Lucas Posted October 1, 2018 Share Posted October 1, 2018 (edited) Fifty years ago today ... October 1st 1968 - a film that is not only considered independent - but homemade - was unleashed on the American public and forever changed the course of film making .. Shot with friends, amateur actors, borrowed equipment and a budget that some say a paltry twenty five grand ( wiki has it @ $114,000 ) - NIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD was not simply a movie about zombies, but a subtle yet scathing commentary on American culture and society .. Only a few years prior to it's release, the Supreme Court had finally put an end to segregation in restaurants .. Riots were commonplace in the cities of the USA ... The Vietnam War catastrophe was front and center in the American media ..... And George Romero cast an unknown in Duane Jones to play the hero ... Fifty years later it might be hard for some to fully appreciate what Night Of The Living Dead was, and still is .... We are force fed movies that, without representation from every ethnicity, there is an outcry .. It was quite the opposite in 1968 .... The use of shadows, lighting, the mood - everything about this film is spot on perfect ... ... despite its being heavily criticized upon its release for its explicit gore. It eventually garnered critical acclaim and has been selected by the Library of Congress for preservation in the National Film Registry, as a film deemed "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant." Happy 50th To The Greatest Zombie Film Of All Time Edited October 1, 2018 by Lucas 6 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
J2112YYZ Posted October 1, 2018 Share Posted October 1, 2018 The overall influence this film had was immense. Look at how popular the whole zombie apocalypse theme has become over the years. I can watch this movie today and still thoroughly enjoy it. 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
blueschica Posted October 1, 2018 Share Posted October 1, 2018 (edited) The overall influence this film had was immense. Look at how popular the whole zombie apocalypse theme has become over the years. I can watch this movie today and still thoroughly enjoy it. OK, you guys know that I talk about Pittsburgh a lot, but some of the zombie material traces back to the 'Burgh! (OK, not Shaun of the Dead.) Fun facts below! :P George Romero attended Carnegie-Mellon U. in Pittsburgh, in their performing arts program. (Romero filmed some segments for Mister Rogers Neighborhood before hitting it big with NOTLD. ). When he needed a place to shoot the movie that would be cheap he chose Evans City, a rural area north of Pittsburgh (that is about 15 minutes from where I grew up.). When I was a kid, the farmhouse used in the movie still stood and people would dare each other to drive past it. (lost to development now, sadly.) Evans City still has a Night Of the Living Dead festival each fall. A neighhbor of ours, Greg Nicotero ( I never knew him well) was a huge lover of horror films when he was a kid and his dream in life was to work on them. He managed to get hired to do horror makeup/special effects for Day of the Dead in 1985 and learned from George Romero. Greg went on to do the makeup/effects for The Walking Dead and then some producing for Walking Dead and Fear the Walking Dead as well. Photo below is one of my prized possessions (kind of- I think every Pittsburgher my age has one, lol) For years, Pittsburgh had a Saturday night horror movie show called Chiller Theatre. The host was a local TV guy, Bill Cardille- Chilly Billy! He was famous in Pittsburgh and so Romero gave him a role in NOTLD as a local news reporter. Chilly is the guy standing, with the shades on. This is a still from the movie that Chilly Billy autographed at some appearance. Earl- you asked me about the photo one time- here it is. :) And I agree, Lucas- epic film! Edited October 1, 2018 by blueschica 6 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lucas Posted October 1, 2018 Author Share Posted October 1, 2018 (edited) The overall influence this film had was immense. Look at how popular the whole zombie apocalypse theme has become over the years. I can watch this movie today and still thoroughly enjoy it. OK, you guys know that I talk about Pittsburgh a lot, but some of the zombie material traces back to the 'Burgh! (OK, not Shaun of the Dead.) Fun facts below! :P George Romero attended Carnegie-Mellon U. in Pittsburgh, in their performing arts program. (Romero filmed some segments for Mister Rogers Neighborhood before hitting it big with NOTLD. ). When he needed a place to shoot the movie that would be cheap he chose Evans City, a rural area north of Pittsburgh (that is about 15 minutes from where I grew up.). When I was a kid, the farmhouse used in the movie still stood and people would dare each other to drive past it. (lost to development now, sadly.) Evans City still has a Night Of the Living Dead festival each fall. A neighhbor of ours, Greg Nicotero ( I never knew him well) was a huge lover of horror films when he was a kid and his dream in life was to work on them. He managed to get hired to do horror makeup/special effects for Day of the Dead in 1985 and learned from George Romero. Greg went on to do the makeup/effects for The Walking Dead and then some producing for Walking Dead and Fear the Walking Dead as well. Photo below is one of my prized possessions (kind of- I think every Pittsburgher my age has one, lol) For years, Pittsburgh had a Saturday night horror movie show called Chiller Theatre. The host was a local TV guy, Bill Cardille- Chilly Billy! He was famous in Pittsburgh and so Romero gave him a role in NOTLD as a local news reporter. Chilly is the guy standing, with the shades on. This is a still from the movie that Chilly Billy autographed at some appearance. Earl- you asked me about the photo one time- here it is. :) And I agree, Lucas- epic film! BC, wow, thanks for your post - and a great pic !! I remember the first time I saw NOTLD on late night TV .. Late late night as it was probably finishing up at about 3am and my Dad had fallen asleep at some point ... I remember being horrified - not scared so much but devastated by the way the film ends ... There's nothing really heroic about people who can fly and have superpowers - what is heroic is when an average person summons courage and defies odds -- and that seemed to be the thread through out this movie - both on screen and off screen . . Edited October 1, 2018 by Lucas 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JohnRogers Posted October 2, 2018 Share Posted October 2, 2018 Great film, basically responsible for creating a genre, no? Works as a stage play as well. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
goose Posted October 2, 2018 Share Posted October 2, 2018 (edited) Epic. Edited October 2, 2018 by goose 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ReRushed Posted October 2, 2018 Share Posted October 2, 2018 Night of the Living Dead is as perfect a movie as there is. Romero never came close to topping it. It's timeless. Too bad about the copyright fiasco, otherwise Romero might have had some deserved rewards. Avoid the 30th Anniversary version at all costs. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
New_World_Man Posted October 14, 2018 Share Posted October 14, 2018 I own a copy of this movie so no argument here. One of the best films of all time. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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