Dawn of the Dead
All actors and roles (10)
Short description
An unexplained epidemic is reanimating the recently dead across the United States, leaving cities emptied and the government struggling to contain the crisis. When a television station's traffic reporter and his executive girlfriend decide to escape by helicopter, they join two SWAT team members fleeing a failed apartment raid. The group lands on the roof of a large suburban shopping mall and barricades itself inside, where the stores offer food, shelter and a strange kind of comfort. The dead gather at the entrances in growing numbers, and the survivors soon learn that the living can pose a threat of their own.
George A. Romero wrote and directed the film, his third feature and the follow-up to his 1973 film The Crazies. It was produced by Richard P. Rubinstein with Claudio Argento and Alfredo Cuomo, and shot in Italy and the United States. David Emge, Ken Foree, Scott H. Reiniger and Gaylen Ross play the four central survivors, with David Crawford and David Early among a credited cast of ninety-two.
Released in 1978, the film took about 55 million dollars worldwide. On IMDb it holds 7.8 from roughly 136,000 votes, and on TMDB 7.5 from a much smaller number, while a critics' rating of 9 out of 10 from sixty-one reviews places it above both audience scores.
What's left behind the scenes
- Director George A. Romero appeared at the beginning of the film as the director of a television program, and his future wife, Christine Forrest, as his assistant (her parents also appeared in the film as zombies).
- Censors threatened to give the film an 'X' rating if Romero didn't cut out the most graphic scenes. Romero refused to 'cut' the film. Ultimately, citing the lack of pornography in the film, he managed to convince the distributors, and the film was officially released without an age restriction, although trailers and posters still stated that it was not intended for children under 17.
- The helicopter scenes were filmed on the ground, with the background painted blue or black.
- The film's budget was $1,500,000: Dario Argento provided half, the director himself invested $25,000 and asked a friend for permission to use a large supermarket in Pennsylvania from 10 pm to 6 am. In exchange for funding, Argento had the right to use his version of the film, which runs 170 minutes in its entirety, for distribution in Europe.
- The car used in the scenes of driving through the department store was a 1977 Volkswagen Scirocco, and the helicopter was a Bell Jet Ranger II.
- The department store in Monroeville, Pennsylvania, where the film was shot, never had a gun department. Romero filmed the corresponding scenes in a gun shop in Pittsburgh. The "apartments" that the film's characters made for themselves, as well as the scenes with the elevator shaft, were also filmed in Pittsburgh.
- The idea for the film dates back to an incident in 1974 when a friend of Romero and one of its investors decided to show him his shopping mall in Monroeville – a few kilometers from Pittsburgh. While touring the mall, Romero came up with the idea that such a building could well serve as a shelter in the event of a disaster. This center ultimately served as a key element of the film.
- Gaylen Ross, who played Fran, refused to scream on camera, believing that her character was a strong and determined woman, and that any screaming would discredit her. Romero did not try to persuade her.
- Special effects artist Tom Savini played the leader of the bikers in the film.
- Filming at the department store took place during the winter of 1976-1977 with a three-week break for the "Christmas shopping season," during which other scenes were filmed, in particular scenes in the television studio.
- The film had an alternative ending in which both Peter and Fran commit suicide, but Romero felt it would be too bleak, and on the advice of Christine Forrest, he "allowed" the main characters to survive.
- Many of the bikers featured in the film were actual members of the local Pagans Motorcycle Club.
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