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DVD Reviews: Dawn of the Dead (2004)                                                    Genre: Horror


The Final Say!

Review Score
8.9/10
Extras
8/10
Reviewed by Tory Favro
Review Date: October 2004
Distributed by:
Universal

 

 

 

 

Everyone when they review this title immediately pulls out the original as a point of reference by George Romero. Well, I'm sorry but I can't make comparisons as I haven't seen the original. All I know is that this movie absolutely ruled.

Dawn of the Dead deals with a virus that is sweeping across the world, transferred from victim to victim through biting. Victims rapidly pass away then come back to horrid life and an uncontrollable thirst for blood. It might be your next door neighbour, it might be your wife or kids, the virus kills then reanimates with such speed.

Part of the appeal of this film for me was the fact that most of the attacks and zombies appeared in everyday situations in full daylight, something that normally isn't tried in this sort of film. Another first for me was that these zombies actually run after their prey which in my mind is even more scary than the shambling messes that we are used to. They are aggressive and whilst still as essentially stupid as most zombies, still seem to possess some sort of uncanny intelligence in terms of aggression.

The daylight factor of this film combined with the start (which will really amaze), is what really put this movie up there for me in terms of enjoyment. The plot is well paced and our select group of hero/ines were likeable and well characterised by the actors. There are a few times that you shake your head a little bit but overall this is one really neat movie.

The video and audio for this movie was sweet and the soundtrack in general added well to the pacing of the entire feature. All the speakers in my surround setup were put to good use and there wasn't really anything to complain about in regards to picture quality either other than a bit of persistent edge enhancement and lack of shadow depth in some scenes. Overall though I wasn't fazed at all by it.

Talk about getting a treat in the extras department! This disc is packed for fans of the show, covering ground from audio commentaries, through to special effects wizardry, through to a spoof movie already created that looks like it's going to be hilarious "Shaun of the Dead"!.

Another nice touch was the featurette called "The Lost Tape: Andy's Last Days" which shows Andy (the owner of the gun shop, and no I can't tell you more as it will wreck it for you). This was shot on DV and tells the story from Andy's perspective as the virus overtakes the town he lives in. It's a gritty kind of filming when you make the move from the main feature to footage as raw as this.

There's a newscast about the virus infecting the world that runs for about 22 minutes and is set up as a proper bulletin with some odd moments that occur during it. It is also shot on what appears to be DV (Digital Video).

Rounding out the rest of the feature are some great special effects showing exploding heads and the process that went into creating so many zombies for a movie shot mainly in daylight. Wait and see how much planning went into the different stages of virus infection to see the level of dedication the filming and make up team had.

All things said and done this is a great film, highly enjoyable and highly recommended.

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