What a remake should be.

Rating: 8/10 (17 March 2007)

I loved NIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD '68. It' one of the creepiest, most atmospheric and foreboding tales of terror I've ever seen. I also loved DAY OF THE DEAD '85, for the same reasons. I didn't love DAWN OF THE DEAD '78. It had little atmosphere and terrible special effects. The script was god-awful and although it had that unique 70's drive in charm, similar to THE HILLS HAVE EYES '77 and CARRIE '76, it really was a bit of a disappointment. Don't get me wrong, I did like it, and enjoyed watching it. I also got the "we-are-all-mindless-consumers" social commentary surrounding the film. But whenever I watched it I found myself wanting more. More atmosphere, more gore, more entertainment.
Enter James Gunn, Troma screenwriter and horror fan. He wrote two of the most recognisable Troma films; TROMEO AND JULIET and TERROR FIRMER. With the new remake craze Hollywood is on, Gunn decide he wants to write a proper script before some hack writer gets a hold of DAWN OF THE DEAD rights. He writes an incredible, action packed screenplay, and with the combined talent of Zack Snyder directing, they set out and make the best remake since THE FLY '86, and in doing so slightly surpass the original in quality.
Instead of a heavy handed political satire with crappy make up and terrible pacing, DAWN OF THE DEAD '04 is an action packed barrel of gore, extremely dark humor, witty dialogue and creative scenes. It seems like Gunn wanted to put as much original situations as he could with a cast of 16 characters. When you really think about it, Gunn took a lot away from his experiences with Troma, and it shines through with the outrageous situations he puts these people in. Not many other horror remakes would put so much at risk with how different this is from the original, and I guess thats why not many other remakes are very well respected.
The makeup effects, gore and special effects in this film were of a very very high standard. And the zombies themselves were great. An obese elderly zombie woman, a zombie childbirth, a Chinese jogging zombie, a paraplegic zombie, and various celebrity look-a-like zombies, such as Jay Leno, Burt Reynolds and Rosie O'Donnell. The deaths were also awesomely creative, the scene where the old truck driving lady finds Mekhi Phifer and his "family" is masterful.
Overall DAWN OF THE DEAD is a great film that does something most remakes don't; it surpasses the original. One of my favourite films, 8/10.