Surprisingly very good

Rating: 9/10 (26 March 2004)

Reimaging of the 1979 horror classic. The dead rise and begin to attack and eat the living who, in turn, also rise and join them. A group of people are holed up in a huge shopping mall...but how will they get out with it surrounded by hundreds of flesh-eating dead people?
It's not as good as the original but damn close (I'm giving it a 9). Then again, it couldn't be as good. The original was a ground-breaker--it was the first unrated horror film to play in first-run theatres. Also, for 1979, the amount of gore was just staggering. Nobody had ever seen anything like this! Also it wasn't just a horror film--it was also a satire on American consumerism.
This one totally drops the satire (not a bad idea) and just goes full speed ahead with action, adventure and gore. It's not as gory as the original, but it definetely pushes the level for an R-rated film. DO NOT see this if you're squeamish.
The acting is just so-so--even the great Sarah Polley seems muted! But really--who sees this for the acting? It's scary, fast and violent and also the dead, this time around, move MUCH quicker (and are often filmed running in fast motion which is truly scary). It does have its slow moments but those are few. And I REALLY hated the ending.
Still, well worth seeing for horror fans.