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George A. Romero's 1978 horror classic 'Dawn of the Dead' is without doubt one of my favourite films of all time, when it was announced then that there was to be a remake I was absolutely dreading its release. I instantly dismissed it and decided that ultimately it would not be up to very much at all. As it turns out I was wrong and the 'Dawn of the Dead' remake is in fact fantastic, better than the original in some ways even. Slow zombies have been replaced with super fast, highly powerful flesh munching machines and for that reason it is all the more scary. The social satire element has been lessened, but the film itself is a punchier and in ways more powerful offering than the original telling of the 'Dawn of the Dead' tale.
The mall is still central to the film, the way it is used however is very different and an alternative series of events here take place. Although the basic structure of George A. Romero's 'Dawn of the Dead' has been kept, few times will you ever feel like you're watching the same film. The tagline remains, 'When there's no more room in hell, the dead will walk the earth' is still spoken here but much of the rest of the script from the original film has been replaced. When Rob Zombie retold 'Halloween' in 2007 he too changed the film and added a whole new element, it's an interesting new era of the remake here and the way in which this film has been directed here by Zack Snyder I feel is excellent.
With zombies everywhere they go, the five characters we begin the film with here must seek shelter in their quest to remain alive and well. They've all seen friends and allies eaten by zombies, all are aware of the dangers that the world now holds. They spot a mall and decide that this will be as good a place as any to take shelter, it's got to be more safe
than remaining outside in the open; that's for sure. Once inside they take a look around and make sure that the building is free of zombies and that all entrances are locked. It is here that it all begins, three security guards are found inside the mall and together these eight must now work out a means of survival. The shelter of the mall is adequate, but do they really want to spend the rest of their lives living inside of a shopping mall? If you've seen the film you'll know how it all pans out for them, I shan't be giving any more away though so if you want to find out more you'll just have to watch the film for yourself.
Zack Snyder's 'Dawn of the Dead' has a punchy beginning and never once throughout the films duration does it ever disappoint. As a result of the fast moving nature of the zombies you're always a little more on edge than you were with the original and at all times you are fearing for the lives of your on screen counterparts. If you're familiar with George A. Romero's original telling then you'll know that he goes to great lengths in order to really bring out the characters of the films four main figures, this is not the case at all here though and we really know very little about the characters we are seeing on-screen. Everyone seems so secretive, we get to know no one well and individually people are not really focused on. It is more the efforts of the group dynamic as a whole that we see, there is less personal focus and in that sense this film is not as good. One of George A. Romero's strengths with his 'Dawn of the Dead' original was his characterisation; without this the film is somehow not quite the same. The social satire of the mall situation is touched upon here, but again not explored in such depth as with the original. There are some amusing scenes, but never is it entirely the same. The fact the film is so different though is in fact one of its strengths, it stands out as unique from the original and in itself is a gripping and at times truly frightening film.
Zombie speed is crucial here, as the zombies are so fast moving then the figures of the film have to be a lot more careful than they ever had to be in the original. It's a scarier film as at all times we're aware that a zombie could come running around any given corner. Slow moving zombies was a definite convention of early films of this sort, but I personally have no qualms with the altering of this given that it makes for such an increasingly electrifying offering. Zack Snyder certainly doesn't hold back on the showing of gore either, some of the scenes are gruesome and the realism is excellent. The zombies are more like real people than they ever were in the past, you can relate to the situation of the characters as you feel a lot more so than ever before that this sort of situation could genuinely some day become a reality. The idea of dead people walking the earth in this way is still quite ludicrous, but I'd definitely say that the realism of it all has been increased tenfold by Zack Snyder with this remake.
The production values of this film improve massively upon those of the original. The technologies available to Zack Snyder in 2004 were understandably more expansive than what George A. Romero had at his disposal back in 1978. The film is visually more pleasing than the original ever was and in a way I guess it could be seen that for that reason this is a more enjoyable film. Romero's original film is now a little dated, but it's a classic film and in my opinion is still greatly effective. The visual sheen of Zack Snyder's 'Dawn of the Dead' means that the production is put across beautifully here, the zombies are impressive to look at and everything about this film is awe-inspiring; you just want to reach out and touch it all.
Cast wise everyone that appears here is brilliant. The casting decisions that have been made are spot on, the acting is fantastic and no one is at all disappointing in their part. Again this is perhaps an area in which Zack Snyder has trumped George A. Romero, because the parts are better acted they're more believable and the film is more fluid. Casting choices are always important, George A. Romero has in recent years chosen his protagonists poorly I feel, Zack Snyder certainly doesn't suffer in that department here though. Sometimes if a film is that excellent then you can ignore it a little when the cast are not too impressive, they always have to have a little something about them though and the fact is here that everyone that was selected has plenty to offer to the film. I rarely have no cause for complaint in this area, there's always one as they say and generally it's true in films that at least one person fails to impress in their performance. I could ask for little more here, I warmed to many of the films characters and even though none are focused on as they were in George A. Romero's original; still you feel that you get plenty from these people.
Zack Snyder's 'Dawn of the Dead' is a very different film to the original, whether or not it's better than the original is a subject of great debate and whilst I love both films I'd perhaps say that George A. Romero's original still has the edge on this. There are many areas in which this film is better than the original, the social satire element was completely key to the original though and the way it was so intelligently masterminded was just fantastic. The two films are not directly comparable, both films are brilliant but the way in which they impress is completely different. Zack Snyder's 'Dawn of the Dead' is well produced, the performances are brilliant, and the zombies are far more scary; George A. Romero's original on the other hand was greatly intelligent due to its strong element of social satire, the characterisation was superb and he too certainly didn't hold back in the gore department. Both films are scary, Zack Snyder's a lot more so though as the impact of a modern film is so often greater than those of the past with films of this sort. Technology is always improving and if utilised correctly then this factor can make for thrilling viewing. Zack Snyder's 'Dawn of the Dead' is an absolutely brilliant film, I can't say it's better than the original as ultimately it perhaps isn't, given that the two films are so different you just can't realistically ponder this question and come up with a logical answer. I'd recommend this film to everyone, it's an excellent zombie horror and Zack Snyder has really done the 'Dawn of the Dead' name proud with this truly exceptional remake.
Director: Zack Snyder Year of release: 2004 Genre: Horror Language: English Runtime: 95 mins BBFC Rating: 18
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An exceptional review. Not as good as the original, as we have discussed. I can't believe this is the first review on ths film.
Seresecros 03.04.2008 00:31
James Gunn, who wrote this, also created "Slither", which further cemented his credentials as a master of zombies, I thought. I liked this femake, but I don't look forward to "Day Of The Dead" - coming soon! (is it just me or are there a lot of romero-related zombie films on the go at the moment?)
greenierexyboy 02.04.2008 23:12
Personally thought it was more a rip-off of '28 Days Later' than a remake of 'Dawn Of The Dead', although it IS pretty entertaining. But zombies walk rather than run - it's the law. And Rob Zombie's 'reimagining' (oh dear lord, I hate that expression) of 'Halloween' couldn't suck more or it'd be in danger of becoming a vacuum cleaner.
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