Long Live the Dead: George A. Romero | Offscreen
The American director George A. Romero left the world of the living on 16 June. This B-Z is a posthumous tribute to the godfather of the modern zombie movie. Thanks to Romero, the zombie, a previously somewhat marginal figure from the horror pantheon, became a worldwide plague. Whereas in the past the zombie was confined to the exotic appearance of his Haitian voodoo origins, Romero gives him a contemporary appearance with his low-budget debut movie "Night of the Living Dead" from 1968. At the same time, he takes the horror of the Gothic and mythological castles and puts them brutally on the sidewalk of small town America. Through the metaphor of the cannibal zombie, which he further develops with the apocalyptic sequel films "Dawn of the Dead" (1979) and "Day of the Dead" (1985), he exposes the racial hatred, gender discrimination, consumerism and militarism that lay hidden in late 20th century society. He will then have to wait for more than 20 years before he can once again turn out a fourth installment to his saga of the undead. Thanks to the success of "28 days later", "Resident Evil" and the remake of "Day of the Dead", the light turns green for Romero, allowing him to realize the version originally intended for “Day of the Dead”, seriously reduced at the time due to budgetary complications. The result, "Land of the Dead," received mixed reviews when it was released in 2005, but has in the meantime assured its cult status as a monumental B-movie satire on Republican America under Bush Jr.
Night of the Living Dead
An ultimate classic of the modern horror film. The dead come out of their graves and devour the living. A group of survivors barricades themselves in an isolated farm that is quickly encircled by a horde of ravenous zombies. But the danger does not only come from outside, when the relations between the members of the assaulted group grow worse because of mistrust and degenerate into internal conflict.
Land of the Dead
The zombies have almost conquered the entire planet. What remains of mankind has found refuge in a fortified city where a brutal upper class guided by Dennis Hopper (in an inspired Donald Rumsfeld imitation) makes sure to subdue the street scum. But the army of undead outside the enclosure, seems to show an ounce of intelligence and appears to be organizing itself…