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Slow pace in the most part of the movie.

Simply A Masterpiece

Best movie ever!

Each character in this movie — down to the smallest one — is an individual rather than a type, prone to spontaneous changes of mood and sometimes amusing outbursts of pettiness or ill humor.

I'm probably not the best judge of films like this because I just don't care about zombie flicks. There's something iconic about the original "Night of the Living Dead" that couldn't be duplicated in this sequel; part of it could be the use of iconic black and white in filming NOTLD, part of it could simply be the attempt at exploiting a formula that worked in the past. There was hardly even a story here, as it was all about four people trapped in a shopping mall knocking off the undead, and doing a poor job of it in many cases. I couldn't count the number of times I would have used a handgun or a rifle to dispatch a zombie only a few feet away that the principal characters allowed to walk on by. And not too quickly either I might add. Gosh but these zombies were slow. In the future, I think I'll take my zombie cinema in the way of pictures like "Shaun of the Dead", that is, with a great big heaping of satirical fun. Not to mention deadpan humor, although I just did.

This sequel in the Living Dead trio improved upon the original in almost every way. Romero directed this film a full decade after the first and the advancements in technology, technical effects, and a bigger budget take the zombie uprising premise and put a new and fascinating story to it, and explore new territory literally and figuratively. Dawn presents the idea better that this phenomenon was world-wide. While it is still mostly filmed in the shopping mall, similar to how the first's setting was solely filmed in an abandoned house, we get a picture of how serious the massacre is through aerial helicopter shots. We get continued racial undertones taken from Night, but these are extrapolated, and a new consumeristic theme is added into the mix. Romero makes the statement blunt, but he says it well: people buy, buy, buy mindlessly like zombies. He almost mocks the American public with how humorful he has all the zombies walking around and slipping on ice rinks and falling in ponds. This comedy was not present in the original, but it certainly was a welcome touch, and there was not a single time a joke or gag did not flop. This movie had me laughing out loud several times. Another improvement was in the special effects department. There is no shortage of gore and cheesy gross-out scenes (my favorite being a crowd of zombies pulling intestines out of a man). I can tell that they are fake, and perhaps if this movie took itself more seriously it would be a detriment, but I feel the over-the-top fake blood actually adds to the movie. The group of four - Stephen/Fly Boy (David Emge), Peter (Ken Foree), Roger (Scott H. Reiniger), and Francine (Gaylen Ross) - play their well-crafted characters fantastically, especially Ken Foree. There was a strong influence from Duane Jone's performance in the original coming through in his part. I thought the symbolism, which was lacking in the original, was a nice touch. And lastly, the steps the four took were smart and logical and had me guessing what would happen next. I really appreciate how Romero added a sort of meditative part halfway through. The characters have built a room and are experiencing restlessness and ennui as to what they could do next, wondering if they could be doing more to help others. Even though they were thrown into this situation, they are still products of their environment and resort to normal life no matter how drab it is, waiting for the excitement of a new purchase, a new hit. The only part that bugged me a little was that there were a few too many shots of zombies just walking around. They were funny, but they began feeling like a litany. But aside from that, it's a brilliant film, and I can't wait to get my hands on Day of the Dead.

This film is the second of Romero's "Dead" trilogy; granted, he did make a few other zombie films after this one: "Land of the Dead", "Diary of the Dead" and "Survival of the Dead", but I do not really count those three as part of his first three dead films. They just seem in a separate world as this series shows us the beginning of the zombies, the zombies taking over and gaining more footing and the end of civilization as we know it as by the last film the zombies outnumber the humans. This is the second film and it shows the structure we humans have established beginning to crumble. This one is also the most action oriented of the three "Dead" films. I would say the first is the most horror oriented and the third has elements of horror, action and science fiction. Of the original three, this is my favorite one. It has really cool zombie action and I like the main characters especially Peter and Roger...Fran and Stephen got on my nerves from time to time. The third film would have a myriad of annoying and unlikable characters with the most likable by far being Bub. Bub also happens to be a zombie so that should tell you how they are. That one features some really good zombie action and a better climax than this film though. The climax here almost seems like Romero thought he had to have some zombie munching and could not quite figure out a way to do so seeing as how there were only four main characters and so the ending, while featuring some awesome zombie munching, also seems kind of thrown in as an after thought.The story has things beginning to break down rapidly as two people working at television station plan to nab the company chopper to try and escape the horror that the city has now become as marshal law is in effect and things are going badly quickly. Two guys who are in a raid of an apartment complex that goes horribly also join the two reporters and there are some tensions at first as they fly through the countryside and witness the growing number of zombies first hand. They soon find a mall with a helicopter landing pad on top of it and decide to stay and rest a bit at first, but then Roger and Peter decide that perhaps they should stay a little longer as the place has everything one could need to survive out the zombie outbreak. They convince Stephen, though Fran is never too on board with the idea as apparently her and Stephen's original plan was to get to Canada. Soon they all work together to try and blockade the mall, lock down the mall and then rid the mall of the zombie infestation. All looks well until the here some people on the radio who do not have the best of intentions.This one is the most action oriented of the first three films as I have said and I liked the characters in this one more than the other two films as well. The zombie effects are okay and there are some good kills, but both of those two things would be improved upon in the next entry. I am always a bit surprised that the guy playing Roger did not appear in all that many films as he was actually really good. About the only one who would go on to appear in several films is Ken Foree who would appear in a lot of horror films during his career.So this film is rather good, but it is dated a bit. You watch this film and you are looking at a time capsule of the 70's that is for sure. The fact that they reference the indoor mall makes it seem like that was a relatively new and happening thing thing when these days it is the outdoor malls that thrive more often. I would hate to get stuck in a mall these days as you just could not find the supplies that a mall had back in those days. Not even talking about guns, I am talking about food, tools and several other essential items that just are not going to be in a mall nowadays. Most malls only really have clothing shops so you are not going to survive very long unless you are good at crafting hangers into weapons or eating clothing and converting it to energy! Still, it is a fun ride and a very good zombie film.

Night Of The Living Dead may have been first, but in my opinion Dawn Of The Dead is by far the most influential of his "Dead" films from that point to the present. Of course, all of George's films are important and made their mark on fans and film makers. His "Dead" films have the most influence and pretty much everyone has been imitating his work ever since. Dawn Of The Dead is the best loved and most groundbreaking of these films. Dawn Of The Dead is a masterpiece that works on many levels and still holds up after all these years. The film has a lot to offer that one will not find in the average horror flick, but delivers the goods for those most interested in gore. Dawn Of The Dead is simultaneously action packed and thought provoking. The film is abundant with social commentary, but is done in a comic book style so it does not come across as preachy or pretentious. However, the social subtext is there if the viewer chooses to be a participant. The characters are well developed and easy to like. Our ensemble cast had great chemistry and did a very good job in this. I especially love Ken Foree's bad ass performance. If there was justice in the world of film George A Romero would have been the recipient of all kinds of awards and Ken Foree would be a top action star. Tom Savini's gore f/x look great and set standards in the film industry. It also got Tom Savini a lot of work and made him a top name in special make up f/x. The score by band Goblin gave the film some ominous atmosphere and made some very interesting and incredible music. George A Romero blends the genres of science fiction, horror and action well. I have a lot of respect for George A Romero and Dawn Of The Dead is a true classic and absolutely essential.