Shaun of the Dead (2004)
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Shaun is a 39 year old man in the midst of a mid-life crisis. He’s been dumped by his girl, has a dead-end job with no respect, doesn’t know who his dad is, and has to constantly break up fights between his 2 roommates. Not exactly a hero-type...and yet, if he doesn’t step up, no one will. Zombies have taken over England and Shaun better save everyone he can.
Overall: This is a good film with both humor and wits. What the film does best is toss in lines from some favorite and popular films and even more references to other zombie films. Trust me, you’ll catch them. However there are so many inside jokes and references to non-zombie films, that you probably won’t even notice those. Much of this cast worked on a British comedy together which some of these jokes refer to. So my suggestion would be to watch the film in its entirety, then re-watch it with “Zombie-o-Meter” on as the subtitles to catch all the references. It’s not just about throwing in lines and jokes...it’s also about using them so it is seamless, which is the case here. It’s a fun film with some really good ideas. The DVD extras include a section on “Plot Holes” where with the use of storyboards and narration they fill in some information (in a silly way of course). There are 13 minutes of “Extended Bits” also and 10 more minutes of outtakes. It’s a good purchase or rental for all the intricate stuff. Love 2 particular scenes in this film: 1) Where Shaun walks to the store and never notices the zombies; 2) Where Shaun and Ed attack the zombies with old record albums. Comparison: Dawn of the Dead meets Waking Ned Divine |
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