Remake that's its own movie

Rating: 8/10 (12 July 2004)

I think that when Zack Snyder undertook this project, he realized just what he was trying to remake. Romero's original 'Dawn' would be hard, if not impossible, to duplicate, and to try to do so would likely enrage countless Romero fans. So he wisely tried to make this 'Dawn' its own movie, with a few notable differences. Most differences add to and enhance the film.
***WARNING!! SPOILER ALERT***
A pretty young nurse named Ana (Sarah Polley) returns home from her hospital job, just as we get a hint of what is coming; a patient at her hospital admitted for a minor injury is in ICU - with an unknown problem. When she returns home to her husband Louis, they spend a romantic night in the shower while the TV flashes an emergency broadcast...
The next morning Louis wakes up to discover their next door neighbor, a little girl, standing in their doorway. When Louis gets up to investigate, he is attacked and killed by her. Ana wakes up to discover Louis bleeding heavily from a bite wound. and he rapidly succumbs to his injury. When Ana tries to call for help, 911 replies 'all circuits are busy'; the world is falling apart. In seconds Louis is on his feet, hungrily coming after Ana. She manages to escape to her car and flee, and as she does, her suburb is swarming with police and ambulances, as well as people running everywhere. As she gets onto the freeway she is forced to stop at an accident, and on a nearby city bus she sees two hideous zombies feed on a third. After crashing her car, a policeman (Ving Rhames) discovers & rescues her. They make their way to a mall with 3 other people, including a man (Mekhi Pfifer of ER) and his expectant girlfriend. They hole themselves up in the mall as the world falls apart around them; TVs in the mall show the problem is as far afield as England, India, and the Middle East. Outside the mall, mobs of undead zombies try to get in - to feast on the living...
***END SPOILERS***
The first 20 minutes were an excellent take on this classic; showing the world falling apart as the mysterious plague spreads uncontrollably was something that was only hinted at in Romero's original. Some of the characters, such as the obnoxious guard C.J., were probably unnecessary, though C.J.'s character gradually develops through the movie from a self-centered man to one who sacrifices himself to let the others get away. Most 'Dawn' watchers may remember Gaylen Ross' pregnancy in the original; this one takes it a bit further with the birth of the zombie baby, after its mother becomes a zombie. It was interesting to see some of the original 'Dawn' actors in cameo roles; Tom Savini as the sheriff; Scott Reininger as an army colonel; and Ken Foree as a preacher, stating his line from the original 'Dawn' - "When there's no more room in hell, the dead will walk the earth".
**** out of *****