The Crazies Trailer

I'm getting kind of excited about the not-zombie zombie movie remake of George A. Romero's The Crazies. The cinematography looks great, the actors seem to fit the roles, and the trailer kicks major ass (Anytime someone incorporates Gary Jules's version of 'Mad World' into a horror trailer, it almost works). I don't know if it will be any good, but it certainly looks good based on the trailer.

Romero to Pen His First Novel

I won't say that George A. Romero single-handedly created the zombie film genre, but he is widely regarded as the father of it. What he did was take what was ostensibly a throwaway movie trope and turn it collectively into a viable force in the horror genre. Today there is a certain canonical zombie archetype, which can ultimately be traced to Romero, and that is why it's impressive that he's writing a novel about it.


Here is what The Guardian UK had to say about the project:

"There is no one more qualified to write a zombie novel," said Mellor, who pointed to the success of the films Shaun of the Dead, I Am Legend and 28 Days Later, and the runaway bestselling book Pride and Prejudice and Zombies, as proof that the genre "has legs". "You just have to look on the internet and around the world at the enthusiasm with which Romero, and zombies, are greeted, to see that there's a huge amount of potential for these books," she said. The Living Dead will be published in July next year.

The problem is, and I'm just being honest, by writing this novel, Romero is ultimately not playing to his strengths. He's not the best writer, and it's his visual style that defines him most successfully. If he can manage to translate the gritty, gory, paranoid claustrophobia of his films intact in the novel, then it may be hugely successful. Let's hope that's what happens.

[Cult director George A Romero to pen zombie foundation myth]
[George Romero to Write his Definitive Guide to Zombies]

'Survival of the Dead' Sneak Peek

Here is a sneak peek at the new George A. Romero movie, Survival of the Dead, about humans surviving off the coast of North America post-zombie-apocalypse. It's not anything particularly novel, especially from the man who basically invented the zombie sub-genre of horror, but it may be enjoyable nonetheless. The Hollywood Reporter has an interesting review of it posted online:

George A. Romero's latest zombie fest, "Survival of the Dead," is a polished, fast-moving, entertaining picture whose mainstream success will depend on audiences' tolerance of its tendency to become an abattoir of extreme carnage.

'Polished' and 'fast-moving' are not adjectives generally associated with Romero's zombie flicks. Romero usually treats these flicks with an old-school style of slow burn, building the tension to a mad crescendo, but, alas, times have changed. After the release of a somewhat disappointing bit of social commentary masked in blood and guts called 'Land of the Dead', he bounced back with an entertaining, smallish production in 'Diary of the Dead' (which I enjoyed enormously). Let's hope that 'Survival' is one of the fittest of his post-'Day' apocalyptic visions (I couldn't help myself with the pun).