Dawn of the Dead (Unrated Director's Cut) [Blu-ray]

Reviewed by:
Gene Newman

The Skinny: A bunch of survivors barricade themselves in a mall to fight off a zombie epidemic. This shockingly great "reimagining" of George Romero's classic proved that in the right hands (300 director Zack Snyder) even the best horror films can be updated well. Too bad Rob Zombie didn't learn this lesson before he murdered Halloween.

Dawn vs. Dawn: We know this will piss off horror purists, ourselves included, but this version is better than the original. It's funnier, more exciting, and has the benefit of 30-years of advances in effects and gore. At the time, the original was beyond anything anyone had ever seen, but that time is gone, and we're sticking with this one, nerdo.

The Good: It's one of the few modern horror movies that genuinely give us the creeps (OK, it scares us shitless); the cast is perfect, especially the a-hole security guards who temporarily take the survivors hostage; the scene when they're picking off celebrity-zombie-look-alikes from the roof is genius.

The Bad: You can't watch it while you're eating.

Best Extra: It's got all the same extras from the unrated collector's edition, so if you're upgrading no need to worry. The only difference is the featurettes are mixed in via U-control, which is the standard with these discs.

Land of the Dead
If You Like the Dead…: Then you're gonna also love Land of the Dead: Unrated Director's Cut [Blu-ray], which came out in 2005. It's George Romero's last genius zombie flick, and proved the master still had some skills left. The twist here? These zombies have brains, and not just the ones dripping off of their chins. It's smart, fast-paced, and by far his most violent and disgusting take on zombies, made even better in 1080p. The Blu-ray, like the special edition before it, also has a load of extras (one in which they hang with Shaun of the Dead stars Simon Pegg and Nick Frost).

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