The
Day After Tomorrow. Twentieth
Century Fox presents a film directed by Roland Emmerich.
Written by Emmerich and Jeffrey Nachmanoff. Running time:
124 minutes. Rated PG-13 (for intense situations of peril).
Starring Dennis Quaid, Jake Gyllenhaal, Sela Ward, Ian
Holm, Emmy Rossum, Dash Mihok, Jay O. Sanders, Austin
Nichols, Tamlyn Tomita, Kenneth Walsh. |
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Dawn
of the Dead (2004)
  1/2
Zack
Snyder's re-imagining of George A. Romero's classic Dawn
of the Dead is a no-holds-barred, balls-to-the-wall, horror
movie. It lacks the sharp satire or inter-human conflicts
that the Romero picture has, but it makes up for it in other
ways.
I
use the phrase re-imagining above because remake
isn't really accurate. The basic plot details of Romero's
film and this one are the same, as is the setting, but specific
events differ significantly. You don't have to be familiar
with the 1978 version to enjoy Dawn of the Dead, nor
will knowledge of the older title give anything away. The
ending especially has been altered: be sure to sit through
the credits to get the real conclusion.
Ana
(Sarah Polley) is having a bad couple of days. She is forced
to work for an hour overtime without pay before heading home,
and when she wakes up her boyfriend is having his neck chewed
on by the cute little neighbor girl. He dies before Ana can
get help, but then he wakes up again and tries to attack her.
She runs to her car and manages to get away, but her neighborhood
is in ruin. Undead beasts are rampaging, attacking and killing
anybody they can find. Ana panics and runs into a tree.
This
is just the pre-credits sequence, and it manages to pack more
tension and excitement into fifteen minutes than many films
can fit into their entire running lenghths. Amazingly, Snyder
manages to keep this pace up throughout the rest of the film.
Ana is rescued by Kenneth (Ving Rhames), a cop who has managed
to survive the attacks. They run to the local mall, where
they meet up with Michael (Jake Weber), Andre (Mekhi Phifer)
and Andre's pregnant wife, Luda (Inna Korobkina). By watching
local newscasts, it is learned that a virus has broken out.
No one knows how it's spread, but those infected die and are
reborn as undead monsters. While scouting out the mall, the
group encounters a trio of security guards (Michael Kelly,
Kevin Zegers, Michael Barry), who grudgingly agree to help
them.
Later
on, more people join the group, including smart-ass Steve
(Ty Burell), slutty Monica (Kim Poirier), a father and daughter,
Frank (Matt Frewer) and Nicole (Lindy Booth), Norma (Jayne
Eastwood) and Tucker (Boyd Banks). Of course, with a cast
this big and a 100-minute running time, not all of these characters
are fully fleshed out. Some of them we care about (Ana, Kenneth,
Michael and Nicole stand out) and some them we don't, but
there's still a personal aspect to the film. Character relationships
are handled with a deft touch, and they are all resolved strongly,
so I can overlook some of the unimportant characters being
undeveloped.
But
where Dawn of the Dead should shine is in scares and
thrills, and shine it does. A large level of tension is maintained
throughout the entire production, whether anything is happening
or not. Snyder, in his debut, creates a claustrophobic, bleak
atmosphere. The action sequences are fast-paced and suspenseful,
easily superior to ninety-five percent of the action movies
out there. No characters are safe, and we are constantly unsure
about their fates. There are plenty of blood and guts too,
for people who desire that kind of thing.
Does
Dawn of the Dead have problems? Sure; there's the aforementioned
character issues, and some of the dialogue is a little weak
- but in this case who cares? I wouldn't recommend this film
to young children or the squeamish, but Dawn of the Dead
is a dark, scary horror film that ranks up there with the
recent best. It might just be the most thrilling movie you
see all year.
©
2004 Matt Noller
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