Rebuilding Rob

We’re only one week removed from Halloween, so I decided it was finally time to watch the George Romero’s original 1968 Night of the Living Dead.

It’s often very hard to watch a 55 year old movie, specifically one is influential as Night…, and not be distracted by how much cinematic storytelling has evolved in the last 55 years; or to watch something like this, that has been imitated so often that the original almost feels kind of cliché.

The story starts, innocently enough with Barbara and her brother visiting their father’s grave. In the cemetery, Barbara’s brother is attacked by a zombie; sending Barbara on the run. What follows is the first zombie apocalypse story – one that has become such a trope that it is probably predictable from here out.

Somehow, last night, I was still able to do it. I was able to immerse myself in this low budget horror movie that served as the grandfather of the entire “zombie movie“ genre. Think about it: The Walking Dead would not exist if it wasn’t for NOLTD. The second half of Michael Jackson’s legendary “Thriller” music video was heavily inspired by Night… as well.

“The Walking Dead simply doesn’t exist without George A. Romero doing his movies first.”

Robert Kirkman
co-creator of The Waking Dead

The character of Ben (Duane Jones) really stands out to me. Maybe it’s because I’m looking at the movie through 2023 eyes, knowing what America was like in 1968. Night… was released between the assassinations of Martin Luther King and Bobby Kennedy. The Civil Rights Act was just four years old; and Jones was an African-American actor in a leadership role. Through he wasn’t the first character we meet in the movie, Ben is the Rick Grimes of Night… He wasn’t called “boy“ by his costars. No one ever talked down to him and his ethnicity was never mentioned in the movie Yet, there Ben was, taking charge during the zombie apocalypse. This Collider article talks about the way that Night… unintentionally becomes a movie about race.

The details of the making of Night are the stuff of Hollywood legend. The movie cost $114,000 to make (a shoestring budget, even in 1968) and used a cast of no-names. Yes, there are parts of the movie that are downright schlocky when compared to today’s product. Yes, the movie contains some overly dramatic music, a hallmark of most television and movies prior to 1970. But somehow, Night… still works. The lighting, and the use of black and white film certainly adds to the suspense. I think a lot would’ve been lost if George Romero had chosen to shoot this movie in color.

FINAL TAKE: Absolutely worth watching. Night of the Living Dead is a milestone in the history of Cinema. It is an early entry into the horror genre and introduces the world to the “zombie apocalypse” story. Night.. also serves as an inspiration to what filmmakers can do with a small budget and a lot of creativity. However, if you’re one of those moviegoers, who cannot watch a movie in its given context, or if you cannot bear to watch a black-and-white movie, skip it.

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