Sunday, January 11, 2009

Why, George, Why?



I know, it seems a real sacrilege to diss this film. It really does.
But I have to be honest when I say this movie just didn't do it for me.
Much as I respect the great George Romero (we're not worthy...we're not worthy) - I think maybe he might want to re-think any current zombie movies he might have on the brain.

Some people (or so I've read) are calling this a masterpiece. Seriously?
To me, it seemed like a cross between Cloverfield and MTV's The Real World (which isn't saying much on either account).
The whole hand-held movie camera schtick has simply got to end at some point, right?
It was absolutely brilliant in The Blair Witch Project.
Then everyone and their mother started doing it and it meant nothing. Not clever. Pure crap.

Ok. Plot goes like this: The recently deceased are coming back to life.
WOW, something new, you say? I wish.
This concept was great. In 1968.
Forty years later and we have nothing new to add but a movie camera filming the events happening? Ugh.

The acting in this movie sucked. I especially hated the lead character Jason (Joshua Close)...he was the jackass shoving the camera in everyone's face as they ran for their lives. Hated him nearly as much as his bitchy, completely unlikeable girlfriend, Debra (Michelle Morgan).
I wished a zombie would eat her freakin' brains!

Hard to believe anyone found this concept frightening. I sure didn't.
There were a few good gore scenes, but to be totally honest, Cloverfield came off more scary than this. And Blair Witch? Vastly superior to this poppycock.
We're supposed to believe that if a so-called zombie was chasing you - or your girlfriend - you would make sure you kept that camera rolling, no matter if your friend gets an ax in the head or their guts ripped out or what have you.
Silly, that's all I can say.
I wanted to punch Jason countless times and actually could not wait to see his innards turn to mush.

On a positive note: I did enjoy the mention of Pittsburgh (and surrounding locations) in the film, which is typical of longtime 'Burgh resident Romero.

Anyway... I didn't like Diary of the Dead, and now I know why I waited so darn long to move it up on my Netflix queue. Can't get those 96 minutes back.
Unfortunately, I have read on Wikipedia that Romero is making yet another zombie installment called (tenatively) Island of the Dead.
Help.

I am a HUGE fan of Romero's black and white original NOTLD, and drag it out on several occassions throughout any given year to get my zombie fix. But I'm not really much of a zombie freak, to be honest.

Echoing my previous posts, bring on the vampires.
I like my undead still do-able. Sorry.

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