Night of the Living Dead
| Directed by: | Tom Savini |
|---|---|
| Written by: | George A. Romero, John A. Russo |
| Cast: | Tony Todd, Patricia Tallman, Tom Towles, McKee Anderson, William Butler |
| Studio: | Columbia |
| Genre: | Horror |
| Official Site: |
I hate the idea of a Night of the Living Dead remake. I love Tom Savini and all, but I really wish he had just taken up a whole new project, something original. There are certain elements to the film that you just cannot recreate, no matter what you do. The time, the improvisations and the atmosphere. Applying color to it takes away from thr haunting experience the original had. Even when it was daylight it was still dark, and is much creepier.
Yes, the gore is technically better, provided the time and Savini's unrivaled skill. Sure, this update does give us a cast of better, more experienced actors, and I did like Tony Todd as Ben. But for me, it’s the amateurish acting of the original that just appeals more to me and helps give it that authenticity. As strange as it might sound, it's the familiar faces that just don't have the some effect as the no-name actors that brought the original to life.
This remake is almost shot-for-shot, wish leaves it incredibly boring and feels way too safe. That's another thing that just makes it feel all the more pointless. They don't change much, but the changes they did make just didn't work for me. The end is changed and provides its own new twist absolutely fails in comparison to the original, much less holding the same shock value.
But it's what they do with Barbara in this one that really rubs me the wrong way. I just don't like the backbone they give this chick. Barbara's toting a shotgun? What? Hey don't get me wrong, I'm all for women's independence and empowerment blah blah blah but that's just not how I like to see this particular character played. I couldn't stand her, honestly. It's Barbara's catatonic state in the original that adds to the overall eeriness of the film.
BOTTOM LINE: It's nothing but a cheap imitation of a horror classic and I found it to be pointless and unnecessary, and pretty much just a waste of time. Hated the new Barbara but the effects were nice, and being that the original is an all-time favorite I couldn't help but find some entertainment in it. Overall, I thought it was.....ok.
It's not a bad remake for me. Not a masterpiece, but much more watchable than the modern treatment of Dawn of the Dead. At least Savini tried to make a horror movie, unlike Dawn which was just a glorified action movie.
I too didn't like Barbara's new PC transformation. It missed the point of Barbara's catatonic state in the original film. And the social commentary is incredibly on the nose.
There's also no feasting scenes which the original film brought in spades. Shame.
Dropdeadfred pretty much said what I think haha. I saw this movie long before the others, I love it.
Nice review, I can see a lot of your points. However, I have to give this movie some credit as it does serve a purpose. When I was a kid and shunned black and white movies (what was I thinking?!) this movie was a gateway to Romero's other movies for me. I saw this one long before Dawn, Day and the original Night just due to it's availability and the fact that Candyman was in it added to the appeal. Looking back on it now it's certainly an inferior movie to the others...but have to give credit where credit is due. It was a gateway for me to the others...