It really is the little things in life that makes you happy.  Whether it be a new pet, your favorite restaurant is serving your favorite meal, the prostitute really does pay you (I swear), or your favorite horror film of all time is remade into something that is actually good and scary and funny and disturbing all at the same time.

When it was announced that Universal would be remaking "Dawn of the Dead," many horror fanatics across the globe flipped out and started eating their neighbors out of rage.  Then, the scribe was revealed to be... the guy who wrote "Scooby-Doo?"  This time, the close friends were eaten.  Finally, the director was to be... a first timer?  Bye-Bye family...

Luckily for us, this upadated version is dangerlously close to being just as good as Romero's original classic.  In this one, there is no slow building up to a full-on apocalyspe... instead, all we have to wait is rougly two and a half minutes.  No, instead shit hits the fan extremely quick as these uber-zombies of the new millenium take hold of our hero's small town.  Soon, she meets more zombie food... I mean people.  Though we barely get an introduction all you have to know is that Ving Rhames is now the official God of all badasses.

On top of all of this, we get heaps and heaps and heaps of gore.  Now, the gore factor is really what was bothering me going into this, and I have to say I came out very pleasently surprised.  One sequence involving the inside of a moving bus and a chainsaw comes to mind. 

Of course, there's other pleasent surprises laced throughout the film.  For example, there are certain parts where I was literally one "Full House" moment away from letting my tears flow freely and I truly mean that.  Despite what some initial reviews have stated, I did feel for some of these characters when they get torn apart.  Not to mention, Rhame's character's relationship with a gun toting super-sniper across the street is actually quite heart-warming... once again, not kidding.

When it comes right down to it, this movie is just plain cool... actually it's really, really cool.  Oh, and to those who have read early test-screening reviews that have said there is a crappy happy ending attached... well, those complaints have been heard... just listen for that familiar drum beat on a very familiar island.

So, is it up there with the ranks of the original "Dawn of the Dead" or even "28 days later...?"  No, but as I stated earlier, it does come very close.  It is certainly more worth your time than "Resident Evil" or (*shudder*) "House of the Dead."

***1/2 out of ****

What's the ending like--who survives?

Yes, and the familiar drum beat on a familiar island. Zombie?

[SPOILERS HERE-IN]










[Don notes: Seriously, Spoilers here folks. ]













[Don: Really, I warned you.]












You need to "swipe" with your mouse to read.  I mean, point your mouse on the word "Survivors", then click and drag your mouse down.  It will highlight the text.


The "survivors" are Anna, the good security guard (can't remember his name), Ving Rhame's character (Kenneth), and security guard's girlfriend (with dog).  Jake Weber's character almost makes it, but he reveals to the group that he is bitten and stays behind with a friendly looking gun (this is where, honest to God, I thought I was going to cry). 

The reason the word "survivors" is in qoutes is because if you stay during the credits, the security guard finds a camcorder and the whole thing takes on a "Blair Witch"-style of filming.  After an incident in which the yacht comes upon a single fishing boat (with a severed head in a cooler no less), they come to an island.  They exit the yacht and the drum beat straight out of "Zombie" is heard... you know what that means.  The camcorder hits the ground and we get some final zombie chaos to end the show.

Psycho:

Darn good review.  Hope you don't mind that I 'hid' the spoilers.  I used [ color=00444 ][ /color ] to hide the text.  A quick swipe of the clicked mouse and all is revealed.  I read the spoilers because scary movies scare me.  I am glad that Kenneth doesn't die.

BTW, your review was excellent. 

Don

Dig that [color///...niner...stuff].

That movie was so freaking awsome. I loved it. Does any one know of if there makeing a Dawn Of The Dead 2? One of the cast said there is going to be one. And I have heard that the makers of the remake wants to remake Day Of The Dead also. Has anyone heard about info on these projects?

I wouldn't mind a Day of the Dead. It'd be nice to see what it could have been with a bigger budget and a bit more freedom (it's still my favorite zombie movie through).

Well it just came out here (sigh) and I thought it was just great.  Amazingly great.  The gore was bad ass, Ving Rhames was bad ass, and Tom Savini in his little cameo was bad ass.  What more can I say.  The movie was bad ass.

Rhames lived

Anyone else notice in the closing credits a quick glance of the big black police officer Rhames walking through the trees of the island?

I didn't notice this the first time I saw the movie, but I paid special attention at the closing credits the second and third time I saw it. It is there.  Anyone else notice this?

Does this show that the characters lived, to have a happy American movie ending, as opposed to a depressing Soviet one ?(Soviet movies tend to have unhappy endings)

Also my son watches Jimmy Nutron a lot and there was one scene that got me thinking: wouldn't an adult animated undead zombie television series, built on the same Jimmy Nutron technology, rock? The characters in this show look realistic enough to frigthen people if they became zombies and started killing each other--think of the possibilites! Ever noticed how there is virtually no horror cartoons? To my recollection, I have never seen a horror genre cartoon.....

IF YOU THOUGHT DAWN OF THE DEAD REMAKE ROCKED CHECK THIS OUT
http://www.bloody-disgusting.com/index.php?Show=1797&Template=newsfull

While the trailer would not actually show itself on my computer ("Website can not be displayed... yadda, yadda, yadda"), this is all news to me.  When the hell did this even come around?

it came right out of nowhere, they kept the production for the remake really under wraps

Wow. And me saying a remake of this could be right around the corner.

I'm psychic.

Fear me!

First of all...

This is, in my opinion, the BEST zombie movie ever made in history, though I have only seen so many. Running zombies are the way to go. Though this movie practically stays in on location most of the movie, it never bores me.

So what if people give this a bad review? Nothing will stop me to loving this movie. Not even if the dead happened to come back to life.

As for Day of the Dead: Contagium

I have heard so many people say that movie sucked, and I don't know whether to believe them or not. I was at Best Buy yesterday and I saw it on the Horror shelf and I wanted to get it, but I feared I would have wasted my money. But I don't know. But I guess the meaning of life is to take chances!