Gospel of the Living Dead: George Romero's Visions of Hell on Earth (Hardcover)

~ (Author)
Key Phrases: zombie hordes, other zombies, human survivors, Dawn of the Dead, Night of the Living Dead, Gospel of the Living Dead (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Review

A fascinating, insightful tribute to the man who started it all. --Max Brooks, author of The Zombie Survival Guide: Complete Protection from the Living Dead

Finally, a scholar who takes zombie movies seriously. In his nonfiction masterpiece, Gospel of the Living Dead: George Romero's Visions of Hell on Earth, Kim Paffenroth explores how legendary filmmaker George A. Romero uses the living dead to criticize American society, covering topics from racism to materialism, from individualism to theology. Paffenroth describes and analyzes each movie in separate chapters, and makes comparisons to Dante's Inferno. But most disturbing, he indicates parallels between Romero zombies and humans; I've long known the sharp teeth that can undercut our hearts and consciences, but nothing has exposed our fangs quite like Paffenroth s deft scalpel of analysis. A must read for zombie fans and for those elitists who demean horror movies as thoughtless escapism--Paffenroth has taken a huge step in proving these critics wrong. --D.L. Snell, Editor/Contributor, The Undead: Skin & Bones

The author provides terrific insights into an underexamined facet of American popular culture: the zombie films of George Romero. His grasp of the zombie myth and his analyses of the films should inform all future work on the subject. --David Wellington, author of Monster Island: A Zombie Novel

Product Description

Winner of the silver medal in popular culture for the 2006 ForeWord Book of the Year Awards. This volume connects American social and religious views with the classic American movie genre of the zombie horror film. For nearly forty years, the films of George A. Romero have presented viewers with hellish visions of our world overrun by flesh-eating ghouls. This study proves that Romero's films, like apocalyptic literature or Dante's Commedia, go beyond the surface experience of repulsion to probe deeper questions of human nature and purpose, often giving a chilling and darkly humorous critique of modern, secular America.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 195 pages
• Publisher: Baylor University Press (October 30, 2006)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1932792651
• ISBN-13: 978-1932792652
• Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 6.3 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (21 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #153,662 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A nice addition to any Romero fan's library, May 4, 2007

By	Nick Cato "nickyak" (Staten Island, NY United States) - See all my reviews

Paffenroth's treatment of Romero's films offers much by way of theology, something that [....] before in this great of detail. Anyone who has studied/read about Romero will naturally have heard some points made here, but the insights and comparisons to Dante's INFERNO are quite interesting. This one gave me a new interest in the DAWN remake (04), and a new respect for LAND OF THE DEAD (05), despite it being the weakest of the series.

Some people have complained about all the footnotes presented here (there's about 50 pages worth), but I believe it strongly enhances the book, and serves as a fine bibliography (although there's one included, too) for those seeking more material on Romero.

12 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The Teeth that Bite Us, September 21, 2006

By	D. L. Snell "Co-author of DEMON DAYS" (Behind you.) - See all my reviews

Finally, a scholar who takes zombie movies seriously. In his nonfiction masterpiece, Gospel of the Living Dead: George Romero's Visions of Hell on Earth, Kim Paffenroth explores how legendary filmmaker George A. Romero uses the living dead to criticize American society, covering topics from racism to materialism, from individualism to theology. Paffenroth describes and analyzes each movie in separate chapters, and makes comparisons to Dante's Inferno. But most disturbing, he indicates parallels between Romero zombies and humans; I've long known the sharp teeth that can undercut our hearts and consciences, but nothing has exposed our fangs quite like Paffenroth's deft scalpel of analysis. A must read for zombie fans and for those elitists who demean horror movies as thoughtless escapism--Paffenroth has taken a huge step in proving these critics wrong.

12 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Zombies and Religion, September 22, 2006

By	Zombiefiend (Texas) - See all my reviews

Paffenroth's analysis of Romero's zombie films is nothing if not original. Poring over the plot details of each film, he shows the developing vision of Romero through his career, particularly as the work gives voice to the ways in which humans are corrupted. Getting past the sheer gore factor and plumbing to the deep structure messages of Romero's canon, Paffenroth show that what Romero is after is more than gross-out, but social criticism and indictment.