Dawn of the Dead (1978)

Tagline: When there's no more room in hell, the dead will walk the earth.

Curiosity: ZOMBIES.

Plot: Although made almost a decade after its predecessor, Dawn of the Dead picks up right where Night of the Living Dead ended. North America has been struck by a mysterious infection: Anyone who dies will rise from the dead and become a flesh-eating zombie. If a zombie bites you, you’ll turn into one that much sooner. As you can imagine, that’s a bit of a problem, especially in urban areas. As cities surge with zombies, communication begins to break down as people flee to less densely populated areas.

It is here that we meet journalist Francine (Gaylen Ross) and her helicopter pilot boyfriend Stephen (Dave Emge, although his character is more often referred to as “Flyboy”) in a Philadelphia television station. Employees are fleeing in droves as the city is literally consumed by the undead, and Francine and Stephen decide to follow suit via helicopter. Meanwhile, SWAT teams are searching Philly’s slums for zombies (Best job ever?). Martial law dictates that all corpses must be handed over to the police for disposal, but many people in the city are hiding their recently zombified loved ones out of loyalty. After a particularly bloody raid, Roger (Scott H. Reiniger) and Peter (Ken Foree) abandon their post and run into Francine and Stephen. The four fly away together in search of safer ground. What they eventually settle on is a shopping mall in Monroeville, Pa.

The quartet manages to secure the building and create some kind of a new life there. There are plenty of material distractions, plus enough packaged food to keep the group alive during the seven months which the film covers (Although they do eat an awful lot of spam, which is super wicked gross). All the while, zombies flock to the mall, but not necessarily for brains. The undead have begun repeating patterns from their lives; they really are going to the mall to shop. And eat brains.

Thoughts: First off, Dawn of the Dead is far and away the best of George A. Romero’s Dead films. Romero’s increased budget shows, as friend and special effects maestro Tom Savini, who also handled Night of the Living Dead, slips in some nice gore shots. Granted, the make-up looks a little dated compared to today’s standards (and a lot of the zombie actors aren’t completely covered). But it’s not like Dawn is a blood and guts jazz odyssey. The film focuses a lot the characters’ lives, and there’s at least a good half-hour where er’rybody just chills in the mall.

There are two great angles to the movie. Romero was influenced by I Am Legend in creating his zombie films, and to that end, each new installment (save for the pretty crappy Diary of the Dead, which could be a mall-emo album) adds something to the zombies’ evolution and rise to power. Night of the Living Dead established the basic premise; Dawn of the Dead gives a deeper look. Zombies do retain some of their memories from life, and can even work out simple tasks like opening doors or riding escalators. It’s like watching a murderous gray baby learn how to walk… so it can eat you. Eat you dead.

The other angle is, of course, the decline of Western civilization (OoOoO!). Emergency and UHF broadcasts dwindle over the course of the film, creating the impression that the country is slowly dying off. This, along with Francine’s realization that she’s pregnant, alters the character’s attitudes. Roger gets reckless as his death wish grows. Peter becomes depressed. Oddly enough, Francine and Flyboy, though depicted as weaker, show more strength, as they develop their flying, shooting, and fighting skills. The 2004 remake made the mistake of adding too many characters – the original is able to nimbly develop each of its characters. Throw in some anti-capitalistic humor, and Dawn of the Dead is one of the best horror films of all time, with a depth that should translate to those who aren’t even a fan of the genre.

Reflection: I love how Romero seems to raid whatever costume department he can find in dressing up his zombies. There’s a clown and a punker and Hare Krishna zombie. Joy!