La Nuit des morts-vivants

This remake doesn't get enough respect. George A. Romeo didn't get his original film copyrighted, so he ended up not making any money off the film because it wound up in the public domain. With this 1990 remake, he scripted a remake of his original film that's quite loyal to the original story and vision, but this time it's in color and amped up with plenty of gory and very realistic special effects. Of all the zombie movies ever made (and that's quite a few after the zombie film comeback following 28 DAYS LATER and THE WALKING DEAD), this film is the only one I can think of where the zombies really look like corpses (though the zombies on THE WALKING DEAD are quite good too). Romeo turned the directing reigns over to special effects maestro Tom Savini who does a fine job behind the camera. The special effects in the film are top-notch, AND even if Savini wasn't credited for the special effects or makeup on the film, his influence on capturing realistic corpses come to life cannot be denied. Tony "Candyman" Todd takes on the role of Ben, Patricia Tallman is Barbara, Tom Towles is a nicely obnoxious Mr. Cooper, and Bill Moseley is great as the short-lived Johnny. What's most fun about this film is how the story stays so loyal to the original film, outside of thankfully making Barbara a less helpless character, but that when the film deviates from the original for the last 25 minutes, it's kind of a mindblower for anyone who grew up repeatedly viewing the original film. It's like Romero added another half-hour of the story taking place after the events of the original film! On the downside, the film does feel rather stiff and even corny at times, but it's still one of the best zombie siege films out there.

A lot of remakes of classic films rarely live up to their predecessors. The original Night of the Living Dead was a classic horror and this adaption did the original movie justice. There were a few changes but it generally stayed faithful to the original.

Tony Todd as Ben and Patricia Tallman as Barbara do a wonderful job. Ben is the character who is trying to hold everything together in the face of insurmountable odds. Barbara is the female who initially encounters the zombies but soon turns into an ass-kicking heroine. This differs to the original where Barbara was a timid little madam.

The tension builds throughout the film. Perhaps there would have been a bit more tension if it had been filmed in black and white but it was very tense throughout.

The ending is also different as well but good nonetheless.

If you liked the original, then I recommend this version as well.

I'm always wary of remakes of horror and science fiction classics as they are almost always inferior to the original versions, in many cases REALLY inferior. There have been a few successful and worthwhile attempts, especially John Carpenter's 'The Thing' and David Cronenberg's spin on 'The Fly'. Tom Savini's 'Night Of The Living Dead' is another good one. Even though Savini is a legend in the special effects world I really expected this to be awful. It wasn't. While not as literal as the misguided 'Psycho' remake by Gus Van Zant, Savini sticks very close to the source material, and doesn't mess with it as much as Carpenter or Cronenberg did. George Romero scripted, adapting his original screenplay co-written with John A. Russo, and both men co-produce. The main difference in this version, apart from obvious ones like being filmed in colour and with some more sophisticated special effects, is the expansion of the Barbara character, who is much less passive and more important to the plot. Barbara is played by Patricia Tallman who worked with Savini on Romero's cult favourite 'Knightriders'. She is probably best known for her recurring role on 'Babylon 5'. Tony Todd ('Candyman') plays Ben, and is very good, and the underrated Tom Towles ('Henry:Portrait Of a Serial Killer') is excellent as the slimy Harry Cooper. The scenes between the two are really strong, and add a lot to the original. I also enjoyed seeing Bill Mosley (Chop Top from 'Texas Chainsaw Massacre 2') playing Barbara's brother Johnny in the opening sequence. My only real gripe about the movie is the surprising lack of gore, and also the new ending which to me is nowhere near as good as the original. Apart from that it is much better than I expected, and I highly recommended it to anyone who enjoys Romero's "Dead" trilogy.

"This is pure hell on earth." Actually, what Tony Todd meant to say was "This is one hell of a movie." Tom Savini and George A. Romero have succeeded in recreated a classic (which is quite hard to do). Night of the Living Dead '90 is faithful to the original, but still manages to scare and surprise you by throwing in a few unexpected twists. Director Savini creates a great atmosphere. This is one of my favorite claustrophobic films. It has the feel of an old, secluded farmhouse, and thankfully lacks that Hollywood gloss. The characters feel real as well. The cast is perfect. Tony Todd, William Butler, and Tom Towles are the re-incarnations of the original Ben, Tommy, and Harry Cooper. And longtime Romero collaborator, Patricia Tallman, revamps her character Barbara for the nineties. And you gotta love Bill Moseley ("They're coming to get you Barbara. They're horny Barbara."). All of the classic elements (the feud between Ben and Cooper, the claustrophobia) and a few new ones (a smarter female lead, new ending) make this one unforgettable.

Tom Savini's update on George Romero's classic about a woman hiding in a farmhouse with several other people during a zombie invasion has gotten a facelift. For one, it's in color now and all the gore pops in a more lively fashion. Second, the way it handles the lead character of Barbara is vastly different from the way she was handled in the original film and Patricia Tallman is allowed room for a bit of character growth. Most of the big changes take place in the last half hour of the film where it really goes in its own direction.