Dawn of the Dead is a zombie horror film, the second in George A. Romero's Living Dead series of films (following Night of the Living Dead (1968)). This shocking movie, in addition to launching the so-called "splatter craze" in horror films, received much critical acclaim for, among other things, the subtext involving American consumerism and materialism. It features the tagline "When there's no more room in hell, the dead will walk the earth." An Artistic Interpetation of a Zombie A zombie is an undead person in the Caribbean tradition of voodoo. ... DVD cover showing horror characters as depicted by Universal Studios. ... George Andrew Romero (born 4 February 1940) is an American director, writer, editor, actor, and composer. ... A young zombie and her victim Night of the Living Dead (1968) is a seminal horror film directed by George A. Romero which was to transfigure the horror-movie genre. ...

The film, shot during a period of approximately four months in late 1977 and early 1978, was made on a relatively low budget of around $1.5 million. Filming of scenes in the Monroeville Mall in Monroeville, Pennsylvania was done only when the shopping center was closed for business, roughly between 10:00 PM and 8:00 AM; as Director Romero put it, "Filming in the mall was hell." Zombie make-up effects, created by Tom Savini, varied widely from the austere to the impressive. Most undead extras received little more than gray make-up slathered on their exposed skin. Monroeville Mall is a massive shopping mall complex in Monroeville, Pennsylvania, an eastern suburb of Pittsburgh. ... Monroeville is a Home Rule Charter Municipality located in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania. ... Tom Savini is an award-winning actor, stunt man, director and special effects and make-up artist. ...

However, despite limitations imposed by 1970s film-making technology, late-night filming and budgetary constraints, the film is one of the most fiscally successful horror films ever (based on production cost versus profit). The film's great success is due, in large part, to the fact that the film made great use of the international market. It was edited and presented in a variety of ways, based on popular expectations for cinema in each market for which it was intended. For example, Italian producer Dario Argento edited the movie to achieve a story with considerably less character development and a much faster pace, in comparison to Romero's definitive cut, which was peppered with humor and driven by cultural satire. Dario Argento (born September 7, 1940) is a film director, producer and screenwriter well known for his work in the typically Italian giallo genre, and for his influence on modern horror and slasher movies. ...

A remake of the movie premiered in the United States on March 10, 2004. The new version varies considerably from the original; many of the major themes, including the primary setting in a shopping mall, remain essentially the same, but the film is a complete rewrite with no input from Romero. Dawn of the Dead (2004) is a remake of George Romeros 1978 film of the same name. ... March 10 is the 69th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (70th in Leap years). ... 2004 is a leap year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ...

The Plot

Following the scenario set up in the previous movie, Night of the Living Dead, the film depicts a United States of America struck by a plague, the symptom of which is the reanimation of dead human beings whose primary goal is to feast on the flesh of the living. The cause of this plague, as in the first film, remains defiantly unexplained. Despite desperate efforts by the U.S. Government and local civil authorities to control the situation, society has effectively collapsed and the remaining survivors seek any refuge they can find. Plague redirects here. ...

The plot centers on four Philadephians: a local television personality named Francine; her traffic pilot boyfriend, Stephen; one of his close friends, Roger, a SWAT Team member; and the ever-resourceful Peter, also of the Philadelphia SWAT team. As in the first film, the black character, Peter, is the primary hero. Roger is increasingly reckless, while Stephen is incompetent and petty; in true horror film style they both suffer for their character flaws. For other uses, see SWAT. SWAT officers SWAT (an acronym for Special Weapons and Tactics; originally Special Weapons Attack Tactics) is a specialized paramilitary police unit in major United States city police departments, which is trained to perform dangerous operations. ...

The film opens in the WGON Television Studio, where confusion reigns. Following some exposition, the plot turns to another of the film's protagonists, Roger, as he and the rest of his SWAT Team raid an apartment building (presumably because the residents, mostly Hispanic, are ignoring aspects of Martial Law). It is during this time that Roger makes acquaintance with Peter, suggesting they leave the SWAT Team, as well as Philadelphia. Hispanic, as used in the United States, is one of several terms used to categorize native and naturalized U.S. citizens, permanent residents and temporary immigrants, whose background hail either from Spain, the Spanish-speaking countries of Latin America or the original settlers of the traditionally Spanish-held Southwestern United...

Late that night, the four leave Philadelphia in a helicopter stolen from the television station, with the intention of reaching the safety of the Canadian wilderness. Following some close calls while stopping for fuel, the group happens upon a shopping mall, they decide to make the mall their own private sanctuary, blocking the large glass doors with trucks, to keep the undead from freely entering. It is during this operation that the impulsive Roger is bitten, doomed to die painfully (and to rise again). After clearing the mall of its zombie inhabitants, the four settle in, each indulging his every material desire. Eventually, Roger passes, and is later put out of his misery by Peter. Time passes, as the undead paw at the mall entrances and society beyond those doors continues its collapse. As the novelty of their materialist Utopia wears thin, they begin to realize their refuge has become their prison. A helicopter is an aircraft which is lifted and propelled by one or more large horizontal rotors (propellers). ... Materialism is the philosophical view that the only thing that can truly be said to exist is matter; that fundamentally, all things are comprised of material. The view is perhaps best understood in its opposition to the doctrines of immaterial substance applied to the mind historically, and most famously by... Utopia, in its most common and general meaning, refers to a hypothetical perfect society. ...

Their "liberation" comes in the form of a large gang of bikers breaking into the mall, and in the process, allowing thousands of the undead creatures in. During their plunder, the foolish Stephen initiates a battle with the bikers. In the end, the only true winners are the ravenous zombies, who feast upon many of the bikers, as well as, eventually, Stephen himself. Upon Stephen's reanimation, he leads a large group of the creatures to Francine and Peter, who are awaiting Stephen's return (either dead or alive). After destroying Stephen, Peter and Francine escape to the roof, and to an uncertain future, as they fly away in the short-on-fuel helicopter, ending the movie.

Trivia

• In the first two movies of the Living Dead series, the main characters wield a lever-action rifle. This is referenced in Shaun of the Dead.

• Tom Savini, the make-up and cosmetic special effects artist for the movie, is seen in several bit roles, notably among them one of the leaders of the biker gang who is addressed as "Blades" for his use of sharp implements, and as the zombie who breaks the window of a truck before being shot by Roger with a revolver. Savini is due to reprise his "Blades" role as a brief cameo in the Land of the Dead sequel.

• The vaguely uplifting finale on the final cut of the film was not what Romero had originally planned. According to the screenplay, Peter was to shoot himself in the head instead of making a heroic escape. Fran would commit suicide by thrusting her head into the rotating blades of the helicopter's propeller. The credits would run over the shot of the helicopter's blades, until the end of the credit roll, when the engine winds down, implying that Fran and Peter would not have had enough fuel to escape. While no footage of this ending has made it to any of the special edition DVD releases, actor Ken Foree said in an interview that he remembers filming the alternate ending.

• The specially-created head model which was to be used to film Fran's decapitation by the helicopter was instead used to film the infamous exploding head scene, early on in the film.

• George A. Romero makes two cameos in this movie: as the director in the television studio and as the Santa Claus biker who is briefly visible in biker raid.

• Christine Forrest Romero (George Romero's wife) makes a cameo as the director's assistant in the television studio.

The movie series created by George A. Romero. ... A lever-action is a type of firearm which uses a lever located around the trigger guard area (often including the trigger guard itself) to load fresh cartridges into the chamber of the barrel when the lever is cranked. The most famous of such lever-action firearms is the Winchester... A rifle is any long gun which has a rifled barrel. ... Film poster for Shaun of the Dead. ... Tom Savini is an award-winning actor, stunt man, director and special effects and make-up artist. ... First fan poster for Land of the Dead Second fan poster for Land of the Dead Land of the Dead (formerly known as Dead Reckoning) (2005) is the name for the fourth installment of the Living Dead zombie movie series. ... A screenplay or script is a blueprint for producing a motion picture. ... DVD is an optical disc storage media format that can be used for storing data, including movies with high video and sound quality. ... George Andrew Romero (born 4 February 1940) is an American director, writer, editor, actor, and composer. ... A young zombie and her victim Night of the Living Dead (1968) is a seminal horror film directed by George A. Romero which was to transfigure the horror-movie genre. ... Day of the Dead (released 1985) is a horror film by director George A. Romero, and the third of four movies beginning with Night of the Living Dead, continued in Dawn of the Dead and completed in Land of the Dead. ... First fan poster for Land of the Dead Second fan poster for Land of the Dead Land of the Dead (formerly known as Dead Reckoning) (2005) is the name for the fourth installment of the Living Dead zombie movie series. ... The 1990 remake of George A. Romeros Night of the Living Dead. ... Dawn of the Dead (2004) is a remake of George Romeros 1978 film of the same name. ...

External links

• Dawn of the Dead (1978) at the Internet Movie Database
• Dawn of the Dead (2004) at the Internet Movie Database
• The Zombie Farm - Long-standing and definitive fan-site
• Trilogy of the dead Large Fansite about the Trilogy of the Dead
• The Ultimate Zombie Book List - Huge listing of zombie novels, anthologies, collections, comic books, and more.
• Homepage of The Dead - The ultimate resource for Romero's Trilogy