Night of the Living Dead (1990)

The unburied dead return to life and seek human victims.

Director:

Tom Savini

Writers:

John A. Russo (earlier screenplay), George A. Romero (earlier screenplay)

Stars:

Tony Todd, Patricia Tallman, Tom Towles

2 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Tony Todd	...	Ben
Patricia Tallman	...	Barbara
Tom Towles	...	Harry Cooper
McKee Anderson	...	Helen Cooper
William Butler	...	Tom
Katie Finneran	...	Judy Rose
Bill Moseley	...	Johnnie (as Bill Mosley)
Heather Mazur	...	Sarah Cooper
David W. Butler	...	Hondo (as David Butler)
Zachary Mott	...	Bulldog
Pat Reese	...	The Mourner
William Cameron	...	The Newsman
Pat Logan	...	Uncle Rege
Berle Ellis	...	The Flaming Zombie
Bill Cardille	...	T.V. Interviewer (as Bill 'Chilly Billy' Cardille)

Storyline

A remake of George Romero's 1968 black-and-white classic that begins in a cemetery, as the recently-dead return to life - from an unknown cause - and attack the living as their prey. One woman escapes the frightening zombies to take refuge with others in a farmhouse, as every cadaver for miles around hungers for their flesh. Will they make it through the night...that the dead came back to life?

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Plot Keywords:

biker | friends who live together | multiple cameos | bald zombie | leather jacket | 

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Taglines:

There IS a fate worse than death.

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Genres:

Horror

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Certificate:

R

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

19 October 1990 (USA)

Also Known As:

La noche de los muertos vivientes

Filming Locations:

West Middletown Cemetery - 4699 Jefferson Ave, Avella, Pennsylvania, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$4,200,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$2,884,679, 19 October 1990

Gross USA:

$5,835,247

Company Credits

Production Co:

21st Century Film Corporation, Columbia Pictures

Technical Specs

Runtime:

92 min 88 min (cut) 86 min (Workprint Version)

Sound Mix:

Ultra Stereo

Color:

Color (TVC)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Caroline Williams almost played Barbara, but due to scheduling conflicts with "Days of Thunder" she was unable to.

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Goofs

The blood smudge on Barbara's cheek changes shape several times.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Johnnie: They're coming to get you, Barbara!
Barbara: Stop it!
Johnnie: They're coming!
[evil laughter]
Johnnie: They don't like being awaken this way!
Barbara: Why do you have to be so mean?
Johnnie: 'Cause I'm your older brother. Being mean and heartless is part of the job.

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Crazy Credits

Bill Moseley's name is misspelled during the credits.

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Alternate Versions

The first cut of the film was given an "X" rating by the MPAA. Several cuts were made to ensure an R rating: mostly head shots to zombies, and a shot of a zombie exploding (when Tom shoots it from the back of the truck with a shotgun).

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Connections

Referenced in Jersey Girl (2004)

User Reviews

Much better than I expected, but the original is still the best.

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.