Movie Review #9

Diary of the Dead

Shock Value: 25 of 33
Queasiness: 30 of 33
Suspense: 25 of 34
Total Scare: 80 of 100


One more installment into the Dead series. This is not the blockbuster (like the new Dawn of the Dead) and certainly not the wannabe blockbuster “Land of the Dead” but a straight to DVD, small budget movie by the zombie master himself: George Romero. Romero doesn't need big budgets to get big scares out of movie audiences, and this movie is a good example. While there is always a little bit of “going to far” to show the gore in these kinds of movies at least there is an attempt to present a realistic landscape and characters. The hand-held camera techniques seem to be more popular these days (perhaps after Cloverfield made its appearance) and it's (in my opinion) a great medium for a zombie movie. Romero picked it up at just the perfect time (I'm a little surprised that he hadn't thought of it sooner).

Zombie movies usually attempt to present a far-fetched horror tale in a very realistic style, and “Diary” goes one step further to make you feel like your in the movie. The narrator is one of the survivors who has edited the film sometime after it all takes place, and it's in memory of the kid who was supposedly shooting most of the movie. Near the end the film student dies and his girlfriend announces she's going to finish his movie for him.

Throughout the movie we are reminded about what a hassle the camera is for our team of survivors. No one really seems to appreciate the fact that the main character always has it with him and is always shooting the film. There are several statements made about photography, cinematography, directors, actors and the like which force the audience to think about the reality of it. When one character says “we are inoculated to the world around us by looking through a lens...”(paraphrased) she is directly talking about their experiences with death and zombies...but you can also see how the statement can be applied to the media and the movie industry our world. This is not a new technique but I think it is used successfully in this movie.

There aren't very many plot twists: that seems to be a recurring theme among zombie movies in general. We start with a group of people who are killed off one by one. They roam the country side looking for survivors. Sometimes they find someone still alive (usually that someone dies before they leave the temporary sanctuary) and sometimes they just find more zombies.

Another commonality among zombie flicks is the lack of explanation as to why or how the zombie virus spread. In most movies I would see this as a negative thing, but I think with zombie movies its actually important that we don't know the reasons for it. The idea is this: if it were to happen in real life, we probably would never figure it out. Suggesting a rationality for something like a zombie virus suggests that humans are powerful smart creatures that can overcome the unknown...but the purpose of most zombie movies is to express the opposite. That there are some things we'll never know and some things we cannot hide from. Survival is less sure. Have you noticed how most zombie movies end before the story ends? You usually never find out the rest of the movie, because the audience is forced to be a part of the story...and not a part of a survivor, but a victim. It's almost as if the directors/writers are saying there are no survivors...and if there are no survivors, what's the chance you'll get to be the last one alive? Not good. These story elements are almost essential to “the zombie movie” and are all included in “Diary.” I think Romero will be making these creepy movies the rest of his life...and maybe even longer...