Night of the living dead

Remember when I said I would review a Burton film for Halloween month, well I sort of lied. I have way too many films to review that the Burton review will have to do. Also, now that I think about it, Braindead and the Re-animator are actually good films and I stick with my reviews of them.
Without further to do this is Night of the Living Dead.

Controversial for it's time due to gore, a black lead and horrifying story, it has now become one of the most important films in America. Not to mention one of the most influential zombie horror film, most successful independent film (until being overtaken by The Blair Witch Project), it is one of the best movies, according to critics, you will see. Let's take a look at this "amazing" film and see why it has such a lasting impact.

The story follows Barbra, Duane and five others as they protect themselves against the living dead (Not Zombies, the phrase hasn't taken hold yet at this point) and the internal conflict of each character as they come to grips with this new reality and what it comes from it. Ben is a black man who's authority is constantly called into question by the house residents, Barbra is left in a mostly catatonic state after witnessing her brother being attacked and killed in the opening scene and Mr Cooper is struggling to maintain order while juggling keeping his daughter and wife alive. From here there is argument, followed by insults, followed by fighting, all the while more and more living dead are accumulating outside. Here we see the true essence of zombies in horror, not the monster but the situation and the realization that all this is leading to the loss of their common sense and leading to chaos.

Most of these cult movies are poignant due to their satire of the status quo and calling into question society, politics and humanity. Here Romero has captured the essence of civil indifference and racism, even during a time of crisis and required order. Who would you choose, the sensible, intelligent, yet tough black man or the erratic, irrational bigot of a family man who has a lot to loose. 
But you don't want to watch a film just for that, you want the gore and killing. Well sorry to say it is relatively tame compared to today's standards. Every strike is off-camera and left to the imagination of the viewer to decide how brutal the blow is (much like Micheal Madsens scene from Reservoir Dogs or the shower from Psycho). And it is shot in monotone black and white (low budget films, how far we have come.) so not much blood is really seen. But that doesn't make the violence any less brutal, with fire's and shootings and eating flesh from the bone. Sadly, if there is one thing lacking it's the acting. Don't get me wrong, the zombies are brilliant and Duane Jones is a very charismatic actor, but Barbra actor, Judith O'Dea can come off as a bit over the top in the opening scene, you'd almost think it was a B-grade comedy. Also the young couple are kind of sporadic in their delivery some times leading into some awkward moments. But as the film goes on and you stick with it, the shocks and scares really pay off (just not for me). To be brutally honest, even though I set the mood (turned off the lights, popped off headphones so the creaking house feel could be heard) but I just was not scared of it, but hey that is just me. 

 If you like this movie, then you will love the sequels even more, especially the next one, Dawn of the Dead(1985 not the damn remake). And these aren't your typical shuffling zombies, they adapt and run and use tools for mutilation and hunting. So turn out the lights, keep some fire ready, load your guns. But don't worry these are monsters, the stuff of myths and legends, so sleep tight, keep quiet and remember,
                                                      DON'T HAVE NIGHTMARES!