41. The Trailers
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZnjH2mRVf9g http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PpuNE1cX03c http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BE1fNvUtHU8
42. The Zombie Children
Despite the fact that Romero had already had a child zombie wielding a trowel in Night of the Living Dead, a similar moment in Dawn of the Dead managed to cause some minor controversy back in the day. When exploring a seemingly empty fuel station, two zombie children burst out of a door attacking Peter. He throws them onto a nearby a sofa and bombards them with machine gun fire. While it might seem a little tame by todays standards, the scene was originally cut by the
BBFC for its graphic depiction of violence against children. The board are also said to have unanimously disliked the film.. The silly fools.
43. The Infamous Lost Ending
Originally, Dawn of the Dead was scripted to end with a gruesome and nihilistic conclusion that would have left audiences gobsmacked. With Roger, Stephen and Peter all dead, Fran would make her way to the helicopter on the roof to escape. Once there however, she would take her own life by sticking her head into the helicopters rotor blades. Hardly what you'd call a happy ending, Dawn of the Dead's infamous original ending has become the stuff of legend, as its existence continues to be debated to this day. Romero insists that it was never shot, while Tom Savini not only affirms that it was, but has posted various photos online showing the effect being prepared. If the footage still exists somewhere or not, it's unlikely to ever see the light of day.
44. The Happy-ish Ending
After watching her zombified boyfriend being shot in the face at point blank range, Francine heads up to the chopper to flee the mall and attempt to find a new home. Rather than joining Fran, Peter give up hope and takes a seat to prepare to take his own life. Just as things seem unbearably bleak (self induced rotor blade decapitation kind of bleak) cheesy A-Team style music kicks in and Peter decides to return to his usual high kicking and zombie thumping old self. As Peter and Fran set off to an unknown future, everything is pleasingly rounded off with a closing montage of the shuffling zombies to a piece of deliciously kitsch music titled The Gonk. The result is the most bizarrely upbeat ending credits to an apocalyptic horror film that you'll ever see.
45. There's Three Different Versions, All Good.
There's three different versions of Dawn of the Dead, all of which provide a significantly different viewing experience for fans. Not only do they differ in length considerably, but they often contain different takes of the same scene, more or less gore and changes to the soundtrack. The version of which many of us are most familiar is the 1978 theatrical cut, which is the original version and is the one shown most often on TV and on most DVD's of the film. Then there's also the 139 minute extended cut (often wrongly referred to as a Directors Cut) which was quickly put together to be screened at the 1978 Cannes Film Festival. Much flabbier and slower-paced, the extended cut features some additional scenes, added gore and most notably, far less of Goblin's soundtrack. In return it offers a more complete version of the script, and a wider scope. Finally, the International Cut (or Argento cut) was the version supervised by Dario Argento to be released in Europe as 'Zombi'. The shortest of the three, Argento took away much of the satire and comedy of the film to produce something that placed more of an emphasis on action and horror. There's some scenes which don't appear in either of the other two versions, even more added gore and Goblins soundtrack in its entirety.
46. Scene: Keep On Trucking
Proud of their new home, the survivors hatch a plan to keep the undead out of their consumerist palace. It basically involves driving huge BP trucks around and running over zombies with predictably icky results. What makes the sequence so memorable however is the small details which are echoed later on in Dawn and also its follow-up Day of the Dead.
47. Quote: Respect For The Dead
Roger: "Why did these people keep them here?" Peter: "Cause they still believe there's respect in dying"
48. It's Still The Most Influential Zombie Movie
Since the duel box-office sucess of both Zack Snyder's Dawn of the Dead remake and Edgar Wright's Shawn of the Dead in 2004, zombies have become one of the most popular screen monsters. Everything from TV shows like The Walking Dead, to a flux of popular videogames like Dead Island and Dead Rising have made helped turn zombies into a pop-culture phenomenon. The recent popularity of the zombie genre still goes back to Romero's classic trilogy, most notably with Dawn of the Dead. Nearly every zombie film, TV show and comic book has owed a debt to Romero's influential classic, which remains the high benchmark of the genre. You can pretty much guarantee that if there's zombies in it, they'll be a reference to Dawn of the Dead somewhere. It might be as minor as a background detail, such as Shaun of the Dead's Foree Electronics, or more blatantly, an entire sequence set in a shopping mall or 24/7.
49.Epic Gore Moment: Torn Apart
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aPMaue5WT8s
50. It's The Horror Genre Equivalent of The Godfather
Over two hours in length and featuring engaging characters and a well constructed narrative, Dawn of the Dead is the closest the horror genre has come to equaling the sophistication and respectability of fellow cine-masterpiece such as The Godfather. It feels epic and expansive - despite the low-budget - and although the film focuses on a small group of survivors in an single shopping mall, few other zombie films have created a similar feeling of apocalyptic dread. It's also a masterclass in blending horror with comic book action and comedic satire, both elements working to make Romero's classic not only chilling but also unforgettably thought provoking. Dawn of the Dead isn't just the greatest zombie film ever made, it's one of the greatest films ever made, full stop. ____________
Do you feel that DAWN OF THE DEAD deserves to be considered one of the greatest movies of all time?