The much-maligned version
A Customer Review by A Hermit
I liked this film more than most of the others here did. Giving the devil his due, the new footage does kind of interfere with Romero's original vision. I'll give you that. But, when the original was released, way back in '68, there wasn't enough money in the budget to execute it as intended. Romero should've redone it himself, granted, but this version tells where the first zombie came from. It's kind of funny, because Bill Hinzman is noticably heavier now, he has put on some weight over the years, so to see him somehow lose 10 or 15 pounds from the time he arises from his pine box, to the time he attacks Barbara and Johnny, it is a problem in the continuity, and mildly funny. But at least, it was the original actor.
And Scott Vladimir Lucina, as the minister, or priest, whatever; good musician, but he really should never give any serious thought to acting. I took this role with a grain of salt, because we all know at least one religious nut-job who acts like this. I just looked at him as an eccentric character. And bad acting may have actually helped here. And his real contribution, I feel, is the redone soundtrack music.
The original footage has been beautifully restored, and unlike some who don't like it, I think the new soundtrack, as well as the new footage, is good. Exaggerated, spooky music almost always adds to a horror film. Although, sometimes, no music is better, notice the conspicuous absence of soundtrack music throughout most of "The Exorcist?" But here, it helps (just an opinion).
If you look hard enough, you will find many flaws in this film, but if you dwell on this, the story and production lose their camp value. The dialogue at the beginning, for instance, where Johnny and Barbara are talking about having more daylight from setting the clocks ahead, conflicts with the dead leaves on the ground, a sign of Fall. And in the house, where the undead are trying to get in, reaching through the boards over the windows, Tom hits one of the zombies' hands with a hammer. But, by some coincidence, it is the only hand that looks like it's made of wax. A sharp blow to the head is all that can actually "kill" them, but after one such head injury, the injured zombie opens his eyes and looks around the room as he is dragged outside. And these are all in the original footage. So, when the purists lambaste this version, even though I do sympathize, as I much prefer original versions of films to remakes myself, this isn't bad. I do like this incarnation, I think because the new material does compliment the old. The new scenes have the truck that Ben found at the truck stop, it was the one driven by the two grave diggers featured at the beginning, and they are shown as zombies prowling around after the firey truck accident that killed all those people, the one being described in the radio's news report.
Given the whole thing, I would have to say, what I didn't like was the new ending they put on, with the new actors. The original ending, was the ultimate in tragic irony. "Good shot! Okay, that's another one for the fire!" They should have left it at that, and gone straight to the closing credits. And this is what cost it a star in this review.
In its original form, this film was the ground-breaker, and in this form, it is given a little boost.