Night Of The Living Dead

[Scott McFly]

So I bought a copy of the Collector's Edition of Night Of The Living Dead a while back, and decided to break it out for the first time the other day, what with it being Halloween and all. But after reading up about the specific version, it appears to be edited, with scenes missing and some cut. And then reading Wiki about it, it seems there's a fairly new colorized (sic) version from 2004.

So does anyone own a version of the film on DVD they can recommend to me as the most complete one? There's a few newer ones on Amazon, but there's no reviews so I have no idea if they're any good. Ideally, no cuts, restored picture and audio, original black and white is fine (although I'm interested by this new 2004 colour version), and must be region 2.

And is the 1990 remake worth a fiver?

Here's the review I read, with the comments at the bottom indicating the cuts:

http://www.dvdtimes.co.uk/content.php?contentid=58553

[Skummy]

No idea about the 2004 version, the 1990 version's utter bollocks, though, can't stand it. It hasn't got any of the atmosphere, and I hate the lead woman being the strong independent heroine, because it completely takes away the style of the original. The only good thing about it is that they seem to have found a near-identical black actor to play Ben

That and the ending isn't nearly as good;

Spoiler: Click here to view

At the end of the original, Ben survives but is shot as he leaves the house, reportedly because he's mistaken for a zombie, but there's also the school of thought that it's simply because he's a black man in the deep South. In the remake, he becomes a zombie, and is shot. So you lose the desperation at the end of the first, and you lose the whole feeling that Ben saved the day but it amounted to nothing, whereas in the remake it's "Oh, well he's a zombie now, so that was justified", you still get an ending where pretty much everyone is dead, but without any of the symbolism or meaning behind it.

Edited November 2, 2007 by Maximillian Von Rocketlegs

[Scott McFly]

To be clear, the 2004 version isn't a new film, just a (pretty good looking) colorised version of the 1968 original. I can only find reference to it on Wiki tho...

EDIT: Found the 1990 remake for £3.99 now. Although I suppose I'm just interested in seeing it for the sake of it, so I might just try to rent it.

Edited November 2, 2007 by Scott McFly

[LexChaney]

I own both the original and the remake and I can say that your better getting the original, but I love any film with zombies in it.

Edited November 2, 2007 by Lex Luther

[Number of the Breast]

I just found out that there's a film called "Flight of the Living Dead: Outbreak on a Plane". Reading about it on Wiki, it sounds so bad it has to be awesome.

[NobBe Nobbs]

I take it it was made before Snakes on a Plane. Otherwise, you know it'd be subtitled Zombies on a Plane.

[BlackFlagg]

Flight was surprisingly good, one of the better recent zombie movies...I don't know if that says much though, heh

[Heel Turn]

Get the original cut, ignore the remake (which is terrible), and ABSOLUTELY watch this in black and white. I'm a huge Night of the Living Dead, and watching the movie in black and white gives it almost a documentary quality that really ramps up the claustrophobia and psychological tension.

[Skummy]

I saw Flight Of The Living Dead in HMV the other day, and God I was tempted. I love zombie movies, and it pretty much fits the formula; a great zombie movie needs to be set in an inescapable confined space...a plane couldn't be more apt, quite frankly.

[Dr. Rated-R]

Get the original cut, ignore the remake (which is terrible), and ABSOLUTELY watch this in black and white. I'm a huge Night of the Living Dead, and watching the movie in black and white gives it almost a documentary quality that really ramps up the claustrophobia and psychological tension.

Edited November 3, 2007 by The Rated-R Superstar

[Crybaby Bunting]

Is this the one you're talking about?

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Night-Living-Dead-...544&sr=8-14

for £3 you can't really go wrong

[9 to 5]

I saw Flight Of The Living Dead in HMV the other day, and God I was tempted. I love zombie movies, and it pretty much fits the formula; a great zombie movie needs to be set in an inescapable confined space...a plane couldn't be more apt, quite frankly.

Plane? Pfft. Put them in a submarine and we are talking.

[Crybaby Bunting]

speaking of enclosed space "infection" films, anyone seen The Thing?

The middle of the arctic, miles from any other humans = perfect setting

[9 to 5]

The Thing is a fantastic film, my fave Carpenter film by far and I am a fan of his.

[Dr. Rated-R]

Is this the one you're talking about?

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Night-Living-Dead-...544&sr=8-14

for £3 you can't really go wrong

[VerbalPuke]

I'll be honest, the 1990 colored version is fun if you want something utterly ridiculous. It's not even comparable to the quality of the original, but if you want to sit back and have a laugh, it might be worth checking out at a very low price.

[TheRyno]

Get the original cut, ignore the remake (which is terrible), and ABSOLUTELY watch this in black and white. I'm a huge Night of the Living Dead, and watching the movie in black and white gives it almost a documentary quality that really ramps up the claustrophobia and psychological tension.

If, however, you find black and white movies hard to get into, the colorized version from 2004 is fairly well done. The company that made it has gotten better since, but it's more than acceptable. In fact, regardless of which you prefer, get that set. It has both the colorized version and the original, unedited version, with all scenes left intact on both. In addition to that there's also an awesome audio commentary with Mike Nelson of Mystery Science Theater 3000 fame.

Edited November 3, 2007 by TheRyno

[Scott McFly]

Is this the one you're talking about?

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Night-Living-Dead-...544&sr=8-14

for £3 you can't really go wrong

Me? Nope.

This one.

Not sure if it's available in Region 2 or elsewhere, though.

Edited November 4, 2007 by Scott McFly

[TheRyno]

EDIT: While we're on the subject - Dawn Of The Dead remake from 2004, any good?

[Evil Chase K]

it's simply because he's a black man in the deep South.