Return To Plum Island
In Survival of the Dead, two Irish families are at odds on how to deal with the zombie outbreak plaguing Plum Island. One family intends to hunt and “kill” every zombie they can. Another family would rather capture and quarantine the zombies, in hopes that someday, a cure will be found and the zombies can return to normal humans. There are arguments to be made for both sides, but ultimately, neither is likely to win as instead of working together, each family has their own agenda and they will stop at nothing — including killing each other — to see their vision realized. While the fathers of each family take a major role, so does that of ‘Sarge’ the leader of a small mercenary group played by Alan Van Sprang who had a role in the Diary film.
The movie runs just under ninety minutes and features plenty of zombie biting, gore-filled scenes, but it’s not without some comic relief from time to time. The most amusing of these scenes I thought showed a fisherman reeling in a zombie from the water. Yet in addition to the expected violence and gore, Romero attempts to convey a message about humanity and society as a whole. What you take from it, if
anything, may vary, but essentially the point was that the humans, despite their differences, have to work together to defeat a common foe. In this case, that foe was zombies, but, in reality, this can be seen as any type of world issue, many of which humans themselves have created and continue to keep ‘fed.’ That the movie gives viewers something to think about after the credits roll is noteworthy.
Ultimate Undead Edition
The two disc Ultimate Undead Edition comes packaged with a very cool removable cover. The image on the cover changes from a dead hand rising out of the ground to a zombified male face, depending on how you hold the case. Underneath the removable cover is a two disc case (with the dead hand cover). Disc one contains the movie and several extra features while the second disc has additional features, including a great making of documentary. As for the presentation, I wasn’t especially impressed with the image quality, with several scenes looking pretty grainy, but I thought the overall quality was good and the effects weren’t bad. This was not a high budget film, but Romero and crew did a nice job with making it seem so. The audio, Dolby 5.1 Surround, does very well for itself.
As for the extra features, there are quite a few. Let’s take a look:
Disc 1:
-Audio Commentary with Writer/Director George A. Romero, Executive Producer Peter Grunwald, Executive Producer/Film Editor Michael Doherty, Actor Kenneth Welsh, and Actor/Second Unit Director/Stunt Coordinator Matt Birman.
-Time With George (9m) – An interesting candid interview with Romero who talks about the film and his struggles with copyright as he wishes he could create a film that truly blends his zombie movies together.
-HDNet: A Look At Survival of the Dead (4.5m) – A promo piece about the movie.
-Introduction From George A. Romero (1.5m) – A funny intro by Romero.
-Magnolia Home Entertainment Trailers
Disc 2:
-“Walking After Midnight” Documentary (1h16m) – Great stuff for fans. This feature is nearly as long as the film itself. It’s actually a great documentary that follows the cast and crew over thirty days of filming and some studio work too.
-“Sarge” Short Film (4m)
-“A Minute of Your Time” Shorts – A collection of thirteen shorts.
-Storyboard Comparison (2m) – A neat look at the finished film compared to what the storyboard drawings looked like. I always enjoy these.
-How To Create Your Own Zombie Bite (10m) – Indy Mogul video that shows how to make a zombie bite effect for about $5.
This is a well put together DVD release of a good zombie film. Definitely something Romero fans will want to check out.