31 Days of Horror Clips, Day 30

Night of the Living Dead (1968)



Night of the Living Dead (1990)


Remakes generally fall into the "bad idea" category, but on occassion one comes along that holds its own against the original work. Tom Savini's Night of the Living Dead (1990) is one such film. Yes, George A. Romero's 1968 original is an untouchable zombie masterpiece, but Savini brings a unique flair to the events, most notably regarding the undead.

A make-up FX pioneer, Savini amps up the gore and realism to breaking degrees. He and his crew visited morgues and funeral homes during pre-production and their preparations hit home. These zombies really look dead. The effects are unsettling, as some of the undead genuinely garner a touch of sympathy--that is, until they bear teeth.

As for the narrative, the remake basically adheres to the source material, but with the nihilistic tone turned up a few notches. Nothing more is necessary. Savini's past working-relationship with Romero (he did FX for both Dawn of the Dead and Day of the Dead, among others) certainly impacted this creative decision. He knew exactly what to do and what not to do to keep kosher with the legacy. And having the shadow of Romero literally over his shoulder every day (the big man executive produced and wrote the remake script) probably played a part too, you think? (A side note: the remake was produced to recoup monies lost due to Romero's lack of copywright on the original work. That's why a bajillion crud copies of Night of the Living Dead float the home video market).

The remake is not without a few very notable liberties from the original, though. The character Barbara was given some backbone, transforming from the original film's blubbering mess to a take-charge sister. Savini/Romero also monkeyed with the ending, but I'm not giving that info up here. No way.


- Phil Morehart