DAWN OF THE DEAD (1978)

Could this be The BEST Zombie Film EVER?  Many die-hard fans of the zombie sub-genre might say so and they might be right - this post-apocalyptic zombie epic was also directed by what most consider the creator of this genre, the late, great George A. Romero. (Night of the Living Dead, Monkey Shines, The Crazies) It focuses on two police officers (Ken Foree, Scott H. Reiniger) and two employees of a local news station (David Emge, Gaylen Ross) who are now on the run after a full-blown zombie pandemic in the US and eventually are able to settle at a local mall where they seem to have everything they need.....though there are plenty of zombies there too. :o We follow their adventures in surviving this dystopian situation and they TRY to have some fun along the way.....and much carnages ensues.   

Host: Geoff Gershon
Edited By Ella Gershon
Producer: Marlene Gershon  

Transcript

DAWN OF THE DEAD - 1978

Directed by George A. Romero

Starring Ken Foree, David Emge, Scott H. Reiniger, Gaylen Ross, David Crawford, David Early, Richard France, Howard Smith, Daniel Dietrich, and Tom Savini

Genre: Satirical Horror (Audio clip)

It had been a long time since I actually had seen this and apparently my memory was clouded by the Zack Snyder 2004 remake...I didn't remember anything before our four main protagonists got to the mall. 🤔 And about 15 minutes into George Romero's offbeat zombie epic, I realized something kind of surprising...this movie was Aliens BEFORE Aliens! 

Granted It's not quite as tense as Cameron's classic and it's certainly much more satirical but I can't think of ANY other kind of fantastical horror/action hybrid before this which focused on a small band of heavily armed (some well-trained, some being trained) folks who find themselves trapped within a massive complex with loads of violent, murderous creatures always lurking....not only to kill them but even worse, infect them. 😮 Over time our heroes form an ad-hoc family while attempting to fortify their surroundings, successfully mow down several of the creatures, but eventually the sheer numbers just become too overwhelming....

It's all there and it's gloriously entertaining. Not gonna lie, I don't find the admittedly dated zombie make-up effects quite as scary as modern versions. (Budgetary constraints played a big part and this WAS the mid '70's so the whole zombie concept was still pretty new) There are also several sequences where the slowness and lack of the intelligence of the zombies is successfully played for laughs. 

But when these things bite into you....it's sufficiently GNARLY even when the blood can look a tad fake! 🫣 And the tension of avoiding those bites DOES ratchet up as the story progresses....to the point where for the first time in ages, it seems (too many seasons of "The Walking Dead" with increasingly obvious zombie-bite/plot armor for certain characters) that I was genuinely gripped at the prospect of a character getting bitten. I found myself caring about these characters....this was also a strength of the 2004 Snyder version. (Having great actors like Sarah Polley and Ving Rhames certainly helped)

Though unlike that 2004 film, the number of key characters is kept smaller which I think helps. Two AWOL cops Peter (Ken Foree) and Roger (Scott Reiniger) who have really just seen some shit (the movie smartly just thrusts us RIGHT into the confusing aftermath of a recent zombie pandemic) team up with two sorta-dating co-workers from a local TV station, Francine (Gaylen Ross) and Stephen (David Emge) to escape Philadelphia - one pair is heavily armed (guess which one) and one has the traffic copter to use to get out of Dodge. So together they venture off and eventually settle at this mall which has everything they need on-hand....plus several zombies in the vicinity. 🙄

All four lead performances are strong but for me, the standout had to be Ken Foree who just really takes command, not only handling all of the zombie action with aplomb but also nailing a few key emotional moments....including the ending which was more potent than I expected.  Reiniger is also quite good though I hadn't seen much of him since this. (Well except apparently a cameo in the 2004 version) For SO much of this film's runtime, this truly feels like an action film and these two just really sell that as a pair together..especially some clever strategies they develop to keep the zombies at bay within the mall. (Audio clip) 

And of course all of the mall stuff is fun....they go on shopping sprees, develop their marksmanship, do some jocular zombie-hunting, and even go for a drive at one point WITHIN the mall....just two years before The Blues Brothers would follow suit. :) (Audio clip) 

Best Needledrop (best song cue or score used throughout runtime of film):

As for the soundtrack/score for this film….apparently it’s not the same based on which cut of the film based on rights issues.  But for the original European cut of the film – which I’m grateful to have seen – the score is entirely conducted by the Italian progressive rock band GOBLIN who apparently did specialize in horror scores around this time….most notably the ICONIC music they conducted the original Suspiria in 1977, really GORGEOUS music too.  (Audio clip)  

Now depending on WHICH cut of the film you are watching, there’s a full-blown climax where the mall is invaded by the motorcycle gang right around the 130 minute mark – this is basically the beginning of the end for our heroes residency inside the mall as even BEST case scenario involves several enemy bikers being bitten just leading to MORE zombies out of control within the facility.  It’s a CRAZY extended sequence with a LOT of carnage and at least at the outset of it, Peter and Stephen who are set up at different points with sniper rifles….they have the upper hand, initially taking down a lot of bikers and the soundtrack is PUMPING with a raucous, fast-paced guitar number – this track from Goblin is called, “Zaratozom” and NO it’s not Italian for zombie….I have no clue what it means but cool music regardless! (Audio clip)

Wasted Talent (most under-utilized talent involved with film):

Now back to Ken Foree…..he's just so engaging and charismatic, he not only becomes the heart of this movie but he his Peter ends having the film’s most significant arc which pays off at the VERY end.  And recently watching this, I couldn’t help but wonder: Why didn't this guy become a bigger star?? 😕 (Well I know one likely unfortunate reason why) (Audio clip) 

Though going through his IMDB, Ken has apparently been a steady working actor in the forty-eight years since this film – he did a TON of TV in the ‘80’s with appearances on just about every major show imaginable including The A Team, The X Files, Matters, and The Dukes of Hazard.  And he has also become a staple of B-grade horror films most recently and most notably several directed by….Rob Zombie.  Embarrassingly the ONLY film I could recall seeing Ken Foree in?  Echh….yeah I know it has its fans but I recently watched for the first time….Zombie’s 2007 reimagination of Halloween.  The less said about that reprehensible film, the better…. (Audio clip)   

Trailer Moment (scene or moment that best describes this movie):

What this film does SO well is a story conceit, a genre trope which would definitely set the template for pretty much every major zombie/undead/infected piece property for decades to come: even though for THE best at killing the undead who find it increasingly easy to dispatch with slow-walking undead threats, it can become increasingly mundane…..to the point where you can sometimes let your guard down at the worst possible time.  And this occurs roughly halfway through during an increasingly harrowing sequence when Peter and Roger are attempting to transport a couple of trucks back to the loading dock of Monroeville Mall which they are holed up in. (Audio clip) 

It's all going pretty smoothly – after all, they’re mostly within the elevated cabins of these big rig tricks and they’re HEAVILY armed.  But we can see how Roger is getting not only increasingly cocky but reckless as a result….and when you’re driving a big rig, there end up being a LOT of blindspots.  Just as he’s hanging off the driver’s door, we see that he’s getting increasingly swarmed by zombies….some of whom he just can’t see…..the editing and shot selection of this sequence is crucial as we keep seeing these zombies open their mouths in close-up getting tantalizingly close to chomping on one of Roger’s limbs.  Romero knows what he’s doing here in how he films Scott Reininger playing Roger…..it’s close call after close call until it’s not.  And when it happens, it’s just SO quick and such a seemingly SMALL bit that it just kills you to see it happen this way.  This roughly ten minute sequence is just a masterclass in sustaining tension. (Audio clip) 

MVP (person most responsible for the success of this film):

Even on a very limited budget, this is all very well-shot and well-paced and that's likely thanks to the REAL star, George Romero. Romero wrote and directed an often genre-defying (and defining) epic with plenty of excitement and loaded with jabs at consumer culture and just the inherent selfishness of society in general.  It’s a very full meal of a movie with virtually no lulls and it still holds up – for directing one of The Greatest Horror Films of All Time, George A. Romero is the MVP. (Audio clip) 

Final Rating: 5 stars out of 5 

I'm not sure if THIS is considered his masterpiece but it has to be up there....and for me, it immediately claimed MY top tier for zombie movies!

Streaming on YouTube

And that ends another NOTHING BUT PURE MOTORIZED INSTINCT review!