CORPORATE LINE: George A. Romero’s Land of the Dead is the acclaimed director’s long-awaited return to the genre he invented, beginning with the seminal Night of the Living Dead and continuing with Dawn of the Dead and Day of the Dead.
In Romero’s harrowing newest vision, the world (as humankind has known it) is merely a memory. In its place is the never-ending nightmare existence of us—the living—versus them—the “walkers.” What’s left of mankind is cordoned off behind the walls of a fortified city while the walking dead roam the vast wasteland beyond. The few wealthy and powerful try to maintain an illusion of life as it was, dwelling high above the city in the exclusive towers of Fiddler’s Green, the last bastion of the ruling class. On the streets below, however, the remaining, less fortunate of the city’s inhabitants eke out a hard-scrabble life, seeking what little solace they can in the vices available—gambling, flesh trade, drugs—anything that offers even a fleeting respite from the hell their lives have become.
Both the lofty heights of Fiddler’s Green and the demoralizing lows of the city below are lorded over by a handful of ruthless opportunists, led by Kaufman (DENNIS HOPPER), who keeps his hands in everything, from real estate to less above-board pursuits. To bring food and other essential supplies to the occupants of the city and to allow the Green’s well-to-do to acquire the scarce luxury items to which they were once accustomed, a hardened group of mercenaries—headed by Riley (SIMON BAKER) and his second-in-command, Cholo (JOHN LEGUIZAMO)—run retrieval missions outside the city, protected by their massive armored vehicle, Dead Reckoning. Riley and Cholo, like Kaufman, are in it for the money, which they hope to use for their own escapes— Riley to the North, with promises of “a world without fences” and freedom, and Cholo to the luxury of Fiddler’s Green, far away from the violent life he has known.
While Kaufman and his employees concern themselves with commerce, life is changing both within and beyond the walls of the city. Unrest and anarchy are on the rise among the city’s disenfranchised and outside, the army of the dead is changing, evolving, learning to organize and communicate.
When Cholo commandeers Dead Reckoning, intent on extorting millions out of Kaufman and his cronies, Riley and his ragtag group—including Slack (ASIA ARGENTO) and Charlie (ROBERT JOY)—are called into action to stop Cholo and, in the process, protect the city and its population from the growing army of evolving zombies storming its weakening perimeter.
THE REVIEW: Romero still has a lot to say. It seems odd in today’s horror movies that there is a message but that is precisely what made Romero’s “Night of the Living Dead” so brilliant. Land of the Dead hits on excess, capitalism, terrorism, and more but have no fear—this is still Zombies ripping people to pieces.
The story is perfect setting for Romero’s zombies to play. At 90 minutes it’s short—even so Romero does a great job pacing each scene. Personally, I could have dealt with another half hour of the walking dead.
The cast is great—even if Dennis Hopper doesn’t play such a great villain. John Leguizamo and Asia Argento are stand outs in a film where actors usually take a backseat to the monsters.
HD-DVD VIDEO: The HD video is better than the regular DVD—and yet it’s not superior. The Land of the Dead doesn’t stand up against a lot of the newly re-released on HD. The look of the movie doesn’t lend itself to being a great looking movie on HD—the shots at night and the colors used to represent the creepiness hold it back.
THE EXTRAS:
The Unrated version has nothing to do with nudity. It is simple the director’s cut that runs roughly four minutes longer. The addition is little more than a scene that was cut and might have been better off that way.
The commentary with Director George Romero, Producer Peter Grunwald and Editor Michael Doherty is full of dead air. There are long pauses where you go with no discussion at all.
“Undead Again: The Making of Land of the Dead” is the best featurette in a set that is lacking. This is little more than a studio after thought.
“Bringing the Dead to Life” is a look into the special effects.
“The Remaining Bits” is so short you can’t consider it a featurette. It’s just a piece that wasn’t used in the director’s cut.
“When Shaun Met George” is a documentary with Simon Pegg and Edgar Wright the fellows that made Shaun of the Dead. One of the more thought out featurettes—still not going to grab viewers.
“Zombie Effects: From Green Screen to Finished Scene” is a short featurette about the CGI used in the movie.
FRANKLY: The genre was resurrected with 28 Days Later and the remake of Dawn of the Dead, now Romero has inject new life into the zombie niche. Land of the Dead still can’t help being tied down to the limitations that Romero created himself. Yet Romero finds ways of livening up the old and making something new and interesting out of it. After all, how many different and cool ways can we see a zombie killed or attack a person? Still Romero makes it creepy and fun to watch.
+ Charlie Craine
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