Review of Night Of The Living Dead (Special Edition)

Introduction

Some so-called `Special Editions` are a little bit ho-hum. Others, like this `Special Collectors Edition` of George A. Romero`s `Night of the Living Dead`, are so feature-packed that they are more than worthy of the title.

There are very few movies that inspire the devotion that this low-budget horror schlock from the tail end of the sixties does. But is there really room for yet another release? This has been released by at least half a dozen distributors in various forms - from the nasty VHS dub to DVD and sold for £2:00 version, right through to a re-worked, feature-rich `Millennium` version just a couple of years ago.

So why another just now? Well, the forthcoming release of Romero`s fourth film in the Dead trilogy (yeah - I know…), `The Land of the Dead` might have had something to do with it. Or maybe it`s just that Romero is as fed up as the rest of us with the sub-standard versions flooding the market. Whatever the case, this has been officially approved by Romero as the ultimate and final version - and some might say deservedly so.

It really does contain everything that a fan could want - and then some. Not only is this one of the cleanest prints that I`ve seen (though this is still the low budget, low grade film-stock etc that it`s always been - and I haven`t seen the `Millennium` version which I understand is very good), but it includes the 5.1 surround sound reworking, as well as the original mono for purists. Add to that all the extras included here (see `Special Features`), as well as the cool tin packaging (sadly not included with my review copy) and I think, for those who love this film, this really will be an essential purchase.

So what about those of you who haven`t seen this movie? Where the hell have you been? Are you serious? Well, `Night of the Living Dead` is notable for being one of the last of a generation of low-budget Drive-in horror movies. But despite being a labour of love by college student George Romero and friends, it also was a triumph of invention and ingenuity over constraint.

Whether the hand-held camerawork was deliberately shaky for effect, or was just that way through lack of budget for tracks or dollies, it really worked. In fact, it helped define a new wave of the horror genre.

The film could easily be dismissed as folksy horror trash - but somehow, despite being a relentless and bloody journey for its main protagonists, it`s a thought-provoking film too.

Although the bulk of the cast were gormless, salivating flesh eating zombies, its impossible not to get drawn into the high octane roller-coaster ride of horror that leaves you feeling like you`ve been dragged through a hedge backwards. And if that doesn`t give you pause for thought, what will?

Worthy of note was the inspired casting of black actor Duane Jones. Despite the fact that there`s no hint of a racial element to the film, the relentless attack upon him did echo the feelings of the civil rights movement of the day, and this aspect has been the subject of much analysis since its release. But I doubt that this was intended. Duane Jones was just a good actor willing to work for peanuts - and proved to be a good choice.

Interestingly this film was shot in black and white for budgetary reasons, despite the fact that nearly every feature film of the day, and most television output too, used colour stock. For me this just adds to the atmosphere and horror of the piece as so much is still left to the imagination. Even though the half-eaten skull found at the top of the stairs near the front of the film, for example, was apparently made from a Ravell plastic model kit, it loses none of its horrific potency for that.

The movie kicks off with Barbara (Judith O`Dea) and brother Johnny (Producer Russell Streiner) visiting their father`s grave in a backwater cemetery, miles from civilisation. As night is about to fall, Johnny jokes with Barbara - saying `they`re coming to get you Barbara!`. And frankly they do - because at that moment they`re approached by a stranger who seems intent on getting his hands on Barbara (we later learn that its food he`s after).

Johnny bites the dust early on, but not before putting on some distinctive leather gloves so that we`ll recognise him when he returns from the dead towards the end of the movie. Poor old Barbara is then relentlessly pursued - and failing to escape by car, she finds a deserted house and tries to take shelter there.

Fortunately for her, she is soon discovered by non-zombie Ben (Jones) who sets about protecting them both within the house by whatever means he can. What follows is like `Assault on Precinct 13` multiplied by `Straw Dogs`, if such an equation could be imagined. Zombies are everywhere, out in force and hungry. And as night draws in the battle to keep the un-dead at bay gets harder and harder.

Produced on a paltry $114,000, the film shows the strains of working at a budget - but maybe that`s part of its macabre charm. Certainly there is nothing here to match the prosthetics of the sequels - here we just get a blank look, a bit of white face powder and a dopey expression. But it`s still plenty scary!

Perhaps worthy of note is the initial screenplay (included on this disc in full as a DVD-Rom feature) which is very impressive given the lack of experience by all involved. It`s a no nonsense script that clearly had the end results in mind from the outset.

Whilst there is little to shock the jaded audiences of today, `NOLD` has its moments - and the chilling ending, with its moral message about how man treats man will surprise most who will be watching the film for the first time. I don`t intend to spoil that here…

Video

This is certainly a much cleaner print than I`ve seen, though there appears to be little contrast here. I cranked mine up which improves matters slightly, but this may not live up to the `Millennium` edition repro.

Audio

Various options here - original mono (for purists), as well as a 5.1 reworking. The 5.1 moves some of the spot fx and ME to the rear, though most of the action remains centre stage.

There are also tow audio commentaries to choose from though I`ve covered these in the extras.

Features

AUDIO COMMENTARIES
There are two commentaries here. The first features Romero himself, along with screenplay writer John Russo, Karl Hardman and Marilyn Eastman. Romero dominates, naturally, and the atmosphere is light and fun. These are old friends enjoying a reunion. There`s a lot to be gleaned here about how the film was made - and the complications of working with such a small budget.

There`s also a `cast` version, with Judith O`Dea, Bill Hinzman, Keith Wayne, Russell Streiner and Kyra Schon. This is a real light-hearted romp down memory lane that shows that, despite the joshing, there are no regrets and in fact, even some sense of pride amongst the modesty and self-deprecation.

INTERVIEWS
Also included are a couple of interviews. There`s a lengthy audio only interview (well, with a couple of stills) with Duane Jones, apparently the last before he died. It`s about 20 minutes long and this shows Jones to be a highly articulate and intelligent man - still bemused by the film`s success. It`s quite a revelation that, not only has he never seen another film in the `Zombie` series, but that he never saw another Romero film. His faux modesty gets a little wearing by the end of the interview though and I couldn`t help thinking that if I were amongst those at the table (you hear plenty of off mike sycophantic laughter) that I would have been excusing myself before too long.

The second interview is with the gorgeous Judith Ridley (still looking good after all these years) who played Tom`s girlfriend. This is a video based interview chat and reveals that Judith was no actor at all but happened to be around the offices at the time of filming. She subsequently appeared in the Romero `lost` movie `There`s always Vanilla`.

OTHER
There`s a healthy chunk of Romero`s `lost` masterpiece `There`s always Vanilla` which, based on these extracts, looked set to be a mighty fine film. I hope they recoup all the rushes and pull it together one day.

Also included are a stills gallery that for once is actually rather good. It`s a collection of articles, letters, reviews, photos and associated memorabilia.

There`s also a brief article by John Russo (the screen-writer) as well as all 400 pages of the original manuscript treatment, in white out of black background text. This is a DVD-Rom only extra and you`ll benefit from the use of something like `Comic Reader` to make your way through it. What a fantastic bonus of an extra!

Conclusion

Despite the fact that the DVD racks have been flooded with versions of Romero`s original Zombie classic, it would seem that there`s room for just one more. The good news is that this is the most comprehensive set that you`re ever likely to get your hands on with a list of extras that, for once, earn its right to call itself a `Special Collectors Edition`.

Some might argue that the `Millennium` edition was a better transfer, though the movie is in pretty good shape here.

For die-hard fans this will be an essential purchase - and for those that haven`t seen this low-budget, genre-defining classic, well, here`s your chance.