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Movies / On DVD / Night of the Living Dead
Night of the Living Dead

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Night of the Living Dead (1968)

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Reviews Counted: 44

Fresh: 42

Rotten:2

Average Rating: 8.5/10

Consensus: George A. Romero's debut set the template for the zombie film, and features tight editing, realistic gore, and a sly political undercurrent.

Runtime: 1 hr 40 mins

Genre: Horror/Suspense

Synopsis: George Romero's NIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD is a low-budget, homegrown classic that had great difficulty finding a distributor at the time of its release in 1968, and has since become one of the most influential horror films of all time. (Aside... George Romero's NIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD is a low-budget, homegrown classic that had great difficulty finding a distributor at the time of its release in 1968, and has since become one of the most influential horror films of all time. (Aside from its visceral impact years before realistic gore became the fashion, the film is also important for its portrayal of a black man as the protagonist during a time when race was an extremely sensitive issue in the United States.) The plot is simple: seven people secluded in a Pennsylvania farmhouse face relentless attacks by reanimated corpses seeking to eat their flesh. The group, which includes a married couple and their daughter, a pair of young lovers, and an African-American man, try to keep their sanity as the living dead keep trying to enter the house. Radio news reports tell of the plague taking over the eastern United States, while the ever-decreasing band of survivors rapidly loses ground in the battle to both keep peace with one another and stay alive. [More]

Starring: Duane Jones, Judith O'Dea, Karl Hardman, Marilyn Eastman

Starring: Duane Jones, Judith O'Dea, Karl Hardman, Marilyn Eastman, Keith Wayne, Judith Reilly, William Hinzman

Director: George A. Romero

Director: George A. Romero
Screenwriter: John A. Russo, George A. Romero
Producer: Russell W. Streiner, Karl Hardman

[See More Credits]

DVD Info

 
 
 
 
Release:

May 12, 1998

No Details Exist

Reviews for Night of the Living Dead

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1 - 20 (sorted by date; Australian critics are listed first)
Text View | 1 2 3 >> >|
Arrange By: Fresh | Rotten | Comments | Name | Source | Date
 
 
Ratings Image

One of the most nightmarish films ever made, and one that's still hard to laugh off today.

Full Review Source: TV Guide's Movie Guide | comment Comment
10/16/08
TV Guide's Movie Guide
Ratings Image

Although pic's basic premise is repellent -- recently dead bodies are resurrected and begin killing human beings in order to eat their flesh -- it is in execution that the film distastefully excels.

Full Review Source: Variety | comment Comment
10/03/08
Variety Staff
Variety
Top Critic Icon Top Critic
Ratings Image

George Romero set a new standard for horror with this low-budget opus.

Full Review Source: ESplatter | comment Comment
07/23/08
Steve Biodrowski
ESplatter
Ratings Image

This little seat-of-the-pants regional production chewed up and spit out taboos like raw meat in a feral feeding frenzy.

Full Review Source: Seanax.com | comment Comment
07/20/08
Sean Axmaker
Seanax.com
Ratings Image

Arguably the greatest horror film ever made - and one of the greatest in any genre - 'Night' is also the ultimate B-movie.

Full Review Source: ESplatter | comment Comment
06/19/08
Lucius Gore
ESplatter
Ratings Image

There's a brute force in Night of the Living Dead that catches one in the throat.

Full Review Source: Slant Magazine | comment Comment
05/27/08
Jeremiah Kipp
Slant Magazine
Ratings Image

Seldom have so many pundit parses and public praises owed so much to so little as in the case of the career-launching 'Night of the Living Dead.'

Full Review Source: ReelTalk Movie Reviews | comment 4 Comments
11/06/07
Donald J. Levit
ReelTalk Movie Reviews
Ratings Image

A quarter of a century old and it is still absolutely terrifying.

Full Review Source: Channel 4 Film | comment Comment
09/19/07
Channel 4 Film
Ratings Image

George Romero's remarkably assured debut, made on a shoestring, about a group of people barricaded inside a farmhouse while an army of flesh-eating zombies roams the countryside, deflates all genre clichés.

Full Review Source: Village Voice | comment Comment
09/19/07
Elliott Stein
Village Voice
Ratings Image

Over its short, furious course, the picture violates so many strong taboos -- cannibalism, incest, necrophilia -- that it leaves audiences giddy and hysterical.

Full Review Source: Chicago Reader | comment Comment
09/19/07
Dave Kehr
Chicago Reader
Ratings Image

I felt real terror in that neighborhood theater last Saturday afternoon. I saw kids who had no resources they could draw upon to protect themselves from the dread and fear they felt.

Full Review Source: Chicago Sun-Times | comment Comment
09/19/07
Roger Ebert
Chicago Sun-Times
Top Critic Icon Top Critic
Ratings Image

This is horror at its most probing, subversive and socially aware, with a truly harrowing ending that reveals the dangers of misdirected fear and prejudice.

Full Review Source: Eye for Film | comment Comment
08/02/07
Anton Bitel
Eye for Film
Ratings Image

Chuckle, if you can, during the first few minutes; because after that laughter catches in the throat as the clammy hand of terror tightens its grip.

Full Review Source: Time Out | comment Comment
01/26/06
Time Out
Ratings Image

One of the best films ever made, and possibly the most influential horror movie of all time.

Full Review Source: Juicy Cerebellum | comment Comment
10/18/05
Alex Sandell
Juicy Cerebellum
Ratings Image

No review available.

comment Comment
09/28/05
Mark Palermo
Coast (Halifax, Nova Scotia)
Ratings Image

No review available.

comment Comment
06/18/05
Emanuel Levy
EmanuelLevy.Com
Ratings Image

A doozie.

Full Review Source: Ozus' World Movie Reviews | comment Comment
04/04/05
Dennis Schwartz
Ozus' World Movie Reviews
Ratings Image

The grandaddy of them all. Created a whole new genre'

comment Comment
12/12/04
Michael A. Smith
Nolan's Pop Culture Review
Ratings Image

A tightly-edited, claustrophobically-framed horror film that retains, along with its relevance, its ability to startle and appall.

Full Review Source: Film Freak Central | comment Comment
10/05/04
Walter Chaw
Film Freak Central
Ratings Image

The latest "Ultimate Edition" features a digitally colourised version as well as an audio commentary by Mike Nelson.

Full Review Source: Sci-Fi Movie Page | comment Comment
09/29/04
James O'Ehley
Sci-Fi Movie Page
1 - 20 (sorted by date; Australian critics are listed first)
Text View | 1 2 3 >> >|
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Latest News for Night of the Living Dead

November 03, 2008: Romero Promises "A Lot of Action" in Next Dead Opens in new window
It doesn't have a title yet, but production is underway on George A. Romero's next zombie movie, and USA Today has the inside scoop -- along with your first look. More...

March 13, 2008: Top Ten Death Proof Exploitation Films: the films that wouldn’t die.
Exploitation films are B-grade gold for those who like it rough, sleazy and thrill-packed. More...

March 07, 2008: Guide of the Dead - An RT Romero Retrospective
As Diary of the Dead hits cinemas, we sit down with George A. Romero to talk retrospectively about what has come from his zombie opus, the Dead series, and what the future has... More...

February 15, 2008: George A. Romero on Diary of the Dead: The RT Interview
With sequel talk already on the horizon, RT chats up horror legend George A. Romero about zombie movies and the latest addition to his Living Dead series. More...

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