YES! Better than the original!

Rating: 10/10 (20 March 2004)

Now let's get one thing clear right off the bat...I LOVE GEORGE ROMERO'S ORIGINAL MOVIE!!!! It is one of THE classics of horror. BUT....the remake surpasses it! Some have written that the movie makes no social statements. WHAT? Okay, the original made digs at consumerism by equating the zombies with mindless shoppers. However this one has a more profound subtext for a few of the characters. One of the survivors is pregnant. So the question is raised, as it is by many people in the real world, "How can I bring a child into a world that's so screwed up?". The characters here also deal with an issue that the survivors in the original did not...what happened to their loved ones? In Romero's movie, NOT ONCE do the characters ever wonder about the fate of their friends and families. That issue is at the forefront of the new version. So to those that say there is no human drama here....what movie were you watching? But all that is incidental, what everyone wants to see this movie for is the zombies. Let me say to the purists out there....shuffling zombies ARE NOT SCARY!!!!! You can simply run, or in fact walk, right past them. Try that in the new movie. These flesh craving monsters will run your ass down, and be snacking on your vital organs before you can say "undead". Now THAT'S scary! The cast is excellent. Ving Rhames is the man, and owns every time he appears onscreen. Sarah Polley is a hottie, and maintains a cool head throughout. Jake Weber is very identifiable as the nice guy "everyman". You really care about these characters, and hope to see them survive. There is also great humor here. While on the roof of the shopping mall, our heroes communicate through large, handwritten signs with the owner of the gunshop across the street, who has retreated to his roof. There is a great scene where the on the roof of the mall, with binoculars, pick out zombies that resemble celebrities, and then have the gun shop owner blow them away. Also watch for the shop owner and Ving Rhames using their message boards back and forth to play chess. There are many nods to the original here, but they are very subtle. Watch for the heroes of Romero's version in cameo's. My favorite homage is right at the beginning of the movie. As Ana is driving down the road, we are treated to a high ariel shot looking down at her car on the highway. A helicopter flies in and out of frame. It is the same helicopted used by the characters in the original movie to escape the zombies that have overrun the city. So in the end, a great movie. Great tension. Great scares. Great humor. Great gore. A great treat for all horror fans.