Despite sterling performances from the late Tony Todd and Patricia Tallman as Barbara before she became a telepath on Babylon 5, this remake isn't as effective as the original. For starters, director Tom Savini should have dialed back Tom Towles' one-dimensional yelling as Harry. Sure, the character is a bullying jerk, but he needs more guidance than just "Yell louder, Tom!". The language and gore are oddly dialed down. Who calls other people"yoyos"?

Giving Barbara agency is a major improvement this time. Judith O'Dea played a hysterical potato in the first film, whereas Tallman is the only character with common sense. Zombies are slow, so unless you get surrounded, you can walk past them.

A solid reboot of a classic film. Tom Savini did a great job under a lot of pressure given the success of the original. The acting is solid all the way around. I rate this film just a notch below the original primarily because the reboot lacks the atmosphere and overall impact of the original.
7/10

A lot of clever staging tricks and shooting design (like over the shoulder perspectives, the zombie reveal, etc); Tom Savini really directs here. I appreciate how it goes for broke from go (even if that means Bill Mosley is kept in check). Tony Todd (RIP) looks ages younger. The warm lens given a golden hour feel and the softer more ominous score give a simmering fever dream feel. Even though zombie tropes are old hat by now NotLD does an effective job of seeming puzzling and claustrophobic. I know he is suppose to be a heel but Tom Towels really overacts it and the other characters largely feel too one note and unlikeable. Slow zombies are more sinister and creepy (even if Romero himself moves to faster zombies in Land of the Dead). It's unforgivable that they changed the ending here; sure something different is game but that was a brilliant part of the social commentary in the original and here things seem more superficial altogether. This.

Now off to watch "what's blood for if not shedding" Candyman Candyman Candyman... RIP Tony Todd.

I streamed the 4K version on Fandango and I have to say, the transfer looked great with Dolby Vision. I can only imagine how the disc probably looks even better.

Disclaimer: I consider the original Night Of The Living Dead (1968) one of the all-time greatest and most influential films ever made. Sure, it isn't a perfectly made film, but I don't see how anyone can deny its greatness.

So that being said, I fucking HATED this remake when it came out in 1990. HATED IT! I know I didn't give it a fair shake at the time or even a few years after with a rewatch. So, I decided to go into this with a fresh mind and eye.

First things first...this remake reminds me of the Psycho remake. Entirely unnecessary. The only reason to do this is to show the updated practical effects which are absolutely gorgeously well done in this. Otherwise, the various minor story changes seem unneeded or even silly. Granted, you don't want a shot-by-shot remake but, then again, when you are remaking a classic like the original, when something is changed, almost every change feels dumber or sillier. You sit there and ask, "Why?" So, you are already pushing a rope when you make the decision to even attempt a redo.

Tony Todd is exquisite in this and brings a humanity that Duane Jones as Ben, lacked. But at the same time, I miss the direct and all business Jones. He is there to survive, and nothing is going to stand in his way. For a brief second, I did a double take when he first showed up. that crowbar in his hand sure looks like the hook from Candyman (1992) for a split second. I had to rub my eyes.

As already mentioned, the less said about Tom Towles as Harry the better. You can't out-jerk the king of all jerks from the original, so he mainly just shouts his way through the role.

I remember that Barbara being a female Rambo bothered me the first couple of times around with this, but I didn't mind it as much this time. It still seems slightly more far-fetched than the "potato" Barbara but at the same time, they are written as completely two different characters that just happen to share the same name.

The rest was fine. It didn't stray too far from the original the majority of the time with the exception of the ending. The ending of the original is fucking perfection, so they were fucked either way for the remake. If they copy it, it will seem lame and unoriginal. If they do something different, it won't be as effective. So, they went with not being as effective and less derivative.

I do like the carnival atmosphere of this one at the end. It definitely seems like what would happen today if we had the same circumstances.

I will also say that the score pieced together from public domain music for the original is much better and effective than the original score for this one. I wasn't a fan.

So, all in all, decent movie but entirely unnecessary and less impactful. A mild from me.

ps. These movies were made 22 years apart. The newest one was made 35 years ago. Fuck I am old!

Full disclosure: I watched this last week (got the new 4K disc in the mail and I couldn't resist). I've always liked this remake, maybe a little more than the original because it's not as dated (plus I much prefer this Barbara). One of the things I really love about this version is the misdirect in the opening scene. The original opening is so iconic it's great that Savini threw in an unexpected jolt.

I dunno where I rank this film as I just watched it and it’s been a good 10-15 yrs since Iv seen it and remember liking it a lot more then I did this time.

the highlight of the film is Barbara character change compared to the original. Everyone else just came off too over the top compared to the original for me to care and the change in the ending doesn’t have as much of an impact.

what I will say is I appreciate what saving did for Romero with this film and he kept it close to the original while providing us with just enough changes in scenes to keep my interest

My second subset movie to comment on and there is still some negative aspects to this movie. It seems to be too over-the-top in it's acting. It doesn't seem to leave room for anything to be subtle, everything needs to be in your face. We know it isn't the writing's fault as the original movie didn't have this problem. This one is in your face with it's acting. However, on the plus side, I liked this Barbara character much more. She is much stronger and therefore much more interesting. You have to wonder what the original movie would have been like with this change. The Ben character was good as he was in the original but you have to love him being portrayed by Tony Todd. Also, the interaction with Barbara at the end gave us much more insight into the zombie hunters story. This was a welcome addition to the story.

Enjoyed this a lot more today than in my initial viewing years ago. Agree that the acting is a little too over-the-top, and I initially disliked every character except maybe Todd’s. But Barbara changing into a badass was sweet.

The little changes make it a slight, but worthy addition to the “of the dead” collection.

Man, the original NOLD is one of those movies that shouldn’t be tinkered with unless you can add something to make it better. This felt like a mirroring of the original, with a little tinkering here and there. This just felt like another remake although I didn’t know it exited before today. Basement dad had his asshole meter set to 11, and he got his just deserts in the end. Tony Todd looked like a baby in this movie, and I’m currently watching Bloodlines, where he is looking a bit hagard.

i put off reading comments until I wrote this and I’m really interested in reading other opinions.

Yeah it’s completely unnecessary, but I still enjoy this one.
The change to the Barbara character is the most obvious difference and I think for the better. If I stumbled upon the original one in an outbreak, I’d leave her behind.

My first watch of this remake. I thought it was good. I *loved* the kick-ass Barbara. And Tony Todd was great.
I agree, the basement guy was too one-note. But it was rather satisfying seeing his end. And I liked the whole "who are the real zombies" flavor at the end.

I ended up watching my Criterion Collection 4K UHD disc of the original NOLTD yesterday just for some fresh comparisons and this remake really doesn't hold a candle to the original in any way other than the effects. But the picture quality on this disc is just so gorgeous. It actually shines a light on the cheap effects of the original and the original effects are still solid and successful despite the turn up which surprised me.

I guess I will be the sole voice in preferring the original Barbara character. And actually, the original Barbara takes care of herself pretty well until Ben shows up and she goes into substantial shock. I am no medical professional but her portrayal of someone in extreme shock seems quite believable to me. Plus, with her demise in the original, no one gets out alive. I prefer the much bleaker ending of the original.

This got me on a NOLTD tear so I rewatched my 4K UHD disc of Return Of The Living Dead (1985) and goddamn, that movie is so much fun. It truly is one of the greatest sequels so any classic movie and should get tossed around with Godfather II in conversations where the sequel may bypass the original. I don't think either is true, but it should be in the debate.

Unfortunately, I followed that up with Return Of The Living Dead II (1988) and it is so bad, it should be buried with the rest of the dead. It fails on every level with the exception of the effects.

I didn't rewatch NotLD '90 for the Challenge this year, so I'm going off of old memories, so please keep that in mind. I was super-excited when the film hit theaters during the Halloween season back in 1990; the original film has been one of my favorite movies since I was eight or nine, and I was at a state of high anticipation for the remake. I was in grad school at the time, so several of us English majors/horror movie buffs met at the theater to take it in together. The consensus after it was over was...yup, that was a remake. Nobody was particularly bowled over by it, but none of us were particularly upset by it, either. I thought at the time (and still do, for the most part) was that it was a serviceable remake--nothing more, nothing less. I understood Romero and company's reasons for remaking the film from a purely monetary standpoint, as they'd been denied millions upon millions of dollars in profits from the original by the original distributor's last-minute title card change, so I didn't begrudge them trying to make money off of the remake. My main complaint was that they didn't go far enough in the updating. I, like most of you, rather liked the change in character for the new Barbara, but I was upset that they didn't take things further. There is a moment when Barbara looks out at the zombies and remarks "They're so slow...we could walk right by 'em" (or something to that effect) that really got me excited. I was hoping beyond hope that, at that point, they'd diverge from the original, and Ben and Barbara would set off across the countryside. That prospect of completely changing the original's narrative would have been unexpected, and it would have flung the story into entirely new territory that could have been any number of things: hallucinatory, acerbic, action-packed, existential.... But, unfortunately, the filmmakers stuck with the trajectory of the original, and the remake suffered from it as far as I'm concerned.

I was afraid that the 1990 version was going to be more along the lines of what John Russo eventually gave us with his 30th Anniversary Edition fiasco, but, luckily, we were spared that bullet.

Here's a very timely random tie-in. I am trying to finish the TV show Creepshow for this Challenge and it just so happened Season 2 Episode 5 was next for me this morning. It is entitled "Night Of The Living Late Show" and has fun episode that meshes the original NOTLD and the movie Horror Express (1972). I won't say anything more because I don't want to give the twists away. It isn't great but is decent and worth a watch. You can stream it on AMC+/Shudder.

"Creepshow" Night of the Living Late Show (TV Episode 2021) - IMDb

Tom Savini tackles a horror classic and the movie that kick started zombie genre. While he's worked on film sets for years at this point, it's an ambitious project for his first feature film as a director. Remakes of well regarded films invite increased scrutiny and constant comparisons to the original, so it's a risk for a new director. As a special effects master, it's somewhat surprising that he emphasizes on the human drama instead of just making this a gore fest that repeats the beats of the original film, but I think that was the right decision. While the first two acts are very similar to the original, the third act makes some much appreciated departures that help it stand apart.

There's a trope in some media that humans need an external threat to finally unite against a common enemy, the Watchmen being a good example. I like how zombie films tend to deconstruct and dismiss that idea. Like the best, or at least my favorite, zombie movies, Night of the Living Dead focuses on the inability of humans to work together in life-or-death situations. Tony Todd is excellent in this as Ben, commanding but perhaps a bit more vulnerable than his 1968 counterpart. I also enjoyed Tom Towles as Harry, the guy you love to hate, who refuses to lift a finger to help the others board up the house for their own safety. The biggest improvement in this version would have to be Patricia Tallman as Barbara. Barbara was an incredibly frustrating character to watch in the original, and they strike a much more satisfying balance in this movie. While she still has some understandable moments of PTSD from what she experienced, she is able to hold her own and fight back when it matters.

I have mixed feelings about the best approach for remakes. When they follow the same plot from the original with updated film making technology, I tend to find them pointless. I tend to appreciate a re-imagining approach these days, movies that attempt to go in new direction with the story, while remaining faithful to the tone of the original. Savini does such a good job here that I almost wish he directed a completely new zombie film, but then again so many zombie films follow the formula established by NotLD that I'm not sure it would have felt any less repetitive. So as it stands, we have a very well done zombie film with excellent makeup effects and improved characterization at times.

What I love about the original is that it feels like a documentary or news report, it's not stylish or flashy, it's as if a news crew rolled up and started filming the beginnings of a zombie out break. Savini doesn't attempt to repeat that, this is a more cinematic film that's not trying to cannibalize the themes of the original. I think it's the right move, because you're not going to top the ending of the first film, and the racial social commentary it leaves the audience reeling from. The third act is a big departure, and I appreciated that Barbara is actually observing the zombies and coming to the realization that holing up in the farmhouse is a bigger risk than making a run for it. In classic horror, and real life, fashion, nobody wants to listen to her. The tension between Barbara, Ben, and Harry is what drives the film and where it excels. The ending of the film points us towards a different, but also powerful theme, than even in an existential crisis, our biggest enemy might be the regressive knuckleheads that will do everything they can to hold us back due to their own crippling fear.

I watched this with the director's commentary and it was great. Yes, it's not as good as the original, but it's an homage in sly ways and, as noted, Barbara being more of a participant is a good change. Savini talks a lot about Pittsburgh and its horror history, and since that's where I live, I'm always up for that.

I will try to get to the original before the end of the month, but it was nice to revisit this one.

I was in Pittsburgh earlier this year and had a blast.

Went to the Monroeville Mall where they shot Dawn of the Dead and enjoyed the Living Dead Museum and the Evans City Cemetery from the opening scene of the original Night of the Living Dead. Never made it to one of the zombie events but it sounds really cool.

I also saw all screenings of all of the Oscar-nominated short films with old school DVDTalker jdpatri at Row House Cinema, that theater is awesome.

Make his ass come back and visit us.

I tried! He said, "I know, I know..." But to no avail...

iTunes currently has this for $6.99 in 4K/DV. No extras and just the R cut.

I wasn't planning to watch this. I didn't care for it much the previous time I watched it, but I saw it on Shudder and decided to go for it. I liked it better upon rewatch, but I still don't go care for it much. Ii just feels a bit cheesier and more obvious. For instance, I liked the ending when we see how awful things have already become, but did they have to punctuate that with Barbara actually saying, "They're us. We're them, and they're us"? If you need to explain to us, it's probably going to lose some of its strength. Imagine if somewhat jumped out at the end of the original and shouted, racial commentary! It was at least better than the animated version they did a few years ago.