In 1968, George A. Romero directed a tiny little small-budget horror movie called Night of the Living Dead. It became one of the most successful movies ever made. It essentially invented the modern zombie movie and influenced countless horror films for decades to come. Romero would return to the zombie universe five more times before his death in 2017, most notably with Dawn of the Dead in 1978 and Day of the Dead in 1985. He wouldn’t return to that world again until 2005.
Buy Day of the DeadTaking place several years after the initial zombie apocalypse, which wiped out most of the Earth’s population, Day of the Dead is set in a secret underground bunker where a handful of scientists and military personnel both try to survive and find a way of curing the zombie disease. I don’t think it is a spoiler to say that things do not go well.
It is a great film, and Scream Factory is giving it a great release. They’ve given it a new transfer from the interpositive, and for the first time ever it is getting a UHD release. They’ve given it two discs full of extras, including multiple audio commentaries and interviews, a full-length documentary on the film, promos, TV spots, trailers, and photos. It comes in a cool-looking box and comes with several lobby cards.
Sign me up and consider this my pick of the week.
Also coming out this week that looks interesting:
Audition: Takashi Miike’s seminal Japanese horror film is getting a UHD upgrade from Arrow Video, who are keeping many of the same extras they supplied for their Blu-ray release of the film plus adding in a few more.
A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms: The Complete First Season: This Game of Thrones prequel takes a decidedly smaller approach. It follows but one knight and his squire as they prepare for a tournament. Though it doesn’t bother with the bigger political world about it, the series remains charming, thrilling, and quite funny.
Ready or Not 2: Here I Come: The first film was one of my favorite horror films of the last decade. Samara Weaving became a star portraying a woman who discovers her new husband’s family is a lot more than she expected, and who is forced to survive the night while they all try to kill her. The reviews of this sequel were not great, but I’m still looking forward to catching it.
The Super Mario Galaxy Movie: Chris Pratt, Anya Taylor-Joy, Jack Black, Charlie Day, Keegan-Michael Key, and Brie Larson star in this video game movie that actually looks like a lot of fun.
Scream 7: They keep knocking these things out, and I keep watching them. This was my least favorite in the series. Neve Campbell returns (after a one-movie absence) as Sydney Prescott, who once again must battle the Ghostface killer. This time she’s got her daughter for company. Read
Eraser: 30th Anniversary Steelbook: Arnold Schwarzenegger stars in this big 1990s action flick as a guy who “erases” the identities of people going into witness protection. Warner Bros. is giving it a big 2-disc special edition for its anniversary.
High Art: Criterion is releasing this, um art-house film about a young intern who gets mixed up with a drug-addled photographer. I remember Ally Sheedy winning a Spirit Award for the film and spending half her speech hoping people would now remember her for this film instead of The Breakfast Club.
Waves of Lust: A goofy Italian exploitation film about two couples sexing it up and fighting while sailing about the Mediterranean in a yacht. I’ll have a review posted soon.
