Survival of the Dead [DVD] [2009] [Region 1] [US Import] [NTSC]

I am really a big Romero fan as well as a zombie genre fan, so I don't want to come across as a hater. This movie isn't good. I really wanted to like it, but it is just plain bad. The script is full of Romero's usual social statements which is fine, but the hack dialog was excruciating. The story was just bad as well. It involved the renegade national guardsmen from Diary finding their way to an island off the coast of Delaware which has two Irish clans fighting each other over what to do with the dead. Strangely, only a handful of people spoke with Irish accents, the rest didn't even bother. What hurts the movie is the contradictions throughout. One minute the guardsmen say money is worthless, then they are fighting over a million dollars. One of the clans wants to keep the zombies(dead heads in the movie) alive, but later on are shooting them left and right. Also parts of the movie act like the world is completely lawless after 6 days of the dead rising, while other parts have internet and television still being broadcast. I can go on and on. The zombie makeup is fair, but sometimes is looks too much like makeup. The acting runs from fair to poor. The CGI is terrible and really fake looking. The trailers showing the flaming zombie or the fire extinguisher death are good examples of how bad the special effects are. Zombie fans will certainly rent this because of Romero's name, but I would advise to watch it before you buy it.

The shotgun blast of reviews for this film are baffling to me. But then again, it is important to remember that Diary of the Dead was initially trashed, Land of the Dead was moderately reviewed at best and Day of the Dead was initially hated (and is now considered a fan favorite).

With that said, here is my take on it, for what it is worth...

This movie does differ in tone than many of Romero's other films. Certainly not as heavy or serious as Diary of the Dead intended to be or Land of the Dead mostly was. When a National Guard Soldier blows the head off of a zombie (in, albeit, a pretty cheesy CGI effect) in the first few moments of the film, my brain did not go into "This movie sucks" mode as so many others seemed to. My brain went into, "Ah! Just like Dawn of the Dead! This movie is a romp!" Like most competent Directors (and I consider Romero VERY competent as a film director, not to mention Indie film hero), Romero shows us what HE wants us to see and he always has a reason for doing it. That head-blowing-off scene was there for a reason. Several people, I feel, just didn't understand the reason.

I personally feel, many fans of any artist (regardless of medium) begin to form a very rigid idea of what that artist's work is, especially when they come to most of that artist's work after it had been completed (or are young fans as I was). And when said artist creates something new, sometimes fans struggle with the interpretation.

What is unique about this film despite its lighter overall tone(and I feel most critiques missed) is that here we have multi-layered social commentary with a subtle complexity not normally seen even in most Romero movies. The initial question: Should we keep our loved-ones "alive" as-it-were as zombies, hoping for a cure? Eventually devolves into the nature of humanity and its ability to hold grudges far past rationality, common-sense and sanity. Even one of the last lines in the film and the decisions Sarge makes defy reason but are sadly believable from the frame-work of the human mind. The social commentary Romero is known for is here and more complex than ever!

The more I think and reflect on this film the more I realize this is one of Romero's very best in what he has to say about humanity and it is VERY relevant to the times. This film, despite its lighter tone, is a tragedy of the human spirit. It is full of potentially good people making bad decisions, even in the final frames, albeit in a fun and entertaining way. Much like our modern world, in that as we are faced with serious issues and many more serious ones on the horizon, we choose look away, not taking it as seriously as we should and continue to make the wrong choices because we are too rooted in our past. So are the characters in this film.

One final note: If you are a Romero fan, to heck with bad reviews!!! At the very least you owe Romero one viewing of this film, love it or not. This artist created an entire sub-genre of horror and he continues to make films outside of the Hollywood system! This fact alone should guarantee a fan's price of admission. Okay, I'm getting off the soap-box.

I enjoyed this film and when I purchase the Blu-Ray I will continue to enjoy this film. I am grateful Romero is still making movies (especially the zombie ones although I am a huge fan of Bruiser as well) and I hope Romero continues to make more.

I've learned from the past not to be too quick to judge a Romero zombie flick. I was pretty unimpressed with my initial viewing of Diary of the Dead. But after another look I realized just how great that film really is. So I watched SURVIVAL OF THE DEAD a couple of times before attempting a review, and it actually did get a little better with repeated viewings. But still, overall this probably is a slight step back for the zombie master.

It does have decent doses of your expected flesh-chomping madness. I wonder if Romero uses some bad CGI just to illustrate how inferior it is to old school bloody effects with makeup and props. Still he includes some solid gory moments as well. One scene that puzzled me was when some hunters beheaded some zombies and but their heads on wooden stakes. Dead heads on a stick. These zombies kept moaning despite the fact their brains were removed from the spinal cord. This scene looked pretty cool, and illustrated the foolishness of the men. But it seems to contradict the very zombie rules that Romero helped establish. I was under the impression that headshots or beheadings are supposed to incapacitate the undead, release their souls from their decaying corpses. Oh well.

The most notable point this movie makes is about the violent, idiotic nature of man. Even in the most desperate, grim situation humanity refuses to unite and work together. Really, people aren't much smarter than the freakin zombies.

I also enjoyed the conflict of disposing of the walking dead. Killing an infected loved one would be quite a troublesome circumstance. One man takes it upon himself to rid the world of these soulless creatures. Another man sees the zombs as merely having a sickness, and possibly curable. Their obstinate ways proves to be their downfall. Brilliant message.

Overall, SURVIVAL OF THE DEAD is a worthy addition to your zombie collection, or to complete your Romero Dead films. I was pleased it kept the comedy and romance to a minimum. Nowhere near Romero's best by any means, but I'll rewatch this again before another viewing of Zombieland. That's just me though.