Day of the Dead UK Blu-Ray - This May Be the Most Complex and Underappreciated of Romero's Original 'Dead Trilogy'
| Tweet | |
|
|
The Day of the Dead UK Blu-Ray is part of DOTD thankfully beginning to find its following. Now, Romero's favorite "Dead" film hits region-free bluray in a loaded release.
Written by James "Crypticpsych" Lasome
January 29, 2011
Buy on Amazon U.K.
Movie Trailer
Image Gallery
Release: July 19, 1985 (US theatrical), April 5, 2010 (UK Bluray)
Directed by: George A. Romero
Written by: George A. Romero
Starring:
Lori Cardille as Sarah
Terry Alexander as John
Joseph Pilato as Capt. Rhodes
Richard Liberty as Logan
Sherman Howard as Bub
Gary Howard Klar as Pvt. Steel
Day of the Dead, in essence, is Romero's take on the conflict between military, science, and the public good. The zombie apocalypse is still ongoing and a group of scientists (led by Sarah, played to perfection by Cardille) and soldiers (led by Capt. Rhodes, played expertly by Pilato) are forced to coexist in an underground bunker. Over the course of the film they butt heads over control, power, the value and purpose of science, and the value and purpose of the zombies themselves. Through it all, Tom Savini and a massive effects team (including later heavyweights Greg Nicotero and Howard Berger) run wild and produce one of the bloodiest, goriest zombie showpiece films ever. Zombie Master's previous review of the film or Tom's user-submitted one are the places to look for a more in-depth plot summary.
For their 25th Anniversary region-free Day of the Dead UK Blu-ray release, Arrow Films UK seems to have meshed the most extras-loaded US release of the film with entirely new features to create a heavily loaded, yet a touch flawed, package. The transfer is very clean and looks probably just as good as it did in theaters. It's not photorealistic, but doesn't have to be. If there's one thing that must be said as well, it's that Savini and his team's gore has never looked juicier or more real. There are a couple of specks in the opening sequence of the Day of the Dead UK Blu-Ray that come and go, but they don't hurt the overall package. The audio is also decent with some off-screen yells coming through crystal clear that you may have missed before. It also uses the unedited audio track, so no word substitutions (seen on some previous releases)!
In terms of extra features, the company has produced a few hours worth of new features, in addition to some old. The second disc of the Day of the Dead UK Blu-Ray is very similar to the Anchor Bay 2-Disc US DVD and US Blu-ray. There you'll find the same almost 40 minute info-loaded documentary, a slightly cut 20 minutes of the same archival zombie footage, the same radio interview with Richard Liberty, the same promo for the limestone mine where the movie was filmed, the same TV spots. There are a couple changes on that front though. For one, the�theatrical trailers are gone. They've been replaced by a trailer for Dawn of the Dead and, mystifyingly, the debacle that was the 30th Anniversary Night of the Living Dead re-edit. For another, there seem to be fewer set photos (though there are galleries of zombies and memorabilia). It's also missing the original draft of the script included on DVD-ROM on the other release.
The new features are all found on the first disc of the Day of the Dead UK Blu-Ray. The original Anchor Bay releases had audio commentaries by cast, crew, and filmmaker Roger Avary. These have been replaced by a wildly entertaining and informative special effects commentary with Nicotero, Berger, Mike Deak, and Everett Burrell. Besides that switch, we also have the new, near hour-long interview with Joe Pilato, "Joe of the Dead". This feature is brilliant because, while he does discuss Day of the Dead, he's also talking about his life, his career, and his current projects. Therefore, the piece has plenty of info not found anywhere else on the set (important because there is a fair amount of overlap otherwise). We also get a new 20-minute featurette following Joe as he visits various screenings and conventions in Ireland and the UK. One could say it's more of a fan perspective though I do wish Joe had looked as happy signing autographs as he did in the rest of the features.
The Day of the Dead UK Blu-Ray set also comes with four covers featuring theatrical artwork and newly commissioned pieces. Besides the discs, there is a Day of the Dead comic book (which my version didn't have) and 15 pages of new liner notes by film critic Calum Waddell. These are well-written and cover every angle of analysis on the film through discussions with Pilato, Cardille, Romero, Savini, and more.
For me, though, I came away from rewatching this film with an appreciation for how complex it is. Yes, the military is bad here, but it's deeper than that. Logan (Liberty) is supposed to be "the good guy", but really, there's a reason the military calls him Frankenstein! He cares only about the ends of his "research", not the means, which is just as bad as the military in many ways. This particular release seems heavily focused, analysis-wise, on just how much this film is not only about the evil military complex, but also about the evils of unchecked science. The reason "Bub" is popular is because he's basically one of the few clearly "good" characters! Truly, few other filmmaker's works reward repeated viewings as well as Romero.
Overall, Arrow's�Day of the Dead UK Blu-Ray release is a very good one, held back from perfection. It's informative, but it also has a tendency to repeat itself. The features, new and old, are great, and well-done… yet the company then makes the inexplicable decision to include a trailer for one of the least-liked re-releases of Night of the Living Dead. The decision of double-dipping to this release is one best left to how much you want to hear the new material given the similarity to the US releases. The film itself, though, is still so great that I can't help but recommend the Day of the Dead UK Blu-Ray release on the strength of that alone for those new to it.
Questions or comments about Day of the Dead UK Blu-Ray? Discuss it on The Ossuary Forums!
Take me to Horror Movie Reviews!
Horror Movie Freaks is the FREE eZine from Best-Horror-Movies.com that will give you the new horror releases, the new horror news and the new horror reviews that you CANNOT LIVE WITHOUT!!
Subscribing is easy, painless and free.
Do it NOW!!
