Dawn of the Dead (2004)

I get why people call Boyle's work genius, I really do. But man, that whole "system breakdown" mess in the third act? Total drag. If they hadn't dragged in those soldiers, the movie would’ve been way, way better...

Don't get me wrong, it's not a bad flick. It's just that Dawn of the Dead hits different for me...

A total marriage from a movie...

otO said:I found this new Dawn of the Dead to be incredibly frustrating to sit through... I mean, every single character acts like they’ve had a lobotomy performed on them, and I found myself getting worked up every few minutes because someone would inevitably do something blatantly idiotic. It just isn't believable at all, which is a real shame since you can't even maintain a sense of suspension of disbelief in a horror movie... The opening is actually stellar, but the rest of it... well, it isn't total garbage, but it's certainly not much better than that...

That clueless woman wandering out among the zombies just to find her dog🙄 😲 , and then there's that cynical guy who was supposed to be watching the door but clearly couldn't care less about anyone else😠 🙄

And honestly, why didn't they just burn them all from the rooftop first to make things easier when those trucks started coming through🤔

watched it tonight. just me 😬

Overall, I thought the movie was pretty decent. I haven't actually seen the original, so I can't really make a comparison, but honestly, I think 28 Days Later had a better sense of suspense. The soundtrack throughout the whole thing was absolutely wild, though! And I really loved how it ended.

I don't know if it was just me, but it felt like they weren't being very careful with the zombies. I swear I saw the same guy get run over by a truck twice, and then he still managed to get shot in the head right after! 🤣

electricjackal52 said:That clueless woman running out toward the zombies just to find her dog🙄 😲 , and that cynical guy who was supposed to be holding the door but honestly couldn't care less about anyone else😠 🙄

Why didn't they just burn them all from the roof first? Wouldn't that make things way easier when the trucks are trying to get through later?🤔

or why—seriously, WHY—do every single character in every horror movie ever—if they're looking for something that could literally save their lives—see an unexpectedly open door where that thing might be, and they HAVE to go inside? Like, take a fucking hint, you moron! And even better, if there are creepy brain-sucking noises coming from that wide-open space, they decide it’s best to go in totally unarmed. Man, I swear, if it were me, I’d gear up like Rambo in the middle of a jungle firefight, blast every suspicious dark corner in sight, and *then* start asking questions. Instead, they head straight out into the open where zombies are waiting to tear them apart, and you're supposed to believe they'd go in shouting, "HELLOOO? ANY BRAIN-SUCKING ZOMBIES IN HERE? HEELLOOOOOOOO????"

As if.

This is just one example. While watching Dawn of the Dead, I was constantly facepalming. Seriously.
["No, he/she/it WON'T do something that incredibly stupid and completely unacceptable given the situation, because a normal person wouldn't do that right now. If they're even normal to begin with."]
And then they do it.

Forget movies where the undead zombies somehow show off a much higher IQ than the supposedly living humans.

Man, blueranger12, I loved the old Dawn of the Dead. It wasn't even about the bone-chilling panic for me, it was just this wild sense of playfulness in the movie. Like those 20 or 30 minutes where they’re all stuck in that mall, barricaded behind trucks. (p.s. haven't seen the new one yet) Those minutes were pure bliss. Scenes just flowing to the music, them sitting down for a fancy dinner together, Nick looking through fine clothes and just enjoying himself. They play games, they laugh... sure, it’s a little slow here and there, but hey, it's a horror movie, duh! 😁 Meanwhile, zombies are just wandering around outside. It reminded me of that feeling of being in a warm house while it's pouring rain outside. You feel totally safe. You're just happy because it's cold and rainy out there.
Or like when they were messing with the zombies by stepping into the store through the double doors. Just watching them through the glass and laughing. That kind of stuff? That's what makes a movie genius. 🙏 😁 Beautiful... Night of the Living Dead was darker, definitely a cult classic, but for me, this was the peak.
I've gotta watch this new movie just so I can properly tear it to shreds.

I’ve watched the original, Night of the Living Dead, Dawn of the Dead, and Day of the Dead several times now—they're all sitting right there on my hard drive—and honestly? I have never once understood how those damn zombies, with their incredibly slow and uncoordinated reflexes, actually managed to take over the entire world! That said, I really dig how the set design doesn't feel like a total carbon copy of what came before.

The cast is solid, but let's be real: the special effects and the score are just as impressive. Even if you consider that the director set the story in the 21st century, the movie still holds up beautifully.

It’s been a long time since I’ve seen a remake this well-executed.

Now, we just wait for the sequels, Day of the Dead and Night of the Living Dead.😉

Day of the Dead and Night of the Living Dead rating 9/10

They completely trashed this movie. As soon as I saw zombies sprinting faster than Olympic athletes, I knew—this is going straight to the trash bin. Then you get those outdoor scenes where a bit of that Romer atmosphere actually hits you, but even that vanishes instantly. Total garbage.

The brilliant part about a Romer film was when they asked, "Why are these zombies here, just wandering through a shopping mall?" And the answer is: because it’s all they remember. They felt safe there, and now those tiny fragments of humanity drive them back to that spot. You watch these decaying things mumble and wander. There's actual social commentary on consumerism in there! It's beautiful! You actually feel for these pathetic corpses who were just as dead inside before they actually died! Get it?!

But then you get this brand-new, ultra-modernized version where the zombies are like crazed werewolves on steroids sprinting toward the mall, and then some guy claims they're there for the memories. WHAT A TOTAL JOKE!! 😠😠 Fast zombies are absolute nonsense. I was laughing out of pure desperation while watching.

It's like they took the Romer version and retooled it for ten-year-olds. Then they throw in some nudity at the end to try and make up for it. Just pure stupidity. Honestly, the lead woman slightly reminded me of the one from Night of the Living Dead, so that's the only plus. And the Black character had a resemblance to the one from Dawn of the Dead. Except she looks like she spends all day lifting heavy weights, haha... just total muscle-bound idiots.

Wait, just a second... wasn't there already a movie made called "Dawn of the Dead"... instead of Night of the Living Dead?
As far as I recall, the original Night of the Living Dead is black and white. I think I've seen a couple of others—they were in color—with similar titles, but I can't quite place them.

steelviper6 said:As far as I recall, the original Night of the Living Dead was shot in black and white.

There’s also that color remake from the 90s directed by Romer.

The timeline basically goes like this:

Night = > Dawn = > Day = > ... Land... (seriously, why isn't there an emoji of someone holding their face? 😁 )

The first two both got remakes, but we're still waiting on the third one to get its turn...

steelviper6 said:I watched that third one where the crew realizes pretty early on that the zombies are slow, so they just start swinging at them and eventually end up torturing them, hanging them from trees and stuff. What was that called?

That's the Night remake...

steelviper6 said:Then I watched the one where some toxic rain falls and raises zombies from their graves. At the end, some guy drops a nuke on the city. What's that one called?

That’s Return of the Living Dead. Narratively, it has nothing to do with Romero's zombies; it was basically designed as a tribute—or a middle finger—to his films. The director is Dan O'Bannon (Alien, Lifeforce, etc.).

So, you basically know every single zombie movie ever made, right? 😁 👏
Well, go ahead—drop a list... I mean, I'm a huge zombie fan myself. 😁

steelviper6 said:So you're basically an encyclopedia of every zombie flick ever made? 😁 👏
Look, just drop the list on me... I live for this stuff. 😁

Honestly, what you brought up is pretty much the peak of the genre.
Everything else is mostly garbage—probably 80% of it is just some Italian studio trying to rip off Romero's classics...

If you really want to dive deep, just head over to Google and search for "zombie" paired with two names: Dario Argento and Lucio Fulci. That'll get you where you need to go.

Oh, one more popped into my head that actually holds its own: Dellamorte Dellamore (known here as Cemetery Man), based on an episode of Dylan Dog. It isn't your typical horror movie, though; it's more like a dark comedy set in a zombie apocalypse... but it's easily the only one I'd rank alongside the heavy hitters from Romero. Definitely worth a watch. 👍

What an absolute joke of a movie.
The beginning is just bone-chillingly dull, and the rest is nothing more than a pathetic tribute to everything rotten in Hollywood... honestly, the whole thing feels so incredibly stupid, it’s like it was designed specifically for the lowest common denominator in America (and let’s face it, it probably was)
I think my friend hit the nail on the head when she pointed out those zombies barking outside the shopping mall—you know how Americans are, the mall is basically their cathedral, right? Like, are they trying to get in for the Black Friday sales or something? 😁
I also found it hilarious when they were wheeling that old lady out in her wheelchair and then she gets taken out by a chainsaw ( 😁 I mean, I couldn't help laughing)

The movie is just a massive pile of clichés; it's desperate, and every single line of dialogue boils down to "F*** YOU," much like that one guy in Pulp Fiction. You can see the heavy influence of Quentin Tarantino when those security guards are talking, but even Tarantino has gone downhill, God help us all

It doesn't come close to Spanish cinema or the likes of Gael Garcia Bernal and Carmen Maura

One word: garbage.

So, anyone actually have any thoughts on this??? Or are you all just sitting there too terrified to move?

😠 😱 🙂

I caught that flick at the theater yesterday, and honestly, it was something else. 😁 I don't think I've ever actually enjoyed watching a "horror" movie quite this much; everyone around me was just cracking up at how ridiculous the scenes were... it reminded me of what that critic mentioned—every little detail felt so absurdly obvious that it became unintentionally hilarious...
That little zombie baby bit almost had me crying with laughter... 😂

I’ve spent the last three days absolutely glued to my computer screen grinding through Doom 3, so honestly, I just haven't had the mental energy to sit down and watch any zombie movies on the big screen. 🙄

feralgardener502 said:Look, this is just one example—but during my first viewing of Dawn of the Dead, I was constantly clutching my head in pure frustration. It’s that classic trope...
["No, there is absolutely no way they would do something that blatantly stupid or unrealistic given the circumstances; a rational person simply wouldn't act that way in such a high-stakes situation. If they even have enough sense to function at all."]
And then? They go ahead and do exactly that.

In case any of you find yourselves facing similar dilemmas out there:
The Zombie Survival Guide

Crow King said:Oh, I just remembered another one that’s actually quite good—Dellamorte Dellamore (or Cemetery Man, as it’s known over here)

Does anyone know where I might be able to track that down?

Anthony Brown13 said:Just in case you guys find yourselves in a similar mess:
The Zombie Survival Guide

Mmmhmm.

But honestly? I’m pretty sure the crew from Land of the Dead—given how much "talent" they have—would totally lean into some accidental self-harm scenarios.
I can *totally* see one of them trying to figure out how to handle a handgun, pointing it right at their own goofy face, thumb hovering over the trigger like, "Let's see what this does..." and then—BOOM. Total accident!