Mall food took on a whole new meaning with George A. Romero’s second zombie epic.
“Dawn of the Dead,” the belated sequel to his groundbreaking 1968 feature “Night of the Living Dead,” affirmed the director’s ability to wring horror out of the horror genre he essentially put on the map.
Romero isn’t done with zombies, what with an untitled “Dead” project currently in production. But his one-two punch of “Night” and “Dawn” may never be matched.
“Dawn” begins some time after the events of his landmark monster movie. The dead are walking the earth and pandemonium is breaking out across the country.
A pair of SWAT members (Ken Foree, Scott H. Reiniger), a traffic flyboy (David Emge) and his galpal (Gaylen Ross) escape via helicopter and shutter themselves in a nameless mall.
They stockpile food, weapons and other essentials, all the while zombies collect throughout the building waiting for our heroes to make one fatal slip up.
Watching “Dawn” again reminds us just how influential the film remains to this day. The final act, while the weakest element in the film, clearly inspired a similar plot twist in “28 Days Later.” And the sense of claustrophobia Romero whips up – even within a spacious mall – inspires some of the better horror fare of recent years.
Yes, Romero’s societal subtexts are rarely subtle. The early scenes in the fictional newsroom are both hokey and stiff. Yet the vision of zombies walking aimlessly through the generic mall remains his finest touch as a social provocateur.
Special effects guru Tom Savini, who appears in a nasty cameo, delivers what was considered top-notch effects for the era. Not every blood-splattering moment looks authentic today, but the sheer volume of gore is enough to chill modern audiences.
The horror genre remains a sturdy vehicle for social commentary, but “Dawn” is first and foremost a non-stop horror ride, its giddy blend of – and gallows humor untouched by time.
Related posts:
on 
on 
on 
on 
{ 6 comments… read them below or add one }
I loved the original Dawn of the Dead. What’s your take on Zack Snyder’s remake?
Though, in my opinion, not as frightening as Night of the Living Dead, Dawn is everything you could want in a zombie flick. At the time, I believe, it was unrated because of the graphic violence. And I remember the shocked look on the faces of the people that filed out of the theater as I anxiously waited to slip into a midnight showing on its opening weekend. I was not disappointed. In fact, I went back at least 6 more times. Romero likes to say that the whole film was a comment on consumerism, but when you’re 14, all you care about is helicopter zombie and what happens to Fly Boy. Savini was great fun too.
I had the same sense of excitement when ‘Day’ opened. I was slightly disappointed but it had its moments.
Now, I can only shake my head after viewing ‘Diary of the Dead’. Romero believes his own B.S. about social commentary in his films. He forgets what he’s supposed to do first. Scare us. Entertain us. Gross us out, for God’s sake. Then, and only then, will your message, artfully slid underneath all of the splatter, resonate after the movie is over.
I still get excited when I hear Romero is working on yet another ‘Dead’ film. But, in my heart of hearts, I know its over.
C’mon George, make me eat my words!
Yeah, Diary of the Dead had all the social messages – most of it clunky – but few of the scares. I’ll take the former if the latter is in good supply.
I thought Snyder’s remake was fine … a solid horror film but one which didn’t advance the genre or in any true way top the original.
Both versions of Dawn of the Dead are good movies, but I prefer the original. The endless number of slow moving zombies unnerved me more than the remake’s running zombies. They just looked like an angry mob.
Re-watching the original last night had me looking over my shoulder as I prepared for bed. That’s the hallmark of a scary movie. Or a cowardly movie critic.
One of my favorites. Romero wielded the social commentary like an ice pick. Much better than Land of the Dead where the ice pick turned into a 2 x 4.