Remakes of classic horror films are being released all the time, and although they provoke plenty of screams from horror fans, that's generally because they desecrate the originals, rather than due to any intended shocks they contain. George Romero's influential Living Dead series is no survivor of the remake plague either: there are now remakes of the first three films.
The NOTLD remake is an exception to the trend for several reasons. Firstly, it was released in 1990, a few years ahead of the curve. Secondly it was remade by George Romero and Tom Savini as opposed to an unconnected Hollywood director working for a major studio. Thirdly, most importantly and perhaps a result of the aforementioned, NOTLD '90 doesn't suck.
The original NOTLD has a lot of fanatics, and plenty of them would argue that the original never needed remaking. The fact is, however, that NOTLD was made on a shoestring in 1968 and its zero-budget, amateur roots shine through in the dodgy acting (where they simply couldn't afford to reshoot scenes over and over), the stock music and the necessary use of limited narrative techniques (NOTLD is possibly the only critically-acclaimed film I can name where the characters sit and watch an exposition-spouting TV for long periods). As a result I can understand why George Romero wanted to go back when he was an experienced film maker and give his classic the treatment it always deserved.
NOTLD succeeds where it doesn't tamper with a winning formula. This is an update intended to smooth out flaws in the original, not attempt to make it trendy. Although the film's setting remains contemporary, Romero and Savini go to great lengths to maintain the 1960s feel of the film. Using the "middle of nowhere rural house" setting to their advantage, they model everything from the wallpaper in the house to the clothing design and the black and white TV to fit a creepy mise en scene that evokes shades of haunted houses and the classic American Gothic tradition without ceasing to tingle the paranoia of modern audiences.
For the most part, the script is a scene-for-scene recreation of the original film, although Romero and Savini prevent it from being a yawn-fest for fans of the original by adding crucial twists and subversions to the original that ensure you're never QUITE sure what will happen next. An iconic scene near the beginning is cleverly reworked into a moment that will jolt new viewers and long-time fans alike.
The biggest change comes to the ending, which is now much closer to George Romero's original vision, and its worth giving this review Spoilers to discuss these changes. The escalating conflict between Cooper and Ben now concludes with a shootout between them, where Ben retreats to the basement and Cooper to a previously undiscovered loft-space. Barbara, who is now a much stronger character, finally flees the house as she's threatened to do all film, and is found by the rednecks we flew over in Dawn Of The Dead. They return to the house, and Ben emerges zombified from the basement, while Cooper lives, only to be unceremoniously killed by Barbara.
Now, there are crucial changes to the subtext here. In the original, Cooper talked a lot of sense, and for all his flaws he was a highly stressed man concerned for his daughter, as opposed to a genuine villain. In this film he's a coward who hits his wife, refuses to help and ultimately murders Ben. He has very few redeeming features and it's much easier to see him as the antagonist, a view Romero rewards by having him killed off at the end by Barbara, a rather naked enactment of the cosmic moral code in many films where good guys live and bad guys die for their sins.
The original NOTLD was powerful and original precisely because it did away with binary good/evil distinctions that most films sport. There are no heroes and villains in NOTLD '68, just highly-strained and flawed humans, any one of which can and will die: from a little girl to the film's most obvious candidate for hero. Romero's message is clear: humanity's own flaws and tendency to self destruction are far more threatening to the species than even the most outlandish act of God. The zombies are a mirror he holds up to our dark side. In the remake this subtext is expressed directly by Barbara: "We're them and they're us", and yet it takes on a radically different spin in a film where there ARE obvious heroes and villains.
NOTLD '90 seems to be saying that not everyone is a monster deep down, and it is only clearly identifiable villains who threaten to destroy us. It ends with a note of justice where there was exactly the opposite in the original. For all its technical improvements, the remake is held back by finishing on this ray of optimism where Romero originally communicated utter darkness.
The NOTLD remake is an exception to the trend for several reasons. Firstly, it was released in 1990, a few years ahead of the curve. Secondly it was remade by George Romero and Tom Savini as opposed to an unconnected Hollywood director working for a major studio. Thirdly, most importantly and perhaps a result of the aforementioned, NOTLD '90 doesn't suck.
The original NOTLD has a lot of fanatics, and plenty of them would argue that the original never needed remaking. The fact is, however, that NOTLD was made on a shoestring in 1968 and its zero-budget, amateur roots shine through in the dodgy acting (where they simply couldn't afford to reshoot scenes over and over), the stock music and the necessary use of limited narrative techniques (NOTLD is possibly the only critically-acclaimed film I can name where the characters sit and watch an exposition-spouting TV for long periods). As a result I can understand why George Romero wanted to go back when he was an experienced film maker and give his classic the treatment it always deserved.
NOTLD succeeds where it doesn't tamper with a winning formula. This is an update intended to smooth out flaws in the original, not attempt to make it trendy. Although the film's setting remains contemporary, Romero and Savini go to great lengths to maintain the 1960s feel of the film. Using the "middle of nowhere rural house" setting to their advantage, they model everything from the wallpaper in the house to the clothing design and the black and white TV to fit a creepy mise en scene that evokes shades of haunted houses and the classic American Gothic tradition without ceasing to tingle the paranoia of modern audiences.
For the most part, the script is a scene-for-scene recreation of the original film, although Romero and Savini prevent it from being a yawn-fest for fans of the original by adding crucial twists and subversions to the original that ensure you're never QUITE sure what will happen next. An iconic scene near the beginning is cleverly reworked into a moment that will jolt new viewers and long-time fans alike.
The biggest change comes to the ending, which is now much closer to George Romero's original vision, and its worth giving this review Spoilers to discuss these changes. The escalating conflict between Cooper and Ben now concludes with a shootout between them, where Ben retreats to the basement and Cooper to a previously undiscovered loft-space. Barbara, who is now a much stronger character, finally flees the house as she's threatened to do all film, and is found by the rednecks we flew over in Dawn Of The Dead. They return to the house, and Ben emerges zombified from the basement, while Cooper lives, only to be unceremoniously killed by Barbara.
Now, there are crucial changes to the subtext here. In the original, Cooper talked a lot of sense, and for all his flaws he was a highly stressed man concerned for his daughter, as opposed to a genuine villain. In this film he's a coward who hits his wife, refuses to help and ultimately murders Ben. He has very few redeeming features and it's much easier to see him as the antagonist, a view Romero rewards by having him killed off at the end by Barbara, a rather naked enactment of the cosmic moral code in many films where good guys live and bad guys die for their sins.
The original NOTLD was powerful and original precisely because it did away with binary good/evil distinctions that most films sport. There are no heroes and villains in NOTLD '68, just highly-strained and flawed humans, any one of which can and will die: from a little girl to the film's most obvious candidate for hero. Romero's message is clear: humanity's own flaws and tendency to self destruction are far more threatening to the species than even the most outlandish act of God. The zombies are a mirror he holds up to our dark side. In the remake this subtext is expressed directly by Barbara: "We're them and they're us", and yet it takes on a radically different spin in a film where there ARE obvious heroes and villains.
NOTLD '90 seems to be saying that not everyone is a monster deep down, and it is only clearly identifiable villains who threaten to destroy us. It ends with a note of justice where there was exactly the opposite in the original. For all its technical improvements, the remake is held back by finishing on this ray of optimism where Romero originally communicated utter darkness.