What is the best zombie film of all time?

[goodcop2000]

I don't want to step on SamuraiTrev's toes - I know he has a thread out there collecting everyone's favorite zombie movies. But what I want is the ONE zombie flick you could not do without. What is the true King of the Zombie Movies???

[samuraitrev]

Hey no worries it all adds to the Zombie Pool
To show my support I want to be 1st to vote. I love all Romeros film (except the woeful Survival of the Dead)
I would say the greatest Zombie film of all time has to be

Day of the Dead

I know some folks find it a bit slow or oppresive but I like it, there's just something about it.

[goodcop2000]

(04-18-2013 10:02 PM)samuraitrev Wrote:  Hey no worries it all adds to the Zombie Pool
To show my support I want to be 1st to vote. I love all Romeros film (except the woeful Survival of the Dead)
I would say the greatest Zombie film of all time has to be

Day of the Dead

I know some folks find it a bit slow or oppresive but I like it, there's just something about it.

Wow, awesome response time, Samurai! I was still putting together the poll part when you answered but you are officially the first voter!

People are welcome to submit a "write-in" that is not among the 10 choices and Samurai has already dared to go outside of the box!

And that is a fine choice - great interpersonal dynamics in the film and some terrific special effects when the zombies do show their faces. I considered having it as one of the 10 choices but instead I decided to use the current top 10 vote-getters in your poll since they would be the most likely choices.


Thanks for the vote.

[samuraitrev]

If it has to be out of those 10 I'm going with the original Dawn of the Dead

[Kevthenurse]

I gotta give it up to Night of the Living Dead. I saw that movie as an adult YEARS after special effects supposedly added an element of realism and dread to the zombie apocalypse genre but I still had to sleep with the lights on for about a week after seeing this. You may be asking yourself why and how an outdated, silly black and white movie with laughable special effects, two dimensional dialogue and a dubious at best explanation for the rise of the undead can scare an 80's and 90's kid like me, who grew up with such modern horror flicks as "Final Destination" "Scream" and "Jesus Camp" and would logically be desensitized to the quaint beginnings of horror--you might ask, or you might not. Either way, I will explain because I like to hear myself type. And except for the last, none of those movies elicted so much as a nervous shudder.
Americans are in love with happy endings. Ever notice that? Happy endings, and gorgeous people wearing designer clothing. Yes, the first thing I'm going to reach for when the zombie apocalypse hits is my $6000 Armani suit and my snakeskin loafers. And while I am preparing for the horror, I am going to stop at some salon and shill out another $300 for some ridiculous hair cut. If I'm going to be eaten by a zombie I want to look like Ryan Gosling doing it! That is how movie tickets are sold these days.
Any time a filmmaker decides to do something different and demonstrate that the hero doesn't always get the girl and the bad guys sometimes win (as common in the real world) the American audience leaves the theater or switches off their DVD player thinking "what an awful movie! I'm gonna go on Netflix (or IMDB) and blast the shit out of this movie, AND I'M GOING TO DO IT IN ALL CAPS WITHOUT USING SPELL OR GRAMMAR CHECK TOO SO PEOPLE KNOW HOW IMPORTANT MY TIME IS; oh my gawd...I want my two hours back (or three in the case of Lord of the Rings, but that is a topic for another thread)!
Night of the Living Dead had good character development, a plot that developed at a steady pace, and did away with the idea that all movies must have a happy ending. If the zombies don't get you, trigger happy rednecks will. Either way, the heroes lose, my friend. And sometimes, that is good storytelling.
I did like the comedic approach of "Zombieland" though, and it was a close second. But good storytelling is a dying art among today's directors who rely on special effects, perfectly sewn-up conflicts and personality-challenged beautiful people to fill movie seats.

Sorry for the long rant. I just had a conversation at work about how awesome True Blood, Twilight and Vampire Diaries are. UGH!

[Wasteland Jack]

Night of the Living Dead for me. It was the one that started it all. I bought it on VHS at Caldor as a kid, and it sparked my obsession with survival horror movies.

[goodcop2000]

Hmmm....apparently, only 10 people on this here ZOMBIE site have a favorite ZOMBIE movie!!! What's up, people???

C'mon, my fellow undead enthusiasts! Dig down deep, pick the ONE zombie movie you enjoy more than any other, and vote with the same vigor and desperation you would exhibit if you were fleeing a great shambling horde of the walking dead!

We have the member location map, now. If you won't vote willingly, one night you just may wake up to find me inches from your face with a pencil and notepad inquiring "Ummm, so which zombie movie should I put you down for?" Don't do that to your family! Exercise your freedom and vote today!!

[Kevthenurse]

It is possible though unlikely that there are zombie movies that are not included on this list, so people have favorites, but they aren't available for a vote.

[goodcop2000]

(04-25-2013 03:28 AM)Kevthenurse Wrote:  It is possible though unlikely that there are zombie movies that are not included on this list, so people have favorites, but they aren't available for a vote.

As I mentioned earlier, I have no problems accepting write-ins. In fact, the very first vote from samuraitrev was for the original Day of the Dead which is not on the list.

I didn't use any personal bias picking the 10 listed movies. I went to Samurai's greatest zombie movies thread which accepts multiple votes from each person and has a large number of votes tallied and I just took the top 10 vote-getters as my 10 choices here.

[Rullys]

28 Days Later, with Shaun of the Dead at a close second.