R Kelly Video:

		List Price: $9.99		Label: Universal Studios Salesrank: 3415 Released: October 26, 2004
		Our Price: $3.65
		Used Price: $0.01
		MPAA Rating: Unrated Media: DVD

Editorial Review:
Packed with more blood, more gore, and more bone-chilling, jaw-dropping thrills, Dawn of the Dead Unrated Director's Cut is the version too terrifying to be shown in theaters! Starring Mekhi Phifer, Ving Rhames and Sarah Polley in an edgy, electrifying thrill-ride.

When a mysterious virus turns people into mindless, flesh-eating zombies, a handful of survivors wage a desperate, last-stand battle to stay alive…and human.

Description of Dawn of the Dead (Widescreen Unrated Director's Cut):
Are you ready to get down with the sickness? Movie logic dictates that you shouldn't remake a classic, but Zack Snyder's Dawn of the Dead defies that logic and comes up a winner. You could argue that George A. Romero's 1978 original was sacred ground for horror buffs, but it was a low-budget classic, and Snyder's action-packed upgrade benefits from the same manic pacing that energized Romero's continuing zombie saga. Romero's indictment of mega-mall commercialism is lost (it's arguably outmoded anyway), so Snyder and screenwriter James Gunn compensate with the same setting--in this case, a Milwaukee shopping mall under siege by cannibalistic zombies in the wake of a devastating viral outbreak--a well-chosen cast (led by Sarah Polley, Ving Rhames, Jake Weber, and Mekhi Phifer), some outrageously morbid humor, and a no-frills plot that keeps tension high and blood splattering by the bucketful. Horror buffs will catch plenty of tributes to Romero's film (including cameos by three of its cast members, including gore-makeup wizard Tom Savini), and shocking images are abundant enough to qualify this Dawn as an excellent zombie-flick double-feature with 28 Days Later, its de facto British counterpart. --Jeff Shannon

Dawn of the Dead (Widescreen Unrated Director's Cut) Reviews:
Another great Zack Snyder film
2008-08-08 - I love the style that Zack presents, a very good re-make. I haven't seen the original but i liked this movie.

You've woken up the demon in me
2008-08-01 - Imagine. A clam peaceful morning. A promise of a new day. A promise of love, of hope, of joy and prosperity. A promise shattered. A new dream takes over . . .

Welcome to this brave new world, teaming with the hungering legions of the damned and demented. An inexplicable virus has taken over the barren husks of those who have died and has risen them as new beings - - - beings who must sate themselves on the gory, writhing remains of the living. And, in the soulless eyes of these macabre creatures, a new world takes form - - - a world filled with the wails of the tormented dying, a world drenched in the blood of innocents, a world where corruption and decay rule all, a world where hope has died and been buried. In this Stygian realm, the few survivors must make a new way of life, must lock themselves in a fortress of solitude for their physical safety. They must, regardless of the consequences, band together against the gruesome hordes that await their warm flesh. However, will the slow onset of mental imbalances, unrequited loneliness, and barren heartedness eat them alive before their loved ones do? Only time will tell. The clock is ticking. The dead are waiting. Step up to the gallows. . .

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A Film to Die for:

While the horror genre has long been home to the musings of the demented, Dawn of the Dead takes depression and loneliness to a whole new level creating a film that, simply put, is to die for. The aura is suitably, almost entrancingly, morbid as the film delves into not only the gory rampages of the newly turned, but on the all too real emotions experienced by the few survivors as they struggle to remain alive and, even harder, sane. While Dawn of the Dead is by no means a deep film, it does have that certain something, that inexplicable magic, that makes the viewer care. Yes, indeed, this is one those films that you will spend yelling at the screen, warning the unwitting characters to turn around, or not go down that creepy corridor, or even better, not to hover near those that have just died, indulging in long moments of anguish without remembering just what happens to the corpses of the infected victims. Yes, the characters lack that certain brain power, but, unlike most zombie flicks, it's believable. They reside in a world that rotates around death, not life. A world that overnight turned into a carnal house stacked with the bodies of those they once loved so it is acceptable, even believable, that the characters would have trouble grasping the ramifications of some of their actions, including their "daring" plan in the conclusion.

Of course, the best story in the world is only as good as its telling. How many times have we, the exalted viewers of America, been presented with an interesting movie concept that despite the ingenuity has failed on every level (Aeon Flux comes to mind). And, conversely, how many times have we been presented with a simple, unadorned story that for some reason spellbinds the entire audience (think of Paper Moon.) Dawn of the Dead most certainly falls into the later category. Like most George Romero films (with the exception of that travesty Land of the Dead) the acting is brilliant and emotional, the special effects are surprisingly (and sometimes upsettingly) realistic, and the entire aura of the movie from beginning to end is dismal yet somehow, strangely appealing. Dawn of the Dead creates a horrible world, yet the viewer will want to visit it again and again.

As the movie gains force, the conclusion rushes forward and although, as briefly mentioned above, the characters' daring scheme does present the viewer with major qualms, it is believable and even suitable. Unlike those "cliff hanger" movies that misconstrue intrigue with irritation and decide to end with no revelation or meaning Dawn of the Dead ends dramatically, poignantly, and memorably satisfying the viewer and rounding out the entire movie nicely, leaving no room for complaints or questions. Also, one word of advice, be sure and watch the ending credits because an important event is actually portrayed as the credits role. This is part of the conclusion and is highly important.

Extra Information and a Note to Potential Viewers:

The version of Dawn of the Dead that I viewed was the unrated director's cut (which I highly recommend). The film was originally rated R in theaters. Since this movie contains extreme gore, violence, bad language, and brief scenes of nudity, viewer discretion is advised (and yes, I got that from TV). For those who are interested in the actors/actresses these are some of the names of the outstanding cast: Sarah Polley, Ving Rhames, Jake Weber, and Mekhi Phifer. Also, Dawn of the Dead boasts an excellent soundtrack especially the concluding song, so don't miss it!

- Ravenova

Very happy with purchase and service
2008-07-17 - If you're into zombie movies this is definitely not one to miss. Plenty of action and gore. While not as epic as the original, definitely a well made "re-invisioning" of Dawn Of The Dead.

Fast Running Undead The Advantage For The Living Is Cut Shorter
2008-07-12 - I actually think this is one of the few good zombie movie re-makes that is out there. The first thing you find amazing and very scary is that these undead aren't the slow walking/stumbling kind but well actually give chase to whoever they are after which is a real kick in the nuts for the survivors in this movie. The second was the great acting most of the cast did as when you see them go to the mall and are suddenly trapped inside by the undead with really no other place to go at that time. You see how they interact and how they try to coexist with each other and the situation they find themselves in. The movie had a limited budget so don't expect great special effects an the like not that the effects and makeup they used was bad. The movie is very gory and bloody of course so we pretty much know this is not a family movie to show to the kids but if you're looking for a good horror or zombie movie this one is just for you...

Would have been better if they stuck to the rules...
2008-06-23 - I was rather excited when I first heard about a "Dawn of the Dead" remake, partly because I was pleasantly surprised by Tom Savini's 1990 updating of "Night of the Living Dead" (also reviewed), which against the odds actually turned out to be pretty good.

I've loved the 1978 G. Romero version of "Dawn of the Dead", sequel to "Night of the Living Dead", but it was getting somewhat long in the tooth and starting looking horribly dated...a major problem with many classic 70's movies. So, the updating of a genre classic seemed to be a good idea and timely. The plot seemed to be the same, the characters were being played by non-stars and the early stills looked promising.

Then the bad news started to seep in. Romero didn't give his blessing, `nobody' director Zack Snyder was at the helm and he had also decided that his living dead were going to be able to run the hundred yard dash without a hint of difficulty. None of which bode well. In fact, the remake was looking more and more like a cynical attempt to cash in on a famous eye-catching title and a cheap re-visioning of Romero's script instead of actually creating a new one.

The James Gunn script (Michael Tolkin and Scott Frank were brought in for rewriting) of the new "Dawn of the Dead" follows Romero's quite closely; a group of human survivors of an unexplained apocalypse seek refuge in a huge mall complex as the recently dead start returning to life with an horrific desire to feed on living flesh. It may sound a bit thin, but in Romero's hands it was the middle section of a running series and he used it as a stinging critique on American society and its indulgent consumerist excess.

Snyder's film dispenses with Romero's sly swipe at consumerism though. The super new 'American' malls of 1978 had become so commonplace, not just in the States but also in most parts of the Western World that such a comment from that angle would have been redundant. In fact the Thornhill Square Shopping Centre in Ontario was considered old fashioned. It was torn down after shooting wrapped. Of course consumerism is still a large part of modern human life (probably more so than in 1978), but a mall these days is nothing new. In fact the mall motif is used in Snyder's film because he probably couldn't think of anything different other than the set-up provided by Romero.

Where both versions succeed however, is in grimness which is an essential element in any zombie apocalypse movie. Romero's version has liberal doses of humour (some of it silly like the ineptly handled pie-fight sequence) to relieve the tension and the slowness of the piece. But Snyder wisely abandons putting in slapstick, in favour of more considered humour as in the scene where the survivors and the isolated Andy (Bruce Bohne) in the gun store across the street, relieve their boredom by shooting zombies that look like famous celebrities: "...Rosie O'Donnell! tell him to shoot Rosie!" It's funny, but grim, because the celeb zombies are searched for among thousands of other hungry walking corpses waiting outside in the streets below. It's a vision of the breakdown of social norms and structure. The original version presents this breakdown too, but in a more subtle way. Humanity slowly turns off the lights of offices in the city and melts into darkness as the survivors steal a TV station helicopter and learn to begin surviving on their own in the grim new reality. In many ways Romero's more studied and slower film presents a more realistic breakdown of social order than Snyder's fast paced vision.

But Snyders worst 'sin' in his magpie remake is his misguided tinkering with Romero's take on the living dead. Whereas Romero's favourite monsters are a slow, rotting, shuffling horde whose sheer number and relentless advance is very much part of their creepy menace, Snyders zombies are like Linford Christie or Ben Johnson. They have no problem racing at 25MPH toward their victims. There are some who find this particular addition to "zombie attributes" exciting, but I found it to be a completely ridiculous. Snyder's living dead possess the muscular strength needed to run at sustained speeds but they cannot break the windows of a shopping centre to get to the human flesh inside. I can suspend belief enough for the idea of the dead coming back to life and wanting to eat flesh, but I draw the line at them running all over the place without any difficulty at all. They are, after all, re-animated corpses and should be subject to some sort of difficulty in movement. The worst offender of these new super strength zombies is the legless corpse who attacks the heroes in the underground carpark. It's a haphazard attempt at a cheap shock and it doesn't work.

On the plus side, Snyder's film has better make-up effects and more accomplished gore. Of course, Tom Savini was at the cutting edge of horror makeup in 1978 and there have been many advances made in makeup effects (a lot instituted by Savini himself) and many have been incorporated into David Anderson's special effects crew for the movie, I'm sure. However, as Snyder admits himself, Romero's "Dawn of the Dead" is gorier.

Also in the movies favor is generally good acting from all concerned. Sarah Polley (as Ana) deserves special mention as she is in nearly every scene and carries her character well and Jake Weber (as Michael) also does a good turn as the quiet unassuming member of the group. Ving Rhames (as Kenneth Hall) plays himself again and most of the others are there really just to make up numbers, but do a good job.

Other highlights of Snyder's version is an exciting helicopter shot opening and great end credits using a "Blair Witch" style handheld camera sequence, although the inclusion of Disturbed's - 'Down With The Sickness' is annoying and further sends the 2004 film down the MTV route. In fact the end credits present scenes that are far more terrifying than anything that actually makes it into the film's main running time.

Zack Snyder's "Dawn of the Dead" is not a bad film overall and it's certainly a worthy entry into the 'Living dead' cannon, but it suffers from a number of mis-steps and ideas that could have / should have been dropped in the first place, like the ridiculous zombie childbirth and the running corpses themselves...and where Romero's long script and running time leaves the viewer satisfied at its end, Snyder's film seems rushed at its end. It feels clipped as if the film had been mercilessly cut down from a much monger project. As a result I was left wanting and unsatisfied at the conclusion.