Dawn of the Dead (1978)

Director:

George A. Romero

Writer:

George A. Romero (written by)

Release Date:

24 May 1979 (USA)

Genre:

Action | Horror

Tagline:

When there's no more room in hell, the dead will walk the earth.

Plot:

Following an ever-growing epidemic of zombies that have risen from the dead, two Philadelphia SWAT team members, a traffic reporter, and his television-executive girlfriend seek refuge in a secluded shopping mall.

Plot Keywords:

Mall | Sequel | Shopping Mall | Helicopter | Pennsylvania

Awards:

2 wins & 2 nominations

Cast

  (Cast overview, first billed only)

David Emge	...	Stephen
Ken Foree	...	Peter
Scott H. Reiniger	...	Roger
Gaylen Ross	...	Francine
David Crawford	...	Dr. James Foster
David Early	...	Mr. Sidney Berman, TV Interviewer
Richard France	...	Dr. Millard Rausch
Howard Smith	...	TV Commentator
Daniel Dietrich	...	Givens
Fred Baker	...	Police Commander
James A. Baffico	...	Wooley (as Jim Baffico)
Rod Stouffer	...	Rod Tucker - Young Officer on Roof
Jese Del Gre	...	Old Priest
Clayton McKinnon	...	3rd SWAT Cop in Projects Apt.
John Rice	...	2nd SWAT Cop in Projects Apt.

Also Known As:

"George A. Romero's Dawn of the Dead" - UK (closing credits title), USA (complete title)
"The Zombies" - Philippines (English title)

Runtime:

126 min | Germany:156 min (extended version) | Italy:117 min (Dario Argento's European/Italian Cut) | Spain:115 min | USA:128 min (DVD version) | USA:139 min (director's cut)

Country:

Italy | USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

4-Track Stereo (German prints) | Mono

Certification:

Canada:13+ (Quebec) (2004) | Canada:R (Manitoba/Ontario) | Finland:K-18 | Finland:(Banned) (original rating) | Argentina:X (original rating) | Argentina:13 (re-rating) | Italy:VM18 (DVD rating) | Australia:MA (Cable TV rating) | Canada:18+ (Quebec) (Original rating) | Australia:R | Chile:14 (video rating) | Denmark:15 (DVD rating) | Denmark:16 | France:-16 (re-rating) | France:X (original rating) | Hong Kong:III | Ireland:18 | Italy:VM14 | Japan:R-15 | Netherlands:16 | New Zealand:R16 (DVD rating) | Norway:(Banned) (original rating) | Norway:15 (re-rating) (uncut) | South Korea:18 | Spain:18 | Sweden:15 | UK:18 (video rating) (1987) | UK:X (original rating) (cut) | USA:Open (rating surrendered) (1983) | USA:R (original rating) (cut) | West Germany:(Banned) | Germany:BPjM Restricted

Filming Locations:

Harold W. Brown Memorial Field - 3926 Logans Farm Road, Monroeville, Pennsylvania, USA

Company:

Laurel Group

Trivia:

The living quarters where the four heroes shacked up in wasn't located in the mall. It was a set built at George A. Romero's then production company The Latent Image located in Pittsburgh. The elevator shaft was located there as well.

Goofs:

Revealing mistakes: In the TV studio, when Stephen (David Emge) informs Fran (Gaylen Ross) that they're going to flee via helicopter, Ross accidentally refers to Emge as "David" rather than "Stephen." By the time the goof was realized, Ross was in Europe and unable to loop the line of dialog.

Quotes:

[Roger and Rico point their guns at each other, at point blank range]
Roger:Hold it!
[Rico breaks and begins to run away]
Roger:Don't go out there!
[Rico is shot and screams as he falls off the tenement rooftop]

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Plaga zombie: Zona mutante (2001) (V)

Zombie mayhem reigns supreme!

If only every horror movie was made with such determination as this one. A zombie classic, Dawn of the Dead succeeds in every aspect. It has enough violence and gore to gratify any horror fan, and then some! The weird thing is that the gore in this movie isn't unnecessary, it suits the purpose. In this sequel to the classic Night of the Living Dead, the zombies have taken over the land and have spread to immense numbers. A group of people escape the carnage in a helicopter, and take refuge in a huge mall where they can live off the supplies inside for years. They have to fend off the zombies trying to get in, as well as a sadistic group of bikers who want to loot the place. Great film, lots of gory action and flesh-munching. Make sure to check out the newly remastered director's cut for terrific picture and sound, and extra footage.