A zombie movie with a soul and quite a bit of brains

Rating: 8/10 (19 February 2020)

Today I learned that Zack Snyder reshot the original in cooperation with its director George A. Romero, after finishing the 2004 version I caught myself on the thought that want to check out the late-seventies predecessor. But for now I need to take my hat off in honor of great writing and captivating work of the director in this particular case.
In the beginning I had the worst feeling that you can get while anticipating a horror movie - the fear that there will be no atmosphere whatsoever. I thought that I am watching a comedy with scary spooks as the music was overtense like in parody, and the colors were too bright. But when the story actually kicked in, it got to me. It is serious. I am in the middle of a zombie apocalypse!
The sole island of our survivors in the huge mall is presumably the only place around with living people in the sea of the dead. Probably this plays the major factor in bonding the characters together and also forms a strong connection with the viewer. The other factor is that they human nature is presented at its best: everyone has fears, trust issues or simple needs to do something just not to get bored. The development of each hero is beautifully done and no one is useless. Everyone counts in this game of survival.
The decisions taken by the team are surprisingly reasonable, with a few remarks, of course (no, in some cases I cannot blame stress). The finishing part is a raging mix of adrenaline, stress and unbelievable bond of strangers that have become the closest people on the face of Earth.
I cannot say that you will be scared to death while watching the movie, but this is the beauty: no cheap jump scares and constant feeling of danger behind every corner. Don't forget to watch the end credits to get even more horror in your system (or maybe it is only in the director's cut? If so - check out the director's cut!).