Night of the Living Dead (1990) - Out of Print

[Member-222782]

I wish Tom Savini wasn't so apologetic about NOTLD - he did a fine job. There are moments in the film where it's actually scary and suspenseful. I wonder what other ideas he had thought up for the film. And Patricia Tallman was hot!

[mayorofsmpleton]

Originally Posted by cine74

Studio politics have sure changed over the years. Nowadays if you're not the lead from Glee Club, the chick from Hunger Games or an American Idol has-been, the studios won't cast you. Unless you're Rob Zombie, who only casts his wife and 80's burnouts in his films or Quentin Tarantino (casting the same people over and over or hiring the same long-forgotten actors as Rob Zombie). Actually, I'd rather watch a has-been than some gorgeous model who's totally wrong in the role.

This has always been the case with Hollywood. Nothing new.

[balthazar_bee]

Originally Posted by iamnoone

There was just something so raw, organic, and gritty about the '68 original and the remake captures none of that as it simply goes through the repetitive motions and then throws in a few twists at the end in an attempt to be fresh.

I'm in complete agreement with this. Yet I didn't hestitate to buy this blu-ray.

Why?

Because there aren't very many zombie films that are even "decent to good". Someone else mentioned The Dead, which I also purchased. Now, The Dead is not a good film. But it's good enough -- good enough to temporarily satisfy my raging hunger for cinematic zombie films that aren't fall-down stupid.

But yes, the original NOTLD is a masterpiece, towering over every non-Romero zombie film out there. A remake is a pretty ballsy proposition from the word "go"; I'm amazed it turned out as well as it did.

Then you have something like The Walking Dead. This show has polarized zombie fans in a way I'd never have imagined possible. The first season left me a little, ah, "cold", but watching the second season in a three day stretch was just awesome, breathless entertainment. Complaints about stupid characters, soap opera plot trappings, long stretches without action -- this stuff is like water off a duck's back to me.

The last complaint in particular doesn't resonate with me. I love the deliberate pacing and the lulls. Suspense has to be allowed to build, and no zombie film has excited and involved me like season 2 since Romero's work circa 1985.

To paraphrase John in Day of the Dead, "That's the problem with the world -- people got different ideas about what they want in a zombie film."

[ravenus]

Originally Posted by JYokogawa

Night 90 was a very stressful film for him to make. Here are a couple quotes from the Fangoria George A. Romero special, where Savini did an interview about NOTLD 90. Here are some quotes....

Thanks for those excerpts, it was pretty interesting to hear. I still think the remake was a pretty good film, and perhaps since I saw it before the original, I have to say I actually prefer it to Romero's version

[junyab]

Originally Posted by darklightzg

Hate to be picky (but I'm going to anyway) but 28 Days Later isn't a zombie film, if we're talking about re-animated dead
I know this is on lots of people's best zombie films lists but really they're not zombies, more the rage infected living! Granted it does fall into the inevitable, assocaited apocalyptic setting that zombie films usually have but not the walking or running corpses like Dawn/Day/Zombieland/Walking Dead, etc, etc

True...but the accepted generalization of the zombie genre includes "infected".

[dantexaiver]

Originally Posted by junyab

True...but the accepted generalization of the zombie genre includes "infected".

You could throw possession in there as well because people tend to confuse the Evil Dead as having zombies in it as well.

[hamchuck1]

Originally Posted by balthazar_bee

I'm in complete agreement with this. Yet I didn't hestitate to buy this blu-ray.

Why?

Because there aren't very many zombie films that are even "decent to good". Someone else mentioned The Dead, which I also purchased. Now, The Dead is not a good film. But it's good enough -- good enough to temporarily satisfy my raging hunger for cinematic zombie films that aren't fall-down stupid.

But yes, the original NOTLD is a masterpiece, towering over every non-Romero zombie film out there. A remake is a pretty ballsy proposition from the word "go"; I'm amazed it turned out as well as it did.

Then you have something like The Walking Dead. This show has polarized zombie fans in a way I'd never have imagined possible. The first season left me a little, ah, "cold", but watching the second season in a three day stretch was just awesome, breathless entertainment. Complaints about stupid characters, soap opera plot trappings, long stretches without action -- this stuff is like water off a duck's back to me.

The last complaint in particular doesn't resonate with me. I love the deliberate pacing and the lulls. Suspense has to be allowed to build, and no zombie film has excited and involved me like season 2 since Romero's work circa 1985.

To paraphrase John in Day of the Dead, "That's the problem with the world -- people got different ideas about what they want in a zombie film."

I agree with the slow pace too. Some of my favorite parts of the original and the remake are when they are watching TV (because that is what I would do). Just trying to get information. There is a huge catastrophic "event" going on and you only see it from the perspective of a handful of people just trying to survive in a farmhouse. Then there is the seminal and inevitable moment when the TV breaks or the power goes out

In the remake especially, near the end when the power goes out, it just seems so ominous. After all, as a viewer the lights have been on the whole time for you too and when they go out, the movie feels jarringly different. No matter what they did, everything fell apart.

The remake also spends a lot of screen time with the characters boarding up the house. There is a survivalist immediacy to the movie that feels realistic.

[Irrob]

Originally Posted by darklightzg

Hate to be picky (but I'm going to anyway) but 28 Days Later isn't a zombie film, if we're talking about re-animated dead
I know this is on lots of people's best zombie films lists but really they're not zombies, more the rage infected living! Granted it does fall into the inevitable, assocaited apocalyptic setting that zombie films usually have but not the walking or running corpses like Dawn/Day/Zombieland/Walking Dead, etc, etc

I agree, 28 Days Later does not belong in the zombie genre. Furthermore Rage infected don't feed on living flesh right? They pretty much just eff people up.

[Daikichi Kawachi (河地大吉)]

I had two open orders so I called to combine them. The lady who I spoke with cancelled my two orders and said she would place an admin order for the combined items which I would not be able to see online because the items are now out of stock.

She also told me Night of the Living Dead would ship next week and I'll get confirmation by email when it is sent.

[kinkyqueen]

Originally Posted by mzupeman

Way to over generalize. Thanks.

Did i say all Americans?

[thephantomcat]

Originally Posted by balthazar_bee

you have something like The Walking Dead. This show has polarized zombie fans in a way I'd never have imagined possible. The first season left me a little, ah, "cold", but watching the second season in a three day stretch was just awesome, breathless entertainment.

But watching one episode a week over a period of 4-5 months was an excercise in extreme patience and incredibly dull. Searching for Sophia for 6 episdoes is extremely ridiculous when you look at it like that. I love the show, but I acknoledge that they should have had more ideas to fill out the season. Especially since they have dozens and dozens worth of comics to chose from. What was the point of giving them more episdoes if they were just going to stretch on story over 6 hours?

[Whirlygig]

Originally Posted by thephantomcat

But watching one episode a week over a period of 4-5 months was an excercise in extreme patience and incredibly dull. Searching for Sophia for 6 episdoes is extremely ridiculous when you look at it like that. I love the show, but I acknoledge that they should have had more ideas to fill out the season. Especially since they have dozens and dozens worth of comics to chose from. What was the point of giving them more episdoes if they were just going to stretch on story over 6 hours?

We're off topic now, but I just finished Disc 1 of the Walking Dead Season 2 set last night, and I am growing very weary of the Sophia/Interstate/Farm arc even when watching it all at once (and have been itching to ***** about it all morning ). NOTHING is happening. And now I find out there are still 2 more to go before it's over...

[thephantomcat]

Originally Posted by kinkyqueen

Did i say all Americans?

I hate to agree, but it's true. Most Americans don't like to read subtitles. I have no respect for people who use the "If I wanted to read, I'd read a book" argument. As if they read. Pffft.

[Member-222782]

Originally Posted by mayorofsmpleton

This has always been the case with Hollywood. Nothing new.

You're right but I was referring to independent films, where studio politics sort of don't apply when it comes to casting. The major studios mainly go for the pretty face while people who make films like Evil Dead or even the Halloween sequels (pre-Curse of Michael Myers) seem to go for whomever is best for the role. The 1981 slasher flick Madman, for example, features some of arguably the ugliest-looking actors ever assembled for a film. It makes it easier to relate to the characters if they look like your avarage everyday next-door neighbor.

[benricci]

Originally Posted by kinkyqueen

'Foreign' horror has always been there, but most of you Americans have neglected it because of subtitles

Quite the opposite, actually. Many of us grew up on foreign horror because they were (poorly) dubbed into English

Not a big dubbing fan myself, but the practice did lead a lot of people to see films they otherwise would have never been introduced to. Plus, a lot of times European horror films weren't shot with sound, anyway. Actors were speaking in several different languages on set, so they just dubbed everything later in the studio. Wouldn't have made a whole lot of difference subtitling these films, since they really didn't have an "official" original language track.

[hamchuck1]

Originally Posted by cine74

You're right but I was referring to independent films, where studio politics sort of don't apply when it comes to casting. The major studios mainly go for the pretty face while people who make films like Evil Dead or even the Halloween sequels (pre-Curse of Michael Myers) seem to go for whomever is best for the role. The 1981 slasher flick Madman, for example, features some of arguably the ugliest-looking actors ever assembled for a film. It makes it easier to relate to the characters if they look like your avarage everyday next-door neighbor.

I agree with this 100%

[thephantomcat]

Originally Posted by cine74

You're right but I was referring to independent films, where studio politics sort of don't apply when it comes to casting. The major studios mainly go for the pretty face while people who make films like Evil Dead or even the Halloween sequels (pre-Curse of Michael Myers) seem to go for whomever is best for the role. The 1981 slasher flick Madman, for example, features some of arguably the ugliest-looking actors ever assembled for a film. It makes it easier to relate to the characters if they look like your avarage everyday next-door neighbor.

I kind of like movies with decent looking people. No models and no trolls.

[thephantomcat]

Originally Posted by Whirlygig

We're off topic now, but I just finished Disc 1 of the Walking Dead Season 2 set last night, and I am growing very weary of the Sophia/Interstate/Farm arc even when watching it all at once (and have been itching to ***** about it all morning ). NOTHING is happening. And now I find out there are still 2 more to go before it's over...

Don't worry. The last episode is quite good. And the one before it isn't half bad either.

[TripleHBK]

So how long until Hollywood Pumps out a New "Night of the Living Dead" remake starring Jessica Biel?

[benricci]

Originally Posted by TripleHBK

So how long until Hollywood Pumps out a New "Night of the Living Dead" remake starring Jessica Biel?

They did ya one better - they remade it in 3D!

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Night_o...Living_Dead_3D