Dawn of the Dead Review. . .

So just came out of my second time seeing Dawn of the Dead, and figured I'd jot down some of my thoughts about it. I am strongly convinced that this might be one of the best horror movies I've seen in years. It's scary, intense, and suspenseful. . .and while it pushes itself to the limits, it's doesn't do what the Texas Chainsaw Massacre remake did and just try to disgust it's audience. It knows what to show and when to pull away.

Some people will quibble that it's not as good as the original, but I'm going to disagree. I think the original was interesting and eerie, but not terrifying. The slow zombies were scary because they were everywhere, but there was never that sense of terror. And some will point out that the social satire that permeated the original (its attacks on consumerism) are not in the new version. But, I disagree. I think that this is a perfect horror movie for our time. And I'll launch into a quick rundown of why.

The fast-moving zombies are a great mirror of our frentic, aggressive, give-it-to-me-now times. Our celebrity fixation is poked fun at. And the hand-held, sped up footage at the end as the streets turn into a war zone is a perfect view of our post-9/11 culture.

But all those things simply enhance this movie. It's great because, at heart, it's an honest-to-goodness take-no-prisoners horror movie. There's humor, but not that ironic "Scream" quality. The characters are terrified about what's happening. The situation feels real and the characters are surprisingly (for this genre) developed enough to care about. Plus, it starts before the main credits and doesn't end until during the end credits. That intensity is what was lacking in the similar "28 Days Later."

This sounds like a geeky review, and it is. But I loved this movie. I like being scared. I like dark endings and wicked thrills. This was a great horror movie, something that hasn't been done in awhile. It's not perfect. Some very stupid moves are made. And I swear the security guard ripped his character's style (down to the mustache) and attitude (including one almost-word-for-word-riff) off Ben Stiller's sadistic attendant in Happy Gilmore.

Well, that's about it for today. I'll write tomorrow when Jersey Girl is on the agenda!!

C-Dubbs