One of the best ever remakes?

Rating: 9/10 (26 March 2004)

This has to be one of the best films ever made in the horror/ action horror genre. I was a big fan of the original George A Romero film, and went into the cinema with a cynical eye. But after ten minutes of the film I was totally won over. The first ten minutes of the film are hard hitting, and brilliantly directed. I thought the film would probably go down hill after such a great start, but the adrenalin just kept rising. There were parts of the film that made you want to cheer out loud.
The screenplay and direction paid homage to the original film, but slickly mixed the 'old school' zombie film style with modern action and camera techniques. I was concerned that the makers may have made a completely different slasher style movie under the franchise of Dawn Of The Dead, but have indeed made a faithful remake, which stays very true to the original story.
The casting in this film is superb. The actors have a good balance of not taking themselves too seriously, but being quite believable at the same time. CJ is probably the coolest warrior ever to appear in a zombie film!
The makers have injected a small amount of humour into the film, which is more ironic than cheesy, which create some original funny moments. The makers have been very innovative, and have added some new ideas seamlessly into the action and story, making it fresh and interesting.
It is refreshing to see organic gore effects, as many films now depend on computer imagery. The gore is nicely sick and bloody, but here comes my only criticism; there could have been more shots of zombies devouring human flesh and organs!
If you like action horror, this film will blow you away. The rollercoaster doesn't stop until you find out what film they used to shoot it with! 9/10