theater tickets). It’s well-written, and even though the characters are mostly “types”, they seem authentic and they change and grow, some developing heroic traits as events unfold. The actors are all committed to their roles and play them seriously, without irony. The level of acting here is far above what you usually find in the zombie and horror genre. These people were already professionals and the fact that most went on to many other projects is no surprise. Ving Rhames is, of course, a terrific heroic warrior, as Kenneth. Sarah polley as Ana goes from terror-filled victim to competent member of the group. Jake Weber (who I remember as a scheming bad fellow in “Meet Joe Black”) makes an effective leader. Kevin Zagers and Lindy Booth make a nice young couple. Everyone else is good too, and it’s funny to see Ty Burrell (Modern Family dad) playing a sleazy rich guy who Ana eventually calls “a total dick”. What really makes the film is, director Zack Snyder. This, believe it or not, was his first feature film after only directing music videos. How he got the job I don’t know, but he was the right guy for it. He has since become a major director and though some don’t care for his DC Comics-Justice League movies, those are plot issues rather than style. Right from the beginning he has everything. Pacing, camera angles, editing, storytelling, lighting, setting up scenes, well-chosen music - it’s all there. There is so much going on, but it all flows smoothly without looking like a bunch of director’s tricks. The film has one of the great horror/action openings of all time that runs about eleven minutes before the opening credits. A quiet beginning at work with only a few hints of anything going on, a ride home to a loving husband and peaceful suburb then turns on a dime into a series of quick jolts and developments that are as fast as they are unexpected. The harrowing opening before the credits is beautifully framed by two almost identical overhead shots of the suburb with its circular streets: one peaceful and very ordinary and one of complete chaos. There are jump scares, a couple good fake-outs (where the camera seems to be setting you up for one thing and something totally different happens), good montages and the often shown Zombiegeddon scene of the tricked-out buses (parking shuttles) trying to plow through a parking lot jammed with angry zombies. The zombies here are of the fast and ugly variety and are always a serious threat. Every aspect of this film works.it’s an amazing film from a first-time director. This is truly a must for fans of the genre..

Simplemente genial dentro de su género y por supuesto imprescindible. Muy buen debut de Zack Snyder, un directo que hasta ahora no me ha defraudado en ninguna de sus películas por lo peculiar de su estilo. Y respecto a la calidad de este blu ray edición alemana, que confirmo que trae castellano, pues decir que está a la altura de la película. Para aquellos que se asusten más que de ésta de la horrorosa estampa de calificación por edades, confirmarles que parece ser que los alemanes hacen carátulas reversibles para evitar el trauma visual. Tengo ya varias ediciones de Alemania e incluyen este detalle que se agradece, es decir que se queda la portada tal y como la veríamos en nuestra versión nacional. Compra obligada para los amantes de este tipo de films sin duda y para mí la mejor de zombies de lo que llevamos de siglo XXI. Saludos de Cayetano...

おじいさんにチェーンソーは持たしてはいけないと学べますね

Es demaciado buen steelbook biene con todos los extras pero solo biene en inglés sin subtitulo al español. Lo indica y todo si realmente amas esta pelicula debería estar en tu colección.

Blu ray edizione tedesca con audio Italiano. Bel film, remake di Zombi, ottimo cast e sceneggiatura, lo consiglio a questo prezzo, la versione Italiana costa troppo.

Goede remake