Customer Reviews

Land of the Dead [UMD for PSP]

5 star:		(103)
4 star:		(105)
3 star:		(67)
2 star:		(46)
1 star:		(69)

 

 

The dead are mad as heck and aren't going to take it anymore! When we last caught up with George Romero's "Dead" films, "Day of the Dead" focused on the military trying to train the zombies for combat and experimenting on them. Romero takes the next step introduced into a world divided by the dead and the living each sharing space reluctantly with the other. That is until a gas station attendant zombie shows an inkling of intelligence and decides to go after the living in a sealed off skyscaper while those less fortunate live on the streets of the sealed off metropolis. Run by Kaufman (Dennis Hopper in perfect looney mode), the city is supplied by "employees" who can't live in the beautiful people's skyscraper. These scavengers led by Riley (Simon Baker) and Cholo (John Leguizamo) pillage the landscape around them for essential items for the wealthy. Riley has a conscience decides he will no longer lead the crew of his "tank" Dead Reconkening and work for "the man" anymore. Cholo, on the other hand, keeps doing Kaufman's dirty work in hopes that he'll be able to buy his way into the wealthy paradise.

As usual Romero has lots of gore but, more importantly, there's a sly political and satricial message at the heart of the movie. Romero who has been an independent filmmaker his whole life probably identifies with Riley and thinks of the film studios as Kaufman and his denizens. It's a much broader metaphor though as it can be used to look at the disappearing middle class and the disintegration of the class system in America. It's a fun ride with some of Romero's most accomplished filmmaking. Working with a budget of around $20 million Romero manages to do the same kind of work as was seen in the remake of his "Dawn of the Dead" last year. Interestingly, the more films Romero makes in his "Dead" series (and this probably going to be the last or at least next to last because of his age), the more milage he gets out of the inspiration for the entire saga--Richard Matheson's novel "I Am Legend" which was turned into the low budget horror movie "The Last Man on Earth" with Vincent Price (and the campy "The Omega Man" with Charleton Heston).

Outstanding effects are nicely off set with strong performances by the cast including Asia Argento (daughter of Romero friend and Italian horror film director Dario Argento) as a former hooker named Slack who is almost fed to the "stenches" (as the city inhabitants refer to the rotting zombies)in a bizarre scene that satrizies "Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome". Romero hasn't lost his touch and although this doesn't have quite the revolutionary punch of "Dawn of the Dead" or "Night of the Living Dead" it's an improvement on "Day of the Dead" as well as most of the horror films out there.

The DVD has a very nice transfer and with the exception of an occasional bit of digital shimmer, the film looks as vibrant and alive as the bright red gushing blood. This is much more an action adventure movie than the previous films in the horror series and provides a nice bookend to the remake of "Dawn of the Dead" (even if it isn't related). Sound is pretty lively with a nice 5.1 and DTS mix that will have you looking over your shoulders for the undead.

Extras include a lively commentary by "Dead" director Romero, producer Grunwald and editor Michael Doherty. There's also a number of featurettes on the making of the film but my personal favorite is "When Shawn Met George" about when Simon Pegg and Edgar White (star & writer and director * writer respectively) of the comedy/horror film "Shawn of the Dead" met Romero and appeared as extras in "Land of the Dead". We get to see how they're made into the undead and the first meeting between the three of them. "Undead Again" provides a glimpse into the making of the film. "Green Screen to Finished Screen" gives us before and after comparisons between the raw footage and the finished footage with optical effects. "Storyboards and Final Scenes" looks at the storyboards inserted as PIP with the finished product. "Scream Tests" opens with a very funny outtake featuring dancing zombies from the CGI footage for the film. "Scenes of Carnage" is pretty self explanatory. "Bits and Pieces" are scenes that were cut. Although none of the featurettes are quite as exhaustive as those provided as extras for the three disc set of the original "Dawn of the Dead". There's also some other extras including a behind-the-scenes "A Day with the Living Dead".

Could "Dead" have been more? Sure. There were some missed opportunities here regarding the life in the tower but then that would have been a completely different movie. Romero's done a terrific job given the limitations of time and budget. Deftly balancing satire, horror and humanism, Romero makes one of his best films in years. I'm hoping this does well at the box office so that Romero can get financing to continue to examine the post-stench world a bit more. Oh and it's a Romero rarity with an ending that's actually more upbeat than I expected.

We should have known that if George A. Romero was going to go back to the well of the living dead another time he was going to come up with something different. What "George A. Romero's Land of the Dead" (the director's name goes up top so you know this is not merely another remake of one of his zombie films, like last year's "Dawn of the Dead") offers is two variations on the familiar theme. The first is in this brave new world humanity has found a way of perpetuating the old divide between the "haves" and "haves not," even when there are all those zombies out there suggest it should now be "us" versus "them." Kaufman (Dennis Hopper) has set up Fiddler's Green, a luxury high rise on an island between a couple of rivers (think the location of Three River Stadium in Romero's old stomping ground of Pittsburgh even though the movie is shot in Toronto). There the "haves" live while the rest of the island has the "have nots," some of whom are hired as mercenaries to go out into the world and bring back "necessities." Apparently money still matters in the "Land of the Dead," or perhaps people are merely trying to hold on to the old way of life, because the poor are not listening to those advocating going and taking away from the rich.

Consequently, humanity has found a way to survive. You can compare the more active approach of "Land of the Dead" with the mall rats of "Dawn of the Dead," who found a passive means of existence. Kaufman has built Dead Reckoning, a gigantic armored vehicle that leads foraging parties out into the world. These parties are led by Riley (Simon Baker), whose primary goal is getting everybody back alive, which does not always happen. That is because he works with Cholo (John Leguizamo), who has a different idea of necessities, one attuned to the fine tastes of Kaufman. Both men believe they are on their last mission at the start of this 2005 film, Riley because he will have now earned enough to pay for a car to get out of town and Cholo because he believes he has now earned the chance to move on up to Fiddler's Green. Both are wrong and that sets up the conflict to come.

This is where the second variation comes into play. Kaufman not only created a high rise where the "haves" are protected from that "have nots," some of whom actually help the "haves" have even more, but the entire island is zombie proof. This forces Romero to change the zombie part of the equation, and so we are introduced to Big Daddy (Eugene Clark), who runs a gas station and has a moment akin to when the ape looks at the thigh bone in "2001: A Space Odyssey." Just to help us along the voice over at the start of the film warn us that if the zombies ever develop anything approaching rudimentary thinking skills that would be a bad thing, a very bad thing indeed. So, of course, that is what happens. After all, if you can have bad humans, then you can have good zombies (Joss Whedon has convinced me being dead does not make a character inherently bad).

Having a zombie to root for is quite a different experience, but Romero also delivers on the guts and gore when the zombies go into their patented feeding frenzy. The narrative can offer all the sly social satire it wants, we watch these movies to be disgusted by the bloody scenes of cannibalism. The people Romero hires to do makeup and special effects are clearly on the cutting edge when it comes to this type of work. Even when you watch the DVD special features and you see what they are doing in bright light most of it will still creep you out, so the scenes in the film shot at night or in the shadows with the liberal application of blood and other things it is even worse (which is a good thing in a zombie movie).

The bottom line is that Romero delivers just what his fans want with this movie so that there is not a problem with failing to meet expectations. No, "Land of the Dead" is not the best of the bunch, but for my money nothing will surpass the original "Night of the Living Dead." The important thing is that here we are four films into the series, limiting ourselves to just the Romero helmed ones, and the series is certainly going a lot strong than the other comparable horror series, all of which have been abandoned by their creators (which is either a cause or effect). Final Note: Look for Simon Pegg and Edgar Wright of "Shaun of the Dead" fame as the photo booth zombies in one of the classic cameos of the early 21st century.

I've read several reviews for Land of the Dead in the past week. Some praised it, while some dismissed it as a "rehash" or "uninspired" film, saying it does nothing to further the Romero legacy. I've heard it's not funny. I've heard it's character's sucked. I've heard lots. I'm here to let you know that Romero's new addition not only fits like a glove to the original three - it's hillarious, well acted, well concieved, and looks beautifully-dirty at that!

When I hear people say LAND is "unoriginal", it makes me chuckle. No other horror filmmaker can mix social commentary, humor, and gore like Romero, and if there is one out there, he'she probablly got the idea from Romero anyway!

I saw LAND last night, at a midnight show here in Chicago. From the opening old-school UNIVERSAL logo, to watching KAUFMAN say things like "We don't negoitate with terrorists," to watching a population of zombies appear from under the water in what, to me, is one of the creepiest moments I've felt in a looooong time, I not only thouroughly enjoyed this flick, I welcome it WHOLEHEARTEDLY as an instant classic.

The underlying story is a cautionary one - just like Night, Dawn, and Day. It's shows a population that have locked themselves in, so much so that when it comes time to escape, they can't. It tells of a ruthless leader that keeps the outside population occupied with drugs, sex and entertainment to keep their minds from coming together and storming Fiddler's Green. The Green is a skyscraper-fortress that Kaufman and his cronies have turned into a new city, one that holds every memory of the former life - shopping malls, gyms, movies, etc. This film is about zombies, obviously. But like every Romero films before, it's also about our post 9-11 world, living in fear, isolating ourselves in a big world, and so much more. The effects are UNMATCHED. I didn't notice ANY CGI throughout the whole thing. There were a couple puppets, and they looked amazing.

Overall, this is one BIG ASS THUMBS up for a long awaited flick. The end caused pause initially. I felt it could have been better. However, I wake up this morning and rethink everything in my head and I'm satisfied. It wraps the microscopic story up like a lovely package, leaving the macroscopic problem wide open.

Loved it.

Peace!

George A. Romero is a name synonymous with the zombie genre. NIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD and its sequel, DAWN OF THE DEAD are two all-time horror classics. That is why it is such a shame and disppointment he sacrificed this movie, the fourth and supposedly final installment in his Dead cycle, in order to make silly socio-political commentary.

LAND OF THE DEAD has so much wrong with it I don't know where to begin. A movie in which zombies have the capabilty to think, organize and utilize tools and weaponry is as bad --if not worse-- as the recent DAWN OF THE DEAD remake in which zombies run about with speed and agility. While it is true that writers Mark E. Rogers (THE DEAD) and Brian Keene (THE RISING, CITY OF THE DEAD) have had success with the concept of intelligent zombies; however, the ghouls of their novels are mere vessels, possessed by demonic spirits (a concept which was ever so slightly hinted at in the aforementioned DAWN OF THE DEAD remake). Romero, on the other hand, doesn't allow demonic or any otherwise preternatural explanations for his zombies' origins. All we know is that soon after the return of a space probe in 1969, the recently deceased began coming back to life (see NIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD). Only the brain's "reptilian core," the part which makes us move and eat is reactivted. Since the more complex, cerebral part rapidly decays at the point of death, the Romero zombie is forever incapable of being anything more than a walking eating machine. Taking this futher through its course, regardless that the rate of decomposition has slowed down, since the undead receive no real nourishment from their cannibalistic cravings and since they are under constant exposure to sun, heat and the elements, no zombie would still be walking after 20 years. Contrary to what some reviewers here believe, horror writers and filmmakers cannot simply "do whatever they want to do" with the subject matter or genre they work in. Like the vampire or like the werewolf, the zombie has become a horror institution. As vampire enthusiasts overwhelmingly resist the idea of those bloodsuckers roaming about in the daylight, zombie fans expect their particular monster to be slow but ominous, individually weak but deadly in numbers. Few of us get our fright rocks off watching a calculating, plotting corpse.

Regardless whether the zombies act intelligently or not, this movie fails through bad direction, horrible plot and script and an almost total disregard for detail. In Romero's world, ordered society supposedly fell apart circa mid-1970s. Yet in LAND OF THE DEAD we see cash still being used. Add to this absurdity a scene in which a teenager is left alone in the middle of the night in some isolated spot to collect some of that cash; meanwhile, while waiting for the drop, he plays video games and has headphones blasting in his ears. You can see we have one cheesy production here.

Two things though render this movie not just bad but insulting:
In his previous Dead films Romero always had a black man as the hero. Here, not only is the leader of the zombies, "Big Daddy," a black corpse; but the only living black character is a stepinfetchit butler stereotype. In his zeal to attack all things he perceives Republican, Romero resorts to insulting every African-American viewer and fan out there.
The other insult is directed at anyone with common sense and pertains to those scenes where crowds of people are supposed to be overrun by zombies. The extras used in these shots are terrible. Clearly they look more amused than terrified, fleeing for their lives. In fact some of them seem to be trying not to burst out with laughter from all the fun they are having playing at being chased by zombies! Shoppers and diners inside the tower seem unaware to the very loud and chaotic fact that just one floor below them zombie hordes have crashed through and are coming up the escalators!

Poorly conceived, sloppily directed, wasted quality actors (Dennis Hopper, John Leguizamo) and dripping with contempt for its own genre and fans, LAND OF THE DEAD is a tacky failure and Romero should be ashamed of himself for making this garbage. Perhaps someday he will come to his senses and make one more Dead flick truly deserving of his name and legacy.

I really wanted to see this movie when it came out in theaters, as I have become quite the George Romero enthusiast over the past few years and there hasn't been a new "Dead" movie in almost 20 years (if you exclude the remakes). But unfortunately, it dropped out of theaters just as fast as it arrived. But here, it arrives in all it's "Unrated Director's Cut" glory. It's surprising this movie didn't do very well, afterall, it was obviously only greenlit after the runaway success of zombie flicks such as last year's flacid remake of "Dawn Of The Dead," "28 Days Later" and to a lesser extent, "Shaun Of The Dead" (whose creators appear in this movie). Don't let the box office disappointment steer you away from this flick though...

"Land Of The Dead" is 100 percent George Romero. All of the elements that made the original "Dead" movies such classics are carried over here. Great characters, original and thoughtful story, loads of action, and let us not forget: gore galore. The special effects truly steal the show here, as this is hands down the goriest movie I have seen in a long time (although, I'm sure much of it was trimmed down in theaters). The effects look real, unlike most newer horror flicks, and are a refreshing throwback to the 70's and 80's. As for the cast? Dennis Hopper, John Leguizamo, Simon Baker, Asia Argento. What more can I say? Dennis Hopper is great as the greedy, self-appointed leader of a new society, John Leguizamo is perfect as the badass rebel looking for a way out, Simon is his opposite, the sympathetic hero and Asia (whose father, Dario, has close connections with Romero) plays the strong female bit, and a semi-love interest to Baker's character. The story picks up exactly where "Day Of The Dead" left off. Now that the Dead (or "stenches," as they are referred to) have pretty much overtaken Earth, the upper-class citizens (i.e. those with money) have holed themselves up in a giant complex that serves as a new world, while the rest of the population are forced to fend for themselves on the street. There are obvious political undertones in this film that reflect on today's society (the supplemental material on the DVD further confirmed my theories) and in typical Romero fashion, it is pulled off very maturely, while still managing to entertain.

The movie isn't exactly perfect. My main gripe is that it is too short for it's own good. What I love about Romero's flicks is how you can get sucked into this alternate world he creates. Here, just as I was getting hooked, the movie was ending. But even still, it works well in it's 95 minute slot. All the actors were great in their roles, and the characters were well-written, despite the fact that there wasn't much time for exposition (I wish we could have gotten to see and gotten to know more of Argento's character though), and the best part: The zombies in this movie are REAL zombies. Not rabid, blood-thirsty animals. Don't get me wrong, I like today's zombie flicks, but nobody does it like George, and "Land Of The Dead" is a testament to that.

Awesome zombie masterpiece!!!

A true example of Romero's genius, this was truly a keeper for fans. I was really glad I went to see it when it came out and the audience pretty much enjoyed it.

However, the movie was not bolstered by 28 Days Later (an awful movie) nor RE, but it's bolstered as a great zombie flick because of the fact that's it's done by the Master of Zombie
movies, George A. Romero.

Romero knows how to do zombie flicks, the ones every other third rated director (Paul W.A Anderson, Uwe Boll), try to copy but fail miserably at it.

Why do they fail? Crappy special effects,limited or no story, bad directing, well with the master at the helm that wasn't going to happen, nor we're we going to have a major disaster on our hands. Romero really gave his followers something good again, and he needs to recognized again for it.

The fourth zombie flick in the Dead saga finds a couple of renegades for hire who work for a rich white tycoon named Kaufman (excellenty done in fashion by Dennis Hopper).

Hopper as Kaufman was deliciously evil, humorous and twisted. He reminded of George W. Bush in a way, he is an evil conservative who could care less about people dying in his own country,
all he cares about is making a profit, and saving his own hide all the while spewing propaganda about what he's done when everything he's done has been for himself.

This is actually an element of the movie from interviews George A Romero has given that he actually wanted to do more. Besides giving us a great zombie flick to eat out popcorn with he wanted to implement political and social satires. Always the brilliant
director as he did with Dawn of the Dead, he does so here. Well done George.

The gore for the movie was extremely high so gorehounds will not be disappointed at all. There's also certainly a high amount of action and pulse pounding violence and suspense to keep people in their proverbial seats for the whole viewing. This truly is a great movie.

Even Tom Savini has a cameo in the movie.

Moving on the mercenaries after killing many zombies, have a fallig ou. Cholo (John Leguizamo) who as another Latino actor and one of the best gives a great performance, takes into custody Dead Reckoning the advanced zombie killing machine unit. Riley (Simon Baker) hates Cholo ruthlessness but deep down they both are the same.

Anyhow Kaufmann enlists Riley's help in getting the thing back all the way Kauffman has ideas of his own. Eventually everyone gets what they deserve at the end and of the top of that we have two hours of non stop zombie action!!!

To sum up, this is a great zombie flick, and it's a great horor movie overall, George A Romero kicks butt and maybe Uwe Boll and every other mediocre horror director could learn a lot from him.

Okay its close to being the perfect movie. Does it have zombies?? Well duh. Does it have lesbians ?? Two chicks making out only to be eaten by zombies. Does it have midgets ?? Hell yeah and hes wearing a PURPLE PIMP SUIT.Does it have Ninjas??? Sadly no. 3 outta 4 aint bad though.I guess since I saw Batman thatll have to do. This movie is like Road Warrior with Zombies.Oh and Tom Savini dressed like Sex Machine from From Dusk Till Dawn and the original Dawn of the Dead as a zombie wielding a machete and cutting a guys head in half if pretty sick too. OHHH YEAH.The guys from Shaun of The Dead are the guys in the photoshop booth. As zombies of course. The giant moblie tank Dead Reckonging is pretty sweet too. If you like blood guts and any of the above mentioned things with lots of intestines then go see this movie.

As a big fan of Romero I liked "Land..." as a zombie movie although it didn't scare me as viscerally like when I saw "Dawn of the Dead" at an impresssionable 12 years of age with some older cousins. "Dawn" left me with that hyper-creepiness the world we know is ending with people we know--who look like us--tearing us apart with gnashing teeth and eating our innards at a place we knew everyday, the shopping mall. Here we get an apocalyptic wasteland populated by ghouls with a city fortress of rich people and a second-class tier of people who fight the zombies for everyday items. It left me little to hold on to in terms of a "this could happen now and today" creepiness "Dawn" instilled but it still gave me my fix of zombie scares. The zombie munchfests still had me squirming in my seat. The characters were real enough given their setting and some moments were palpable in its sense of dread and creep (needed more daytime zombie scenes to make it more real).

I guess I lean towards "Dawn" as the epitomy of zombie creepdom (and NOT the remake with its uber Nike sprinting zombies that could have just as well have been just an angry mob and not the creeping unsleeping nonresting everpresent shuffling undead--). The makeup in "Land" is far superior to the blue-makeup, squib packing of the dead in "Dawn". But "Dawn" felt real--like it could happen--and that you were "f"'ed if you didnt get your act together. But in "Land" you got your scares, your zombies, your apocalyptic wasteland Romero style and that alone is worthy of any zombie fans to check this one out.

One of the greats has come back to make a GREAT movie. I loved it. i cant wait till it hits the shelves at the movie store. the zombies look awesome, the actors are perfect, and the story is a nice tie-in to the previous films by the MASTER of the genre.

I was very bored with the movie. Frankly I seen this sort of thing over and over again with other "Dead" movies that I found no originality in it. You have a bunch of loud foul-mouthed rambo guys (lots of f*** words) with big machine guns shooting up zombies that formed a group capable of learning. The leader zombie, who is learning to be a rambo, I thought, was corny.

I realized people raved about it...but I found it dead all right--dead as in dull: What and where is the originality? And the rambo type of acting is soo corny.

Some of the eviscerating scenes were very good, but where is the originality in that as well???

I hope this is the last one of the series. If not I'm sure it will be another clone.