1978 Review Blog
Dawn of the Dead
Grade: C+ 05/29/2009
My bar is set pretty high when it comes to the zombie movie. I have a good scare movie (28 DAYS LATER), a good action movie (DAWN OF THE DEAD -2004), and a good comedy (SHAUN OF THE DEAD). 1978's DAWN OF THE DEAD has no idea what genre to fit in. Is it a comedy? I mean...people are hitting zombies in the face with pies. Is it action? If it is, the action gets incredibly repetitive. Is it social satire? That is where it is most successful with the zombies wandering through a mall image. Overall, it is just a mish-mash of every genre possible stuffed into a zombie movie. It is fun to watch, but modern zombies are so much more entertaining.
1001 Movie to See Before You Die
Grade: C+ 05/29/2009
My bar is set pretty high when it comes to the zombie movie. I have a good scare movie (28 DAYS LATER), a good action movie (DAWN OF THE DEAD -2004), and a good comedy (SHAUN OF THE DEAD). 1978's DAWN OF THE DEAD has no idea what genre to fit in. Is it a comedy? I mean...people are hitting zombies in the face with pies. Is it action? If it is, the action gets incredibly repetitive. Is it social satire? That is where it is most successful with the zombies wandering through a mall image. Overall, it is just a mish-mash of every genre possible stuffed into a zombie movie. It is fun to watch, but modern zombies are so much more entertaining.
1001 Movie to See Before You Die
Days of Heaven
Grade: B+ 05/01/2012
Terrance Malick has such somber, slow-moving, hypnotic movies. This film was slow, but short, and wholly melancholic and tragic. People have complained that the love triangle and the emotions that come from it aren't quite fleshed out. I got why Malick kept it all reserved. The point of view is from the young girl and how she observes it all...and the desolation of the vast wheat fields adds to the somber mood and sloth-like advances of the day. I found it intriguing and whimsical.
1001 Movie to See Before You Die
Grade: B+ 05/01/2012
Terrance Malick has such somber, slow-moving, hypnotic movies. This film was slow, but short, and wholly melancholic and tragic. People have complained that the love triangle and the emotions that come from it aren't quite fleshed out. I got why Malick kept it all reserved. The point of view is from the young girl and how she observes it all...and the desolation of the vast wheat fields adds to the somber mood and sloth-like advances of the day. I found it intriguing and whimsical.
1001 Movie to See Before You Die
The Deer Hunter
Grade: B 11/19/2008
Is it wrong to rank a movie based solely on one scene? That's how I feel about THE DEER HUNTER. The opening act at the wedding is too long and inconsequential. The final act is a bit boring and rambling. However, that famous "Russian Roullette" scene is so incredibly powerful that it singlehandedly legitimized the Best Picture Oscar for me. It was also nice to see Christopher Walken doing something other than making fun of himself and his caricature.
1001 Movie to See Before You Die
Grade: B 11/19/2008
Is it wrong to rank a movie based solely on one scene? That's how I feel about THE DEER HUNTER. The opening act at the wedding is too long and inconsequential. The final act is a bit boring and rambling. However, that famous "Russian Roullette" scene is so incredibly powerful that it singlehandedly legitimized the Best Picture Oscar for me. It was also nice to see Christopher Walken doing something other than making fun of himself and his caricature.
1001 Movie to See Before You Die
Halloween
Grade: A- 05/28/2009
I can't believe I had never seen this film before. As a rule, I usually hate slasher movies because they only exist to find newer and more graphic ways to kill stupid people. The original HALLOWEEN is positively Hitchcockian, full of suspense and foreshadowing and with deaths that can hardly be called graphic. I felt like I was watching JAWS while stitting through this film. You know there is a powerful, deadly force out there...you get glimpses of it...and you are scared out of your mind in anticipation. GREAT stuff. There is a scare in this film where something breaks a window...it took me almost 15 minutes to calm down after that one. I love being scared!!!
1001 Movie to See Before You Die
Grade: A- 05/28/2009
I can't believe I had never seen this film before. As a rule, I usually hate slasher movies because they only exist to find newer and more graphic ways to kill stupid people. The original HALLOWEEN is positively Hitchcockian, full of suspense and foreshadowing and with deaths that can hardly be called graphic. I felt like I was watching JAWS while stitting through this film. You know there is a powerful, deadly force out there...you get glimpses of it...and you are scared out of your mind in anticipation. GREAT stuff. There is a scare in this film where something breaks a window...it took me almost 15 minutes to calm down after that one. I love being scared!!!
1001 Movie to See Before You Die