Day of the Dead (1985 film)

Did You Know?

• The soundtrack was released on LP and cassette in 1985 by Saturn Records, containing 6 tracks composed and performed by John Harrison.
• Waxwork Records released the soundtrack on vinyl in 2013, the first album release with the complete film score.
• Tom Savini returned to provide special make-up effects, assisted by Greg Nicotero and Howard Berger, who later worked on The Walking Dead.

Plot

Seven years after the events of Dawn of the Dead, the zombie apocalypse has ravaged the entire world. A handful of scientists and soldiers live within a secure underground missile bunker in the Florida Everglades. The scientists try to find a solution to the zombie pandemic; the soldiers protect them. Dr. Sarah Bowman, soldier Private Miguel Salazar, radio operator Bill McDermott, and helicopter pilot John fly to Fort Myers to locate additional survivors but find only a large horde of the undead.

They return to the base, where they learn that the military officer-in-charge Major Cooper has died. Sarah becomes concerned over Miguel's worsening mental state, but he lashes out at her. Dr. Logan, the lead scientist nicknamed Frankenstein by the soldiers, believes the undead can be made docile through training and conditioning. He keeps captive undead for use as test subjects in an underground corral.

Sarah opposes Logan's conditioning research and wants to search for a cure. She discovers Logan has been experimenting on the corpses of dead soldiers, including Major Cooper, and reluctantly keeps this secret. The soldiers, especially the unstable Captain Rhodes, object to the dangers of capturing zombie specimens. Tension worsens as supplies dwindle and communication with other survivors is lost. Rhodes declares martial law, grants the scientists limited time to prove results, and threatens to abandon them.

Production

Romero originally intended the film to be the Gone with the Wind of zombie films. Following budget disputes and the need to release the film unrated, the budget was cut from $7 million to $3.5 million. Romero scaled back his story, rewriting the script and adjusting his original vision. A total of five scripts were written.

The first draft was over 200 pages, which Romero condensed to a shorter page count; no copies of this draft have come to light. This version was likely rejected because United Film Distribution Company felt it was too expensive to produce even with an R rating. Romero scaled down the scope into a 155-page draft, then condensed it again to a 104-page draft, and ultimately produced an 88-page shooting draft. The film was given a very limited release.

Joseph Pilato was cast as Rhodes; he had acted in two prior Romero films, Dawn of the Dead and Knightriders. Pilato stated that one reason he got the role was because the budget was scaled down. Liberty had previously worked with Romero on The Crazies.

Release and reception

Day of the Dead had its world premiere on June 30, 1985, and was given a limited release on July 3, 1985, with a wide release on July 19, 1985. The film grossed over $30 million worldwide, earning most of its revenue from international VHS, DVD, and Blu-ray releases, in contrast to its poor box-office reception in cinemas. On Rotten Tomatoes, based on 103 reviews, the film holds a 61% approval rating, making it the lowest-rated film in Romero's original Dead trilogy; the critical consensus states that it may be the least haunting entry but offers shocking gore and a scathing view of society.

On Metacritic, the film holds a score of 60 out of 100 based on 13 critics, indicating mixed or average reviews. Roger Ebert gave the film one and a half stars, praising the special effects but criticizing over-acting. BBC reviewer Almar Haflidason gave three out of five stars, stating it benefits from a larger budget but suffers from a malnourished story. The New York Times reviewer Janet Maslin noted that moments of gore tend to be clustered together amid windy argument.

AllMovie reviewer Keith Phipps stated it is the least interesting of Romero's living dead films, though not for lack of ambition. Variety wrote it was the most unsatisfying of the original three films. Dave Kehr praised the film in the Chicago Reader, writing that the focus is less political than philosophical.

Prequel, remakes and television series

An unofficial prequel, Day of the Dead 2: Contagium, was released in 2005. A loose remake, Day of the Dead, was released straight to DVD on April 8, 2008, retaining only a few basic elements such as the underground army base and some character names. Another remake, Day of the Dead: Bloodline, was announced on July 10, 2013, with producers Christa Campbell and Lati Grobman obtaining the rights. Directed by Hèctor Hernández Vicens, filming began in June 2016, and the film was released on December 29, 2017 in Vietnam and on January 5, 2018 in the United States; it was a critical failure.

In February 2020, a television series based on the film was announced, premiering on Syfy in 2021, following six strangers in the first 24 hours of a zombie invasion, with director Steven Kostanski confirming a connection to the original 1985 film. In July 2021, it was announced that Lori Cardille, Terry Alexander, and Jarlath Conroy were cast in Night of the Living Dead II, originally set for a 2022 release.