Night of the Living Dead (1968)
US 96m, B&W
Director: George Romero; Cast: Duane Jones, Judith O’Dea, Karl Hardman, Marilyn Eastman, Keith Wayne, Judith Ridley, Kyra Schon
Historically, Night of the Living Dead is notable for its portrayal of an African-American lead actor who is depicted as a hero amongst an otherwise all Caucasian cast. The film is also one of the first truly terrifying films which had a level of realism not normally associated with the horror genre. Despite the fact that zombies had been previously been depicted in cinema, the modern zombie genre was born with Night of the Living Dead, which has since spawned numerous sequels, re-makes and copycat films. Inspired by Richard Matheson’s novel “I Am Legend”, which recounts the tale of the last survivor of worldwide epidemic, Romero’s re-invention of the story depicts the beginning of a similar epidemic which is responsible for the reanimation of the dead who attack and eat the living, further spreading the disease, but with an outcome which is left unresolved and open to interpretation (Klaus Ming February 2011).
When you get the chance, compare this film with the last 30 minutes of Hitchcock’s The Birds to see more of Romero’s inspiration.
Interesting, I don’t know how I didn’t make that connection. I recently watched The Birds – you’re absolutely right!
DAWN will always be my favorite of Romero’s DEAD films, but NIGHT was the 1st I saw, and it really got to me. The grittiness of it makes it seem so very real.
I only watched NIGHT about 10 years ago – for the first time. I can imagine the impact it had on those first audiences in the late 60s.
This review, written by Roger Ebert for Chicaco Sun Times in 1969 (and reprinted in Reader’s Digest the same year), gives an idea what it was like for little kids to watch NOTLD: http://rogerebert.suntimes.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/19670105/REVIEWS/701050301/1023
I’ve written a PhD on the film’s media reception during the first 4 years of its release. The reports given by journalists in their reviews describe a very scared, and sometimes chocked, audience. And imagine that a film that would reinvent the genre was made by a small advertising company from Pittsburgh!
Very interesting! I hadn’t read Ebert’s review. Thank you very much for posting.
Horror films have changed so much in the last few decades. I can’t say that I like where it has gone, but it sure had some interesting beginnings – and NOTLD is a remarkable part of the genre.