Movie Review: Dawn of the Dead (remake)

The remake of Dawn of the Dead was a film I had studiously avoided for some time.

One reason was because it was originally released while I was married, and the Mrs. didn't care for those kinds of films. Fair enough.

The other reason was that the original is one of those movies that helps define my teen years, and its a classic:I didn't want to give the remake the credibility of a viewing. I think you know what I mean.

How could you top cinematic excellence and innovation like this?:Self Portrait: "Watching Dragonball Evolution"Oddly enough, another film helped pique my interest in the remake. There is a scene in The 40 Year Old Virgin where a salesman in a TV store responds to the new version of Dawn of the Dead, which is playing on a TV off-screen. His reactions are hilarious, and somehow I felt that I ought to see what he was responding to.

Oooh, there's doctoral-level logic for you, eh?

I saw the remake on sale cheap in the US and bought it.

Unfortunately, I got the full-frame version, but it would be 32 hours of travel to return it, not to mention airfare and food. So I live with it.

I was pleasantly surprised by this film. It was nasty, vicious, and crass, and as we all know, that's the key to my heart.

It certainly hits all the genre marks, but adds a couple new twists to the story. There are cameos by cast members of the original, and more than a few instances of things even I found shocking.

Much, of course, to my delight.

The soundtrack was really great too; the song that opens the end credits brought a big grin to my face.

I also bought Diary of the Dead, the latest film from George Romero, director of the original Dawn of the Dead. I have yet to watch it, but I am sure it will be good.