Five minutes in, and Diary of the Dead is

[Eel O'Brian]

one of the worst movies I've seen in a long, long while.  Does it pick up?  Should I stick with it?  I don't know if I can.  Terrible writing, WRETCHED acting, shoddy direction - did everyone just grin and nod at Romero when he was showing the dailies?  I'm actually embarrassed for the old guy.

[abrader]

just finish it mate.

edit: iv never seen it.

[FatalT]

I turned it off after 30 minutes. That's the second movie I've done that too. I usually finish movies but the acting and everything in that was just HORRIBLE.

[Eel O'Brian]

this guy playing the professor is killing me he's such a goddamned miserable actor

it's like i accidentally rented one of those fangoria movies

[Mupepe]

yeah, i avoided it after reading reviews.

[Enl]

Should've made a movie around the deaf Amish guy instead. He was the only good thing in that movie.  Poor Romero's slipping at his old age.

[Enl]

He's not remaking it into a movie but wants to make a stage play out of it. Could be a potentially interesting idea but I'll most likely never see it since my area never got Evil Dead: The Musical.

[chronovore]

How was Land of the Dead?

What about that Australian one that came out... Undead?

[duckman2000]

Land of the Dead was pretty fucking terrible. There was certainly a thick apocalyptic quality to it, but here's one director that has really not improved over the years. If anything, he's making me doubt even his earlier movies. I'm thinking they might have seemed brilliant, to a then much less discriminating movie fan.

[fistfulofmetal]

Romero is just a little crazy nowadays. He doesn't really know what he's doing.

[chronovore]

Night of the Living Dead holds up pretty well. Here's a link to the film, which is out-of-copyright thanks to a twist of legal fate. I've wanted to go back and watch the original Dawn of the Dead and Day of the Dead, but I'm afraid they won't hold up.

[The Fake Shemp]

Dawn of the Dead still holds up, despite the fact that make-up and effects have aged pretty badly.  But the movie is still ace.  Day of the Dead is mediocre, though - at best.

[Enl]

Yeah Dawn of the Dead still has the great characters, music, excellent pacing, and a really good sense of scope and dread that makes it a great film. There a lot of thought out depth to the film that makes up for it's aged features. Can't really say the same for Day since it was too serious and mean spirited for its own good, but I still enjoy it. Land will age worse than any of those films though (actually it already looked outdated when I saw it in the theatre).

The only reason Romero's recent films are so terrible is that he has gotten old and doesn't have the heart to make them anymore. It's very much like how Carpenter went down (though he did redeem himself with his fun Masters of Horror episodes). The only way Romero seems to be able to make films now is if he slaps his name in front of a zombie flick. He's pretty much become his own creation. A zombie making movies.  :'(

[chronovore]

I see Carpenter as having gone down because Hollywood couldn't cope with his genius. I think he was making movies at a time when maverick directors could still make a mark. He and Cronenberg are both aces in my book, and while I'm happy that Cronenberg is making a comeback, I really hope that Carpenter can find his own way to craft insane little films like Prince of Darkness, forever.

[Ecrofirt]

Day of the Dead is mediocre, though - at best.

You shut your whore mouth!

[The Fake Shemp]

I see Carpenter as having gone down because Hollywood couldn't cope with his genius. I think he was making movies at a time when maverick directors could still make a mark. He and Cronenberg are both aces in my book, and while I'm happy that Cronenberg is making a comeback, I really hope that Carpenter can find his own way to craft insane little films like Prince of Darkness, forever.

It won't happen.  Carpenter's success was dependent on two things: his involvement in the writing process and Debra Hill.  Throughout the 80s, he either wrote most of his memorable films or was involved in the writing process, at the very least.  Debra Hill was also a fantastic producer/friend and their relationship drifted, so did his career for the most part.  Carpenter is pretty much a director-for-hire at this point and money rules his decisions, not artistic creativity.  It's kind of sad, but I think he's just really cynical after years of nobody appreciating his work.  You've got to realize that almost all the Carpenter shit we love today either bombed at the box office or were underperformers at the box office.  That's got to make you frustrated as a director, especially as involved with the films as he was.  I see this mercernary evolution of Carpenter as a way from him to distance himself from projects, so he doesn't feel burnt when fans/critics don't like or see his work.

And c'mon, Ecrofirt - you know it's a mediocre Romero flick.  It's fun, but mediocre.  Bub is the best part.

[chronovore]

Willco, I fear you're right, but is it OK if the little princess inside of me that believes in ponies and rainbows holds out for another few years? Especially ponies that vomit rainbows of pure evil which are not recognized by the mainstream church?

[bud]

How was Land of the Dead?

What about that Australian one that came out... Undead?

well, it has a hilarious ending