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Post by gopher in heat on Sept 13, 2007 11:06:54 GMT -5
Further proof for you naysayers... Land of the Dead - R Day of the Dead - Unrated (but in most other countries, it was either banned or rated the equivalent of R) Dawn of the Dead - R Night of the Living Dead - Unrated I'd say we're safe from any PG-13's.
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Post by 4barrelhemi on Sept 13, 2007 15:35:21 GMT -5
Good it would be a HUGE travesty to have it rated anything lower than R
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Post by gopher in heat on Sept 21, 2007 14:30:23 GMT -5
New article over at aintitcool.com from a guy whose seen Diary. Enjoy!
Diary of the Dead
I've had a number of conversations with friends recently about many of the geek masters who have seemed to be slipping in recent years. Their films, which while still entertaining, lack the power and presence of their early work. And I've remarked that many of these guys need to go back to school so to speak - to get back to their roots with almost no budget and make a film like they have something to prove. I mean, I LOVED Grindhouse, but how awesome would it have been if rather than making a $70 Million film that looked like 2 $1 Million dollar movies, they instead just made 2 $1 Million movies – attempting to make the best god damned movie they could with the same tools that their inspirations had? Last night I saw such a master make a no budget zombie movie in an attempt to recapture the glory of his early days. And the proof is in the pudding. Romero is back and doing what he does best.
Romero himself talked about how he just HAD to make this movie - that he set out to make it for a direct to video market if he had to - just to tell a great zombie story again, to get back to what made them scary in the first place. This was a film not made to capitalize on the market, but a story that was clawing its way out of him. And one can hardly blame him. He created a mythos that has gotten away from him. Zombie movies have all become about "The rules." We've all heard or taken part in the discussions. Zombies can to this, zombies can't do that. Fast zombies versus slow zombies. Yada yada yada. Hell, look at what happened to Romero himself when he dared to continue the evolution of his own universe and created a smart zombie horde. People whined and groaned that the idea of a smart zombie was stupid. Because that's not how zombies work.
Well, Diary of the Dead is the reset. The reminder of Romero's rules. If you die. You come back. Period. Not if you are bitten. Not if they vomit blood on you. If you die. We are taken back to that very first night when all hell broke loose but tells a completely different story than Night of the Living dead. This isn't the story of a group of people locked up in a house and waiting for it all to end. This is the story of a group of people on the road, just trying to get home to their families. It is about crisis and the selfishness of humanity. It is exactly the same while being completely different. In all the right ways.
And, as usual, Romero has something to say – this time about the globalization of information and the desire for everyone to have their voice heard among the millions of others screaming to be heard at the same time. Many have already trashed the conceit of this film, comparing it to The Blair Witch Project. And yet, while watching it I never got that feeling. Mostly because this movie is ABOUT the guy holding the camera, about his desire to let the world see through his eyes, to tell the truth in a world where the media lies to us. He wants to be the hero and for him the hero isn't the guy killing zombies to save his friends, he's the guy filming the guy killing zombies to save his friends. And the film is very much about wrestling with that idea. In a world in which we can turn to youtube and see a number of horrific videos – we all ask ourselves and our friends the same question. Why the f**k didn't they put down the f**k**g camera and try to stop it? The soul of this movie is about answering that very question – for better or for worse.
But what makes this film so god damned good is that it gets back to the roots of survival horror. It is set in a universe where zombie movies and comics and videogames aren't part of the culture. No one knows that you have to shoot them in the head – they have to LEARN that. No one knows what a zombie is. No one can grab their copy of the Zombie Survival Guide off of their bookshelf and know exactly what things they should be taking along. It's watching these people try to survive in a crisis. It's about the best of humanity and the worst of it.
It is exactly the type of story we love Romero for.
I loved the hell out of this movie, and I think it makes a great bookend to the first two movies in showing us that "First Night" mentality. The last two films, Land and Day (which I both dig) are about long-term survival. They're about being locked up and dealing with a wait that may never end. But the first two are about that initial survival, about Darwinism at its best, culling the idiots while the strong rise from the rank and file into hero status. And this gets back to that.
And lets face it, if you always hated the idea of smart zombies, dude, they ain't around. They could still exist, but they aren't here yet. This film is everything about the original Romero films that we love and nothing that the detractors of the later films don't. Romero got back to being who he is and making a film that really stands out in a VERY populated field these days. And God bless him for it. This one comes Highly Recommended. I cannot wait to see it again. The Weinstein's cannot get this into theatres soon enough.
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MrsLeGros
Zombie
OOHLALA LEGROS
Thats About The Safest Sex We'll Ever Have
Posts: 350
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Post by MrsLeGros on Sept 21, 2007 14:43:48 GMT -5
I friggin HATTTEEEEDDD!!! land of the dead. see if Romero can impress me a bit better with this one.
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Post by The Never Dead on Sept 21, 2007 17:12:30 GMT -5
Good article. I can't wait to see Diary.
I still love Land of the Dead. Vastly underrated & better than 99% of the modern horror garbage & PG-13 remakes of today.
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Post by gopher in heat on Sept 21, 2007 17:46:13 GMT -5
Good article. I can't wait to see Diary. I still love Land of the Dead. Vastly underrated & better than 99% of the modern horror garbage & PG-13 remakes of today. Wonderfully stated my friend.
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Post by tannerboyle on Sept 22, 2007 3:04:20 GMT -5
I definitely have a love/hate relationship regarding the GAR Dead saga. On one hand, I love them to death. On the other hand, I recognize them for the chunks of s**t they are--from a technical standpoint. So long, karma....
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vitaman2007
Sentinel Sphere
"Be de be de be de...f#@ you Buck!"
Posts: 698
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Post by vitaman2007 on Sept 22, 2007 9:10:57 GMT -5
I've seen all of them. I really enjoyed the remake at the theatre. Although, it does lose a little impact with each repeated viewing on dvd. I think the first one is still the scariest. And the Tom Savini one is also very good. I only saw Day once. I can't really remember it entirely. And Land,....I just thought it had a lot more potential.
Since Diary sounds like it's back to the original vibe I'll probably check it out. But watching this Zombie stuff just ain't my gig.
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Post by gopher in heat on Sept 24, 2007 10:06:23 GMT -5
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Mesila
Graver
...Don't Fear...
Posts: 196
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Post by Mesila on Sept 24, 2007 23:27:09 GMT -5
I just saw Dawn of the Dead for the first time last week! I was impressed enough to go looking for the others.
I remember having seen the original Night of the Living Dead on some Halloween night back in the nineties and just sort of laughed at it but Dawn of the Dead surprised me. Something about the way the phenomenon spreads and no one really believes it, those who do have no friggin' idea what the heck's going on or what to do about it...I'm actually really looking forward to seeing Day of the Dead now.
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Mesila
Graver
...Don't Fear...
Posts: 196
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Post by Mesila on Sept 24, 2007 23:30:52 GMT -5
New article over at aintitcool.com from a guy whose seen Diary. Enjoy! ... And lets face it, if you always hated the idea of smart zombies, dude, they ain't around. Ha ha ha, how could I hate the idea of smart zombies....after all, that's a fairly good definition of the Tall Man, no? I say, bring this on, I'll be watching.
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Post by gopher in heat on Sept 24, 2007 23:35:06 GMT -5
I don't know if I'd classify the Tall Man as a zombie per say, but I totally get what you're saying!
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wyckid
Dwarf
BOOOOOOOOOOOOY!
Posts: 57
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Post by wyckid on Oct 1, 2007 15:29:14 GMT -5
Day has always been my fav.
I just love the oodles of social commentary and allegories. Not to mention that Bub (the only "civilized" zombie) is one of the best and well developed characters in the series.
I love Dawn too, but Day was easier to relate to for me, if that makes any sense...
Oh, the NOTLD remake is EXCELLENT and really is a great tribute to the original.
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Post by The Never Dead on Jan 11, 2008 11:30:05 GMT -5
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Post by DustinM on Jan 11, 2008 11:50:54 GMT -5
Ah, that's my birthday! What a glorious present.
And of course, 2 days before Don's birthday.
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Post by The Never Dead on Jan 11, 2008 12:04:18 GMT -5
My birthday is on the 16th. Haha.
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Post by gopher in heat on Jan 11, 2008 12:45:55 GMT -5
You beat me to it, The Never Dead! I am so very excited. Not too far away!!!
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Post by The Never Dead on Jan 11, 2008 13:11:53 GMT -5
It's hard to believe that it'll be opening soon. Very good news indeed. And the trailer looks pretty nifty.
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Post by gopher in heat on Jan 11, 2008 15:37:40 GMT -5
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Post by Natalie on Jan 11, 2008 16:50:08 GMT -5
I am really looking forward to seeing this film. I love all of Romero's work.
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