Review of Land of the Dead (2005) by Al M — 27 Aug 2010
Land of the Dead is fun, entertaining, and gory enough, but it falls way below the bar set by Romero's three previous Dead films. For starters, Land of the Dead simply doesn't look as good (or as bad I should perhaps say) as the previous three films.
Released by a major studio, Land of the Dead loses the independent vibe of Night, Dawn and Day. It's cinematography is way too polished looking--it has lost the gritty look that made its predecessors so effective.
Land of the Dead's critique of social hierarchies is somewhat interesting, but it is also somewhat silly. A group of the wealthy have retreated into a high rise apartment building where they are kept safe and comfortable from the zombie menace.
Around the building, a Road Warrior type town has grown up. Here, the black market flourishes and the poor live out their meagre existences in the shadow of the wealthy. Of course, the zombies eventually break in and, like Marxist liberators, they begin to tear down the foundations of this oppressive establishment.
Hence, Land of the Dead is a parable about oppression, but it is not a very effective one because it comes across as silly and superficial.
This review of Land of the Dead (2005) was written by Al M on 27 Aug 2010.
Land of the Dead has generally received positive reviews.
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