Survival of the Dead Review/Rant (Thing)

*Note: I really wish I could be clearer but damn it if I am just so disappointed that it’s hard for me to even come up with the words to describe this movie. So much crap.*

This movie is spoiled! Spoilers.

After months of procrastination I have finally come into possession of "Survival of the Dead" And I must say it is the most non-Romero film I have ever seen.

Fuck up of the Dead

I have heard many opinions that "Diary of the Dead" is in fact the worst in the "Dead Series" I am of the opposing opinion. By no means is it the greatest, which in my own opinion goes to "Dawn of the Dead".
Mr. Romero claimed that "Survival of the Dead" was a western and I have to disagree with him. It is not a western it is a retelling of "The Hatfield’s and McCoy’s" renamed to be O’Flynns and Muldoons. Cowboy hats do not a western make.

Gimme Ya'lls brains!

4 National Guard members go AWOL in an attempt to try not to just survive the outbreak but live. They "Escape" to Plum Island with the hopes of a peaceful life only to find themselves right in the middle of 2 feuding families. The two families have different opinions on how to deal with the living dead. The Guard is forced to choose sides to try and survive for another day.

I have to say after a little bit of watching this movie I am seeing a serious lack of motives. The motives of both clans are made very well known at the beginning. Yet half way through we see that the Muldoons have lost sight of their original goal. Shooting all those who don't immediately show signs of their past life, as the Romero films have shown that the zombies do in fact keep a little bit of their formers selves as shown by "Big Daddy" in "Land of the Dead".

Misses his diving suit.

The characters are all shown to be horribly unlikable. All 4 of the guard members have barley any personality Sarge being the only one to show any bit of character growth and even that was weak and obvious. None of the Muldoons of the O’Flynns learn anything or change for the better or worse, except by dying. We see that a character from the beginning of the movie has turned to a zombie and absolutely nothing is mentioned as to why or how. No she's dead...oh and she is O’Flynns daughter. Well off to kill the Muldoons.

A twist that comes later is the fact that there is another sister, not just any sister a twin sister to Jane O’Flynns. Janet O’Flynn. Nothing is told about her, we never see her alive and she is riding a horse the entire time to make it look like she is Jane, who was seen riding the exact same horse earlier. The worst part of this is it comes absolutely out of nowhere, means basically nothing and only really is there to have the ending set up.

Fuck Deus Ex Sister!

Not only are the characters boring and stupid, but absolutely all the former movies are called into question by having the zombies randomly attack animals for food. When the previous films made it clear that the zombies have absolutely no taste for anything other than human.

Zombies don't like Chips.

Quite possible the worst part is when Jane O’Flynn looks at her zombie sister who is staring at her and for absolutely no reason, Jane insists that she remembers her. This leads to the obvious, Jane getting bit. Terrible characters, terribly boring story that makes no sense and the attempted destruction of the former movies.
I have to say this might be the worst of the Dead series. It tries to break the entire mythos set up by all other previous movies. The Only saving grace I can give this movie is the absolute ending. All things leading up to it were pointless but the very end speech and visual is all I can say was good for this one. I love the thought of continuing the Dead series but I have to ask please Mr. Romero, no more. The original trilogy is a masterpiece. Everyone past that is just a step downward until we are already in the grave. I don't want to say it but I think you may have lost touch with the creation, and now it is running amok.

I'm very sad to say that Survival of the Dead is not worth watching. In fact as a zombie fan, don't watch it lest you die a little inside. I feel that this film is a big middle finger to the fans. And I’m sorry I have to say that.

She doesn't know you, she wants to eat you! Stupid fucks.

I feel like this, rammed up the ass of the fans.

Dawn of the Dead(2004) in 5 Seconds

I don’t think I have ever seen one good remake of a movie…wait yes I have! (1972) The Poseidon Adventures, which was a whole lot less adventurous and a lot more killing the sole survivors of the accident…ous. But none the less I haven’t seen a good remake of a zombie movie ever…damn it! No wait the 90's version of the Night of the Living Dead written by Romero and directed by Tom Savini was a actually good but let’s just call that a re-imagining. So let’s look at 2004’s dawn of the Dead in 5 seconds.



So that’s what I see when I watch it, a terrible zombie movie but a great comedy. Even if it wasn’t meant to be funny. I can’t stop laughing at it. Let’s just hope he doesn’t make another one.

"Romero" Zombie Case Study

The man who brought zombies to popularity is George A. Romero. There was another who helped with this feat that no one ever remembers his name is John A. Russo, and for the very first “Romero” zombies I would like to extend a thank you to both of these men. After the release of “Night of the Living Dead” the two split over difference in vision. George A. Romero went on to created the “Dead Series” and Mr. Russo went on to create the “Return of the Living Dead Series” for this I would like to slap him, but that is a difference in opinion. And none of that is necessary I just want to make the record clear of the origins of the “Romero” zombies. Now I will go on to describe the “Romero” zombies and there relation as well as difference from other zombies as well as its impact on the zombie world.

In 1968 “Night of the Living Dead” was released and the world was changed forever. By no means was it the first zombie movie however it was the first to reach the general public as a hit movie. Other films tried to reach these heights but none were ever as popular and most zombies films from earlier were about more voodoo like zombies. So the thought of flesh eating ghouls roaming the country side was now in the public mind. Taken as purely pop culture, no one would think these creatures real. But years later George A. Romero released “Dawn of the Dead” this brought back the thought of zombie to the general public. At this point we learned a little bit more about the "Romero" zombies.

1. They didn’t just want to eat humans. They would eat anything but each other.
2. They were capable of using basic tools such as rocks to bludgeon.
3. They were afraid of fire for unknown reasons possible the instinct to “survive”.
4. They could learn over long periods of time. As shown by the zombie trying to use guns.
5. They retained something of their former selves as seen by coming back to the mall.

With “Dawn of the Dead” we learned of the possibility of people turning on each other. Though touched upon in the first one it was just brought on by a need for survival as opposed to just pure mental breakdown or even exploiting a situation. With “Dawn of the Dead” we saw people willfully take advantage of others and murder not only for personal gain but entertainment. This brings to mind the thought of psychopaths, which will be further investigated with the “Dead Rising” case study.

With the later release of “Day of the Dead" we see that the zombies have changed even further as the crushing grip of a government instillation. Martial law was in state and the laboratory became a military zone. But we also see the possibly domestication of the undead as well as what appeared to be genuine emotion from the undead subject known as “Bub”. Bub is a very special case of zombie advancement. He was able to remember things from his former life as well as the ability to learn and retain the new as well as old knowledge. But during all these revelations we also see more of the way the zombie apocalypse could and will affect people both in negative as well as positive ways. The sacrifice of one of the military crew turned from a mutually assured destruction end to a cleansing of the laboratory. Bub the now educated zombie was free to spread his lessons to his fellow zombies and Captain Rhodes was eradicated.

Later Romero films would touch on subjects such as living in an undead world where the undead population vastly outnumbers the living and where becoming a zombie is not only common place but inevitability. In “Land of the Dead” we see that the undead are no longer searching for the living but are really just trying to “live” peacefully and find their place in the world. With “Diary of the Dead” as opposed to seeing the “life” of the undead we see more of the ways the undead put a strain on personal life for people just trying to survive. We see not only elements of wanting to help the species but a sickening look in ourselves to see that we are all just looking for more and more gruesome entertainments. As of this date I have yet to have a chance to analyze the latest of the “Dead series” titled "Survival of the Dead" so until I do I cannot give a full explanation of what I have seen in it but, the director has stated that all the others have had deeper meanings to them and that this one is… “a western.”