Lesson Four: Zombies
Zombies are defined as reanimated corpses. In folklore they have been linked to Voodoo but in popular culture, this is not really true. Modern zombies, in pop culture, are quite different from their folklore brothers and sisters. Modern zombies are typically depicted in popular culture as mindless, unfeeling monsters with a hunger for human brains and flesh. Typically, these creatures can sustain damage far beyond that of a normal, living human (generally these can only be killed by a wound to the head, such as a head shot) and can pass whatever syndrome that causes their condition onto others. Modern zombies are depicted in mobs and waves, seeking either flesh to eat or people to kill or infect, and are typically rendered to exhibit signs of physical decomposition, such as rotting flesh, discolored eyes, and open wounds, and moving with a slow, shambling gait. They are generally incapable of communication and show no signs of personality or rationality; however, as with any other monster, zombie characteristics can change. There are some very influential zombie movies that have taken these effects and made their zombies into instant cult classics. A few of the most popular movies will be discussed below.
The Zombie genre is a very popular genre. We can see it actually being broke down into 3 phases.
Before Romero, Zombies were not flesh eating animals, they were mainly deceased people who
were under some sort of voodoo spell or under some sort of control. They were reanimated from the grave to do their master's bidding. Some examples of this are:
In 1968 George Romero, widely considered the Godfather of the Zombie genre, created Night of the Living Dead and other films part of the "Dead" series. In this genre, we saw zombies not as slaves to their masters or the dead being brought back due to some voodoo, but as the living dead that will eat your flesh. Once bitten, it is only a matter of time before the bite-ee will be the bite-er. These zombies were not fast, nor as animalistic as we see the zombies today, but they over-powered you in numbers.
The modern day zombies are faster, or animalistic and have evolved in their cognitive skills and communication abilities and comedic relief (Shaun of the Dead-2004, Fido-2006) . Also, today we have seen the movies give a reason as to why these zombies are zombies: it all came down to government/scientific experiments, 28 Days Later, 28 Weeks Later, Resident Evil series.
The Zombie genre is a very popular genre. We can see it actually being broke down into 3 phases.
- BR (Before Romero)
- Romero (Godfather of the Zombie Genre because not only did he write and direct the classics, the movies had a deeper meaning than just flesh eating monsters, plus he created a mirror image and an underlying theme of current day society in his films.)
- Modern Day Zombies
Before Romero, Zombies were not flesh eating animals, they were mainly deceased people who
were under some sort of voodoo spell or under some sort of control. They were reanimated from the grave to do their master's bidding. Some examples of this are:
- White Zombie (1932) starring Bela Legosi - This is considered the first zombie movie that sparked the genre
- I Walked with a Zombie (1943) Starring Tom Conway and Frances Dee
In 1968 George Romero, widely considered the Godfather of the Zombie genre, created Night of the Living Dead and other films part of the "Dead" series. In this genre, we saw zombies not as slaves to their masters or the dead being brought back due to some voodoo, but as the living dead that will eat your flesh. Once bitten, it is only a matter of time before the bite-ee will be the bite-er. These zombies were not fast, nor as animalistic as we see the zombies today, but they over-powered you in numbers.
The modern day zombies are faster, or animalistic and have evolved in their cognitive skills and communication abilities and comedic relief (Shaun of the Dead-2004, Fido-2006) . Also, today we have seen the movies give a reason as to why these zombies are zombies: it all came down to government/scientific experiments, 28 Days Later, 28 Weeks Later, Resident Evil series.
Night of the Living Dead
This movie has not been rated - but it's still intense.
Chaos descends upon the world as the brains of the recently deceased become inexplicably reanimated, causing the dead to rise and feed on human flesh. Speculation rests on a radiation-covered NASA satellite returning from Venus, but it only remains a speculation. Anyone who dies during the crisis of causes unrelated to brain trauma will return as a flesh-eating zombie, including anyone who has been bitten by a zombie. The only way to destroy the zombies is to destroy the brain. As the catastrophe unfolds, a young woman visiting her father's grave takes refuge in a nearby farmhouse, where she is met by a man who protects her and barricades them inside. They both later discover people hiding in the basement, and they each attempt to cope with the situation. Their only hope rests on getting some gasoline from a nearby pump into a truck that is running on empty, but this requires braving the hordes of ravenous walking corpses outside. When they finally put their plans into action, panic and personal tensions only add to the terror as they try to survive. - imdb.com
This is the first film of George Romero's Dead series. The zombies in this movie are not as gruesome as the zombies we see in today's modern movies. It was all about insinuating what happened. It was all in your head. We did see zombies "eating" flesh but it was some sort of huge turkey leg or other animal meat.
This movie is the modern day zombie movie that gave the rules to the movies that are made today. It gave the reason for the undead to rise because of radiation that was coming from a space probe that reentered our atmosphere. The zombies are now reanimated and crave flesh. If bitten, you do not turn quickly into the dead like we see in some modern day movies like 28 Days Later or the remake of Dawn of the Dead. But the victim who was bitten is slowly dying and then reanimated. The only way to kill a zombie is to destroy the brain by gunshot or by any other damage to the brain or brain stem.
You can see how the zombies are portrayed by watching the famous scene, "They are coming to get you, Barbara" We've seen zombies move a bit slower in future Romero movies but since this was the first there really was no reference for the actors. But the Zombies were relatively silent, and moved in a sluggish but powerful manner. Also you can see there is close to no blood in this scene nor the movie, but the use of music and lighting give this movie such a terrifying and scary feel. I also want to give caution to those that may be a bit easy to scary...even though this scene is not graphic, it can be a bit terrifying for those easily scared. To me, since I am a horror buff, I appreciate the fantastic scene that help spanned zombie movies to come and made this one of the most famous lines ever captured on celluloid.
This is the first film of George Romero's Dead series. The zombies in this movie are not as gruesome as the zombies we see in today's modern movies. It was all about insinuating what happened. It was all in your head. We did see zombies "eating" flesh but it was some sort of huge turkey leg or other animal meat.
This movie is the modern day zombie movie that gave the rules to the movies that are made today. It gave the reason for the undead to rise because of radiation that was coming from a space probe that reentered our atmosphere. The zombies are now reanimated and crave flesh. If bitten, you do not turn quickly into the dead like we see in some modern day movies like 28 Days Later or the remake of Dawn of the Dead. But the victim who was bitten is slowly dying and then reanimated. The only way to kill a zombie is to destroy the brain by gunshot or by any other damage to the brain or brain stem.
You can see how the zombies are portrayed by watching the famous scene, "They are coming to get you, Barbara" We've seen zombies move a bit slower in future Romero movies but since this was the first there really was no reference for the actors. But the Zombies were relatively silent, and moved in a sluggish but powerful manner. Also you can see there is close to no blood in this scene nor the movie, but the use of music and lighting give this movie such a terrifying and scary feel. I also want to give caution to those that may be a bit easy to scary...even though this scene is not graphic, it can be a bit terrifying for those easily scared. To me, since I am a horror buff, I appreciate the fantastic scene that help spanned zombie movies to come and made this one of the most famous lines ever captured on celluloid.
Dawn of the Dead
Rated R: Restricted – Under 17 requires accompanying parent or adult guardian.
(1978) Sequel to "Night Of The Living Dead." It's some time after the dead have started to rise and attack the shocked living, and civilization has started to crumble. In the city of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA, TV station workers Stephen and Francine decide to run as the situation worsens and, after meeting Roger and Peter (two special policemen ordered to move any people into rescue stations) who have also choose to run, steal the station's helicopter and fly west in an attempt to find a safe place. After several attempts during their flight across Pennsylvania, they find a deserted mega-mall in Monroeville, outside Pittsburgh and decide to wait there until the crisis is over. They clear the mall of the undead and board the entrances up with tractor-trailers and then sit down and wait. Can they hold out, not only against the growing, moaning, and hungry masses of the undead outside, against murderous looters, but most importantly of all, can they hold out and not lose their sanity...? - imdb.com
(2004) A nurse named Ana and her husband Louis have a romantic night together as an emergency broadcast comes on the TV, warning of an unknown plague that revives the recently-dead as cannibalistic zombies in search of living flesh. Next morning, Louis is attacked & killed by a young girl zombie - their next-door neighbor. Minutes after he dies, Louis is on his feet and pursuing Ana. She escapes to her car to see her neighborhood in chaos; emergency vehicles everywhere, flaming buildings - and zombies pursuing the few remaining living people. After a narrow escape a policeman, Kenneth, rescues her and they meet up with three others, who head to a closed shopping mall in search of safety. One at a time, some of those they seek refuge will die and return as zombies, and former friends now become deadly enemies. They finally figure out a way to escape by armoring two mall shuttle buses to get through the masses of living dead zombies....Will they succeed? - imdb.com
The 1978 version and the 2004 version of Dawn of the Dead are completely different in terms of storyline and zombie-ism but they do hold similarities, such the epidemic of attacks and the story location. In the 1978 version, Dawn of the Dead takes place soon after Night of the Living Dead. The epidemic couldn't be contained and the zombies seemed to grow in numbers. Four survivors are forced from their apartment complex and try to find safety. They end up at a mall (just like in the 2004 version) to try to wait out the zombie problem. The zombies in this movie are vicious: we see more blood and better makeup design; however, these zombies are still slow moving (compared to modern day cinema zombies).
Romero was trying to tell us that the zombies have a natural pull to bring us to what they knew when they were the living: shopping at the mall. Some sort of commercialism theme ran through this film and in the 2004 version. The zombies just naturally gravitated to the mall.
In the 2004 version, James Gunn, did the same thing Danny Boyle did for 28 Days Later, he made the zombies run. This one little change, added with better special effect, gave the look of the zombies an even more terrifying quality. However unlike the 1978 version, we do not know why people became zombies. There was no prequel to the 2004 Dawn of the Dead. All we know is that the day before this epidemic hit, people were coming down with flu like symptoms, then the next morning it was the end of civilization.
In all the Romero films, we see the zombies and something that is ALMOST invincible..destroy the brain, destroy the zombie. But the strength and savagery of the zombies are not really felt until Dawn of the Dead 2004 and 28 Days Later. We see the brutality and the wild animal nature of the zombies. It's as if they are us but reverted to our most basic animalistic need.
Another first for zombie-ism is in the 2004 version of Dawn of the Dead, we see the birth of a zombie baby. OK this happened one other time in cinematic history with Peter Jackson's Dead Alive, it was supposed to be a joke because Dead Alive was a comedy horror film. In Dawn of the Dead 2004, this was done in all gravity and seriousness. James Gunn made this scene so powerful because it showed the innocence taken away from a life not yet born. The baby was still in the womb when the mother was bitten, and since the baby and mom are one, it was only natural for the baby to become a zombie.
(2004) A nurse named Ana and her husband Louis have a romantic night together as an emergency broadcast comes on the TV, warning of an unknown plague that revives the recently-dead as cannibalistic zombies in search of living flesh. Next morning, Louis is attacked & killed by a young girl zombie - their next-door neighbor. Minutes after he dies, Louis is on his feet and pursuing Ana. She escapes to her car to see her neighborhood in chaos; emergency vehicles everywhere, flaming buildings - and zombies pursuing the few remaining living people. After a narrow escape a policeman, Kenneth, rescues her and they meet up with three others, who head to a closed shopping mall in search of safety. One at a time, some of those they seek refuge will die and return as zombies, and former friends now become deadly enemies. They finally figure out a way to escape by armoring two mall shuttle buses to get through the masses of living dead zombies....Will they succeed? - imdb.com
The 1978 version and the 2004 version of Dawn of the Dead are completely different in terms of storyline and zombie-ism but they do hold similarities, such the epidemic of attacks and the story location. In the 1978 version, Dawn of the Dead takes place soon after Night of the Living Dead. The epidemic couldn't be contained and the zombies seemed to grow in numbers. Four survivors are forced from their apartment complex and try to find safety. They end up at a mall (just like in the 2004 version) to try to wait out the zombie problem. The zombies in this movie are vicious: we see more blood and better makeup design; however, these zombies are still slow moving (compared to modern day cinema zombies).
Romero was trying to tell us that the zombies have a natural pull to bring us to what they knew when they were the living: shopping at the mall. Some sort of commercialism theme ran through this film and in the 2004 version. The zombies just naturally gravitated to the mall.
In the 2004 version, James Gunn, did the same thing Danny Boyle did for 28 Days Later, he made the zombies run. This one little change, added with better special effect, gave the look of the zombies an even more terrifying quality. However unlike the 1978 version, we do not know why people became zombies. There was no prequel to the 2004 Dawn of the Dead. All we know is that the day before this epidemic hit, people were coming down with flu like symptoms, then the next morning it was the end of civilization.
In all the Romero films, we see the zombies and something that is ALMOST invincible..destroy the brain, destroy the zombie. But the strength and savagery of the zombies are not really felt until Dawn of the Dead 2004 and 28 Days Later. We see the brutality and the wild animal nature of the zombies. It's as if they are us but reverted to our most basic animalistic need.
Another first for zombie-ism is in the 2004 version of Dawn of the Dead, we see the birth of a zombie baby. OK this happened one other time in cinematic history with Peter Jackson's Dead Alive, it was supposed to be a joke because Dead Alive was a comedy horror film. In Dawn of the Dead 2004, this was done in all gravity and seriousness. James Gunn made this scene so powerful because it showed the innocence taken away from a life not yet born. The baby was still in the womb when the mother was bitten, and since the baby and mom are one, it was only natural for the baby to become a zombie.
Day of the Dead and Land of the Dead
Rated R: Restricted – Under 17 requires accompanying parent or adult guardian.
The Dead have conquered earth, leaving just small groups of people out of their clutches. One group made up of both scientific and military personal, hiding in a bunker somewhere in Florida tries to get in contact with other survivors of the zombie infestation, but find themselves quite alone in this new world. Desperately searching for a cure and therefore indulging in strange experiments to overcome this strange transformation into zombies, the scientists loose the faith of the military, resulting in a race against death while the zombies take over the facility.. Only common sense can save them now... Written by - imdb.com
This might have appeared to be just a sequel to Dawn of the Dead (1978), but this movie gave us something more. Before this movie, zombies were seen as mindless monsters. However, this movie was the first time Zombie movies were given a bit of intelligence and speech capability. In this installment of Romero's Dead series, he shows the breakdown of human "living" society to the dead. The zombies are so overpowering that the living had to run to an underground bunker. We start to see humans try to find a reason why the dead are walking again. A scientist discovers that the zombies do not eat flesh out of hunger, but out of instinct. Like its something natural, like breathing is to the living. The scientist tries to introduce a human flesh substitute called "Beef Treats", but the dead do not accept artificial flesh. We also see zombies trying to be re-introduced to the "living" style of life. Bub, a more docile and gentle zombie than most,learns to use razors to shave, use a phone, a toothbrush..etc. He is able to "think" even if it is in the most childlike manner. However, zombies start to over power the living because of failed experiments and only a few humans get away. This is a common thread in the Romero movies if watched in order: no matter how small the problem was, the living keeps losing the battle while the dead increase in numbers. Through time, the zombies increase in intelligence, as we can see in the next movie...Land of the Dead
Land of the Dead In this new tale a harrowing vision of a modern-day world where the walking dead roam an uninhabited wasteland and the living try to lead "normal" lives behind the walls of a fortified city. A new society has been built by a handful of enterprising, ruthless opportunists, who live in the towers of a skyscraper, high above the hard-scrabble existence on the streets below. But outside the city walls, an army of the dead is evolving. Inside, anarchy is on the rise. With the very survival of the city at stake, a group of hardened mercenaries is called into action to protect the living from an army of the dead. imdb.com
As the Romero zombie films progress, we can see that each time a new film comes out, the zombies tend to evolve. Like in Land of the Dead (2005). The zombies in that film not only have some level of intelligence but they tend to problem solve. Their brains actually have some sort of "life" and they can communicate with one another and realize that in order to get the most basic need, "food", they must work around obstacles to achieve that basic goal. As in all of Romero's films, there is a deep societal meaning. In this movie, he shows the separation between the classes. The rich are seemingly safe in their walled in city while living in their high rise apartments, while the poor live in squaller. The zombies live on the outside where the living have to occasionally venture out to get supplies. This walled in society is not run by the president but by a businessman who supplies protection.
The characters in Land of the Dead fall into three basic social classes: The “haves”, the “have-nots” and the “destitute and undesirables”. The haves are the rich: the ones who live in the high rise tower "safely" away from the zombies and the poor. The Have-nots are the people who do not live in the tower. They live outside, poor, and on the streets. The destitutes or undesirables are the zombies. The zombies really are not looking for trouble. They are outside the wall in their own environment;, however when the "have's" want supplies they send out the have-nots to get them...beyond the wall. These have nots use the zombies as game. They shoot them and "re-kill" them. The main zombie, "Big Daddy," decides enough is enough and wants to take revenge on the mastermind. So the zombies head towards the walled city.
This installment of the "Dead" series is truly fascinating because we see actual communication, strategic planning to bring down "the man". Yes the zombies still eat human flesh, but what is truly amazing and shows the evolution of the zombie genre is at the end of the movie when the zombies break into the walled city, there is a scene where the main character (a have-not) named Riley, sees Big Daddy (zombie). Their eyes meet and there is some un-said communication between them that there is an understanding that the zombies are there to get revenge on the rich and not the "have-nots". The zombies have a specific purpose. This is different from previous zombie movies, where the zombies tend to just have the most basic human nature of eat to survive, where as this purpose is of a higher meaning. Fight to survive.
This might have appeared to be just a sequel to Dawn of the Dead (1978), but this movie gave us something more. Before this movie, zombies were seen as mindless monsters. However, this movie was the first time Zombie movies were given a bit of intelligence and speech capability. In this installment of Romero's Dead series, he shows the breakdown of human "living" society to the dead. The zombies are so overpowering that the living had to run to an underground bunker. We start to see humans try to find a reason why the dead are walking again. A scientist discovers that the zombies do not eat flesh out of hunger, but out of instinct. Like its something natural, like breathing is to the living. The scientist tries to introduce a human flesh substitute called "Beef Treats", but the dead do not accept artificial flesh. We also see zombies trying to be re-introduced to the "living" style of life. Bub, a more docile and gentle zombie than most,learns to use razors to shave, use a phone, a toothbrush..etc. He is able to "think" even if it is in the most childlike manner. However, zombies start to over power the living because of failed experiments and only a few humans get away. This is a common thread in the Romero movies if watched in order: no matter how small the problem was, the living keeps losing the battle while the dead increase in numbers. Through time, the zombies increase in intelligence, as we can see in the next movie...Land of the Dead
Land of the Dead In this new tale a harrowing vision of a modern-day world where the walking dead roam an uninhabited wasteland and the living try to lead "normal" lives behind the walls of a fortified city. A new society has been built by a handful of enterprising, ruthless opportunists, who live in the towers of a skyscraper, high above the hard-scrabble existence on the streets below. But outside the city walls, an army of the dead is evolving. Inside, anarchy is on the rise. With the very survival of the city at stake, a group of hardened mercenaries is called into action to protect the living from an army of the dead. imdb.com
As the Romero zombie films progress, we can see that each time a new film comes out, the zombies tend to evolve. Like in Land of the Dead (2005). The zombies in that film not only have some level of intelligence but they tend to problem solve. Their brains actually have some sort of "life" and they can communicate with one another and realize that in order to get the most basic need, "food", they must work around obstacles to achieve that basic goal. As in all of Romero's films, there is a deep societal meaning. In this movie, he shows the separation between the classes. The rich are seemingly safe in their walled in city while living in their high rise apartments, while the poor live in squaller. The zombies live on the outside where the living have to occasionally venture out to get supplies. This walled in society is not run by the president but by a businessman who supplies protection.
The characters in Land of the Dead fall into three basic social classes: The “haves”, the “have-nots” and the “destitute and undesirables”. The haves are the rich: the ones who live in the high rise tower "safely" away from the zombies and the poor. The Have-nots are the people who do not live in the tower. They live outside, poor, and on the streets. The destitutes or undesirables are the zombies. The zombies really are not looking for trouble. They are outside the wall in their own environment;, however when the "have's" want supplies they send out the have-nots to get them...beyond the wall. These have nots use the zombies as game. They shoot them and "re-kill" them. The main zombie, "Big Daddy," decides enough is enough and wants to take revenge on the mastermind. So the zombies head towards the walled city.
This installment of the "Dead" series is truly fascinating because we see actual communication, strategic planning to bring down "the man". Yes the zombies still eat human flesh, but what is truly amazing and shows the evolution of the zombie genre is at the end of the movie when the zombies break into the walled city, there is a scene where the main character (a have-not) named Riley, sees Big Daddy (zombie). Their eyes meet and there is some un-said communication between them that there is an understanding that the zombies are there to get revenge on the rich and not the "have-nots". The zombies have a specific purpose. This is different from previous zombie movies, where the zombies tend to just have the most basic human nature of eat to survive, where as this purpose is of a higher meaning. Fight to survive.
28 Days Later
Rated R: Restricted – Under 17 requires accompanying parent or adult guardian.
Animal activists invade a laboratory with the intention of releasing chimpanzees that are undergoing experimentation, infected by a virus -a virus that causes rage. The naive activists ignore the pleas of a scientist to keep the cages locked, with disastrous results. Twenty-eight days later, our protagonist, Jim, wakes up from a coma, alone, in an abandoned hospital. He begins to seek out anyone else to find London is deserted, apparently without a living soul. After finding a church, which had become inhabited by zombie like humans intent on his demise, he runs for his life. Selena and Mark rescue him from the horde and bring him up to date on the mass carnage and horror as all of London tore itself apart. This is a tale of survival and ultimately, heroics, with nice subtext about mankind's savage nature. -imdb.com
28 Days Later is what alot of people today consider the zombie movie that changed zombie movies. Before 28 Days later, the zombie genre still played by the same rules. They moved slowly, craved flesh, and if bitten, you would turn into a zombie..eventually. However, in this 2002 film, the rules have evolved. For starters, this is the first modern non-zombie zombie movie.
There was no apocalyptic meteor that crashed to earth to turn people to zombies. No humans were zombies in the beginning. What happened is something new to the zombie genre. Scientist were experimenting on animals to try and understand rage. This was only meant to stay within the animal population in the laboratory; however, when a handful of animal activists break into the lab with intentions of setting the animals free, one of them gets bitten.
This virus that was injected into the chimpanzee bit the woman, causing her to become a savage "zombie" animal. This didn't take hours or minutes...but seconds after the bite. This is different from previous zombies movies because before it took time to change over. Another thing that was different about this movie compared to previous movies was that, one did NOT need to be bitten in order to change. Blood of the infected only needed to be swallowed or somehow absorbed into the body. There is a scene in the movie where Brendan Gleesan (who plays Frank) is standing outside an abandoned gas station. He is next to a truck and hears a crow moow-ing. As he looks up, a drop of infected blood drops in his eye and he starts to change quickly. First he feels an irritation, followed by heat, and then his anger grows more and more. This all happens in abut 20 seconds. The people when infected never fully died, but instead it was more of a transition to rage.
Another major rule breaker to the old zombie films is that director Danny Boyle did one thing to make the zombies much more horrifying. He made them run. Not just a trotting run, but full fledged sprinting like a crazed lion that is hell bent on eating your flesh. This is something that is so simple. Before this, Zombies over powered you by the numbers. Yes they were slow and you could out run them, but with this new evolution of zombie, there was no guarantee of escaping. They now ran just as fast if not faster. And if you don't destroy their brain they will keep on coming after you. Also, the people who were infected were never called zombies. They were called the infected because we knew what caused this epidemic: The Rage Virus.
28 Days Later is what alot of people today consider the zombie movie that changed zombie movies. Before 28 Days later, the zombie genre still played by the same rules. They moved slowly, craved flesh, and if bitten, you would turn into a zombie..eventually. However, in this 2002 film, the rules have evolved. For starters, this is the first modern non-zombie zombie movie.
There was no apocalyptic meteor that crashed to earth to turn people to zombies. No humans were zombies in the beginning. What happened is something new to the zombie genre. Scientist were experimenting on animals to try and understand rage. This was only meant to stay within the animal population in the laboratory; however, when a handful of animal activists break into the lab with intentions of setting the animals free, one of them gets bitten.
This virus that was injected into the chimpanzee bit the woman, causing her to become a savage "zombie" animal. This didn't take hours or minutes...but seconds after the bite. This is different from previous zombies movies because before it took time to change over. Another thing that was different about this movie compared to previous movies was that, one did NOT need to be bitten in order to change. Blood of the infected only needed to be swallowed or somehow absorbed into the body. There is a scene in the movie where Brendan Gleesan (who plays Frank) is standing outside an abandoned gas station. He is next to a truck and hears a crow moow-ing. As he looks up, a drop of infected blood drops in his eye and he starts to change quickly. First he feels an irritation, followed by heat, and then his anger grows more and more. This all happens in abut 20 seconds. The people when infected never fully died, but instead it was more of a transition to rage.
Another major rule breaker to the old zombie films is that director Danny Boyle did one thing to make the zombies much more horrifying. He made them run. Not just a trotting run, but full fledged sprinting like a crazed lion that is hell bent on eating your flesh. This is something that is so simple. Before this, Zombies over powered you by the numbers. Yes they were slow and you could out run them, but with this new evolution of zombie, there was no guarantee of escaping. They now ran just as fast if not faster. And if you don't destroy their brain they will keep on coming after you. Also, the people who were infected were never called zombies. They were called the infected because we knew what caused this epidemic: The Rage Virus.
Resident Evil
Rated R: Restricted – Under 17 requires accompanying parent or adult guardian.
Something rotten is brewing beneath the industrial mecca known as Raccoon City. Unknown to its millions of residents, a huge underground bioengineering facility known as The Hive has accidentally unleashed the deadly and mutating T-virus, killing all of its employees. To contain the leak, the governing supercomputer, Red Queen, has sealed all entrances and exits. Now a team of highly-trained super commandos including Rain, Alice and Matt must race to penetrate The Hive in order to isolate the T-virus before it overwhelms humanity. To do so, they must get past the Red Queen's deadly defenses, face the flesh-eating undead employees, fight killer mutant dogs and battle The Licker, a genetically mutated savage beast whose strength increases with each of its slain victims. - imdb.com
Resident Evil is a different type of Zombie flick. The movie series is based on the popular video game. There are some differences in the traditional rules of zombie-ism; however, they pretty much follow the rules. The only major difference is that zombies are not zombies, they are called the "infected" just like in 28 Days Later. Also, the infection does not only infect humans, but it infects animals, which was never or rarely seen in any other zombie movie. The animals that are infected are just as savage. A bite from the animal is just like that of an infected human. The difference, though, unlike in 28 Days Later, is that the infection takes time to spread. And when one turns into a zombie, they actually die and then reanimate, unlike 28 Days Later where there is a quick transition from human to infected savage.
Also, the zombies move slowly but not as slow as when the genre first started. They also evolve in intelligence. Also, with this T-virus in certain people, it gives them super strength and a different mutation rather than killing them and reanimating them into a flesh eating zombie. We see this this not only in Alice (main character) but other characters throughout the 3 movie series. If you looks closely you'll see that the Resident Evil movies tend to mirror Romero's Dead series. It starts out small, but the scale of the infection just grows larger and larger.
Resident Evil is a different type of Zombie flick. The movie series is based on the popular video game. There are some differences in the traditional rules of zombie-ism; however, they pretty much follow the rules. The only major difference is that zombies are not zombies, they are called the "infected" just like in 28 Days Later. Also, the infection does not only infect humans, but it infects animals, which was never or rarely seen in any other zombie movie. The animals that are infected are just as savage. A bite from the animal is just like that of an infected human. The difference, though, unlike in 28 Days Later, is that the infection takes time to spread. And when one turns into a zombie, they actually die and then reanimate, unlike 28 Days Later where there is a quick transition from human to infected savage.
Also, the zombies move slowly but not as slow as when the genre first started. They also evolve in intelligence. Also, with this T-virus in certain people, it gives them super strength and a different mutation rather than killing them and reanimating them into a flesh eating zombie. We see this this not only in Alice (main character) but other characters throughout the 3 movie series. If you looks closely you'll see that the Resident Evil movies tend to mirror Romero's Dead series. It starts out small, but the scale of the infection just grows larger and larger.
Shaun of the Dead
Rated R: Restricted – Under 17 requires accompanying parent or adult guardian.
Shaun is a 29-year-old with no real ambition in life, much to the consternation of his friends, family, and fed-up girlfriend. With only a loyalty to his lazy best friend Edgar, a dead-end job where his employees step on him, and the good-ol' days, Shaun isn't exactly putting his best foot forward. But when the flesh-hungry undead start to rise in numbers around modern-day London, Shaun must come to the rescue of his girlfriend and mother before all hell breaks loose. With loyal Edgar at his side to fight the good fight, the two will have to pave their way through zombie-ridden London as Shaun must take on the first real challenge in his life--with comical results. -imdb.com
Shaun of the Dead is a comedic-horror zombie movie. Writers Edgar Wright and Simon Pegg are huge fans of George Romero; therefore if you are fans of his movies and are quick to pick up on things you can see homages to the Dead series. There was no reason really given to why everyone became zombies, except maybe some government experiment (a theme common now in modern zombie movies).
Like the Dead series, the zombies in this movie move slowly. There is a small amount of communication and understanding between zombie & zombie and zombie & human. As time goes on the evolution of the zombies have also increased. The one contradiction in this movie about the rules of zombie-ism is that zombies are supposed to be able to sense the living, therefore eating their flesh. However, there is a part in the movie where Shaun and his crew are trying to get to the Winchester Bar. They notice that the bar is surrounded by zombies and figure the only way to get passed them is to pretend they are zombies also. They do this and go undetected until a cell phone goes off and reveals they are still the living. The zombies realize this and then go after Shaun and his crew.
There is another scene that shows the zombies ability to understand complicated games. Shaun and his best friend Ed are a bunch of grown up teenage boys who love to play video games. Ed ends up getting bitten and becomes a zombie, and in secret Shaun rescues him and keeps Ed in the shed like a pet. Ed is still dangerous but he somehow has the memory of playing video games and that Shaun is his best friend. There is a part at the end where Ed tries to bite Shaun while they play but Shaun says "no" and Ed stops and continues playing.
Shaun of the Dead is a comedic-horror zombie movie. Writers Edgar Wright and Simon Pegg are huge fans of George Romero; therefore if you are fans of his movies and are quick to pick up on things you can see homages to the Dead series. There was no reason really given to why everyone became zombies, except maybe some government experiment (a theme common now in modern zombie movies).
Like the Dead series, the zombies in this movie move slowly. There is a small amount of communication and understanding between zombie & zombie and zombie & human. As time goes on the evolution of the zombies have also increased. The one contradiction in this movie about the rules of zombie-ism is that zombies are supposed to be able to sense the living, therefore eating their flesh. However, there is a part in the movie where Shaun and his crew are trying to get to the Winchester Bar. They notice that the bar is surrounded by zombies and figure the only way to get passed them is to pretend they are zombies also. They do this and go undetected until a cell phone goes off and reveals they are still the living. The zombies realize this and then go after Shaun and his crew.
There is another scene that shows the zombies ability to understand complicated games. Shaun and his best friend Ed are a bunch of grown up teenage boys who love to play video games. Ed ends up getting bitten and becomes a zombie, and in secret Shaun rescues him and keeps Ed in the shed like a pet. Ed is still dangerous but he somehow has the memory of playing video games and that Shaun is his best friend. There is a part at the end where Ed tries to bite Shaun while they play but Shaun says "no" and Ed stops and continues playing.