One of the Few Well-Made Horror Re-Makes

Rating: 9/10 (20 March 2012)

Zack Synder is one of the finest contemporary directors of our time. Here he's taken a 1978 masterpiece and has managed to create a version that pays tribute to the original but is also different enough not to feel unnecessary (kinda vice versa how "Predators" felt unnecessary even though it WASN'T a re-make, it sure felt like one with the countless homages). I felt the Tom Savini directed re-make of "Night of the Living Dead" was a great movie, while the Nick Cannon-starring re-make of "Day of the Dead" was just plain sh*tty. This film stands on its own remarkably well.
It has awesome cameos of Tom Savini, Ken Foree and yes Scott Reiniger fans of the original will enjoy. I'm surprised they didn't sneak in George Romero in there somewhere (maybe he's one of the zombies if you look hard enough...). Any who, the characters do have less screen time individually due to a larger cast, but they're still pretty memorable. Most noteworthy of them all is Ving Rhames obviously. He's the new zombie-killing bad ass. Sarah Polley, Jake Weber, Mekhi Phifer and Michael Kelly all do really well. The director's cut is definitely the way to go, you get to further immerse yourself into the world set up by the camera. As for for the zombies, I whole heartedly prefer the original designs. The slow movement allows you to analyze the disgusting details as it were. The zombies in this film are agile and fast movers, probably somewhat inspired from the 'zombies' of "28 Days Later". It works because the film is aiming more for action than grueling horror which is easy to tell thru a lot of its comedic moments. And yes, credit to Tyler Bates for creating a very effective score.
While not up to par with the original, this one is definitely worth a look due to a different, fast-paced direction. The director's cut is the preferred edition to see it.