That's right, I'm back with another one of these. This time, it's all about zombies, more specifically the ones from both versions of Night of the Living Dead. Let's get to it.
Contender #1 - Night of the Living Dead (1968)
Director - George A. Romero
Writer(s) - George A. Romero & John Russo
Release Date - Oct 4, 1968
Production - Image Ten
Distribution - Continental Distributing
Budget - $114,000 - $125,000
Gross - $30,000,000 (estimated)
Contender #2 - Night of the Living Dead (1990)
Director - Tom Savini
Writer(s) - George A. Romero
Release Date - Oct 19, 1990
Production - 21st Century Film Corporation & Menahem Golan Productions
Distribution - Columbia Pictures
Budget - $4,200,000
Gross - $5,800,000
Story
The story for both involves siblings Johnny and Barbara going to a graveyard to pay respects to long dead family member. What was suppose to be a simple trip turns into an escalating nightmare when the dead themselves rise up and start eating the living.
Round #1 - Visuals
Honestly, I couldn't really decided on who did the directing better. Mainly because George and Tom had two very different ways of going about their movies, but both ways didn't feel wrong.
With George A. Romero there's a very subtle approach. No over the top gore and such. Whether this is because this was his vision or because of budget restrictions, really doesn't matter, because the movie still looks good despite a limited budget and the technology at the time. A YouTuber by the name of Doctor Wolfula put it best by saying, because of the gritty low budget nature, the movie almost looks like a documentary.
With Savini, other than an obviously bigger budget, there's also the fact that his remake is much more graphic (although not that much) and there was definitely a different atmosphere when compared to George's movie. Overall, Savini was more stylized and grittier.
So which movie wins this round? Well, I guess it really comes down to a matter of taste. If you want something that feels realistic, there's Romero. If you want something darker, there's Savini. If you like black and white movies, Romero. If you prefer color, Savini. And so on and so forth.
Round #2 - Monster
Honestly, there's really no point in debating on this. Both movies essentially have the same exact zombies. Romero's aren't smarter, Savini's aren't stronger, they're both the same. The only thing different about the zombies is the way they look. So, no winner here.
Round #3 - Scares
Now this was another tricky one. Because both movies are pretty scary. Both the original and the remake featuring great scenes of zombies breaking through windows, devouring people, and all the other typical zombie stuff.
And both movies showcase the other terrifying thing, where it's not just the walking dead people should fear, but our human characters falling apart. Being untrustworthy of each other, betraying each other, or generally not making the right decisions.
Round #4 - Story
Okay, the last round, and once again we have something tricky. Especially since both movies were written by the same guy.
With Romero, he not only told a survival story where everything went wrong, while the story also has bits of reflections of where the 60's was during a social and cultural change...or at least that's what a bunch of analysts and/or scholars say. Whether that's true or not really depends on what Romero said before his death.
Then there's Savini's film, now there really isn't anything (or at least when I did research) to analyze. The movie does come off as more of a survival horror flick, BUT, that shouldn't be frowned upon. Because while there isn't some big message underneath, that still doesn't change the fact that this is a good movie. Especially since the survival horror aspect were done very well, and there's also the fact that some of the changes are done in a way where the movie's quality is brought up, instead of brought down.
Winner - Tie.
Sorry if this whole thing felt like one big cop out, especially with the end result. That wasn't my intention. The truth is, both movies are just really good. The '68 film is a bona-fide classic, while the '90 film is how you properly do a remake.
Alright guys, That's all for today. Come back on Thursday, Oct 26th, for my Underrated Films review of, The Midnight Meat Train. Until then, enjoy the rest of your day.
No comments:
Post a Comment