Why George A. Romero Rocks !!!

[darth los]

I know we bash him sometimes and for good reason. But he is the master/father of the genre so I thought it would be cool to have an appreciation thread dedicated to spanning several different topics concerning him. So whatever you guys wanna talk about is cool. This guy has to be one of the coolest directors if not people ever. He could have an empire as large as George Lucas has had he been a better business man but he doesn't even sweat it. Ya gotta love that. Here's some cool quotes from the man himself. Personal Quotes If I fail, they [the film industry] write me off as another statistic. If I succeed, they pay me a million bucks to fly out to Hollywood and fart. [On his fourth installment of the "Living Dead" series, Land of the Dead (2005)]: The idea of living with terrorism - I've tried to make it more applicable to the concerns Americans are going through now. If one horror film hits, everyone says, "Let's go make a horror film!" It's the genre that never dies. If you have 60 people dress like zombies and you show them something that you like, you get 60 people doing the exact same thing. My opinion of a good zombie walk is to loll your head as if it's a little too heavy and the muscles have begun to atrophy. I'm like my zombies. I won't stay dead! My zombie films have been so far apart that I've been able to reflect the socio-political climates of the different decades. I have this conceit that they're a little bit of a chronicle, a cinematic diary of what's going on. I'll never live long enough to arrive at some sort of peaceful co-existence of some kind. That's probably the only way you could end it on a note of promise, which would mean the zombies would learn how to eat Spam or chicken livers, instead of your liver. But I'll never get to that point. Yeah, I'm seen by the studios as a genre guy. I've made several non-genre films, but nobody went to see them. I guess I'll never be a member of that club. I'll never get sick of zombies. I just get sick of producers. "Just because I'm showing somebody being disemboweled doesn't mean I have to get heavy and put a message round it." I don't try to answer any questions or preach. My personality and my opinions come through in the satire of the films, but I think of them as a snapshot of the time. I have this device, or conceit, where something happens in the world and I can say, 'Ooo, I'll talk about that, and I can throw zombies in it! And get it made!' You know, it's kind of my ticket to ride. I guess in my pictures you're either doomed or you've got yourself a hell of a job. I don't think you need to spend $40 million to be creepy. The best horror films are the ones that are much less endowed. I always thought of the zombies as being about revolution, one generation consuming the next. BIO LINK: http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0001681/bio

[Philly_SWAT]

Well, you gotta love a guy who went from making filmed bits for Mr. Rogers Neighborhood to a guy who shows graphic scenes of carnage and disembowlment!

[AcesandEights]

*bows down in complete obeisance to the master of the genre* I am faithful, but honest. I owe a lot of enjoyment to the man and am very grateful, despite some gripes about some of his recent work that I have.

[bassman]

I can't remember where or when I saw it, but this quote has always stuck with me... Something like "I'm just playing. I'm like a kid playing with toys and I love every minute of it"

[darth los]

Well, you gotta love a guy who went from making filmed bits for Mr. Rogers Neighborhood to a guy who shows graphic scenes of carnage and disembowlment! Of course you do. It seems to me that he was not content merely making commercials and wanted to move up a notch into the world of feature film. He was just trying to make the best movie he could with the budget he had. He Literally made himself into what he is today. He is the epitomy of what it means to be a regular guy. Although, you would know better than I would since you've actually met the man. I'll bet he's totally approachable. Am i right?

[DubiousComforts]

He is the epitomy of what it means to be a regular guy. Although, you would know better than I would since you've actually met the man. I'll bet he's totally approachable. Am i right? Romero greets everyone that he meets warmly, which makes one feel like he's just a regular guy. IMO, this makes him an exemplary human being.

[archivesofthede]

Thanks for posting this. Two thumbs up!

[Philly_SWAT]

He is the epitomy of what it means to be a regular guy. Although, you would know better than I would since you've actually met the man. I'll bet he's totally approachable. Am i right? Well, it is always hard to judge anyone from just a brief meeting. In actual fact, when I met him at the Pitt. Comicon years ago, he was the only ..."dead celebrity" who was not there the whole time. He had a set hour or so for signing, and that was it. Which I suppose makes sense as he was the biggest "star". But it appeared that no personal, posed pics were being allowed. It was by pure coincidence that when I got to the front of the line, his "handler" stepped away from the table to go get a drink or something. So I said "can I get a picture with you?" and started to move around behind the table. He said something like "well, I dont think they want that..." but by then I was already there, sitting down beside him. As you see, he did look at the camera and smile while I was there, which was totally great for me. I see he has taken pics with other fans, but they look like it was not in a sit down autograph line. But he was very friendly. Unfortunately, seeing as he did not hang around, I did not get a chance to talk to him about anything. Almost everyone else there, and when I have went to other cons, have been very friendly and talkative, and they are rave about George, so I assume that he is just a great guy. I can not offer a lot of opinion on that based on my brief encounter, but I am willing to except my own impression along with the opinions of everyone that knows him.

[MoonSylver]

See the quote in my sig. I always loved that one.

[Thorn]

AMAZING thread thank you... Some favorites that speak to me about the man. “For me, zombies were the slave workers in WHITE ZOMBIE [1932] with Bela Lugosi,” he explains. “I took the idea from Richard Matheson’s novel I Am Legend – which is now back with us [thanks to the film starring Will Smith] – I ripped off the siege and the central idea, which I thought was so powerful—that this particular plague involved the entire planet. I also felt that, rather than opening with a fait accompli, as in the book, it might be more interesting to observe the world during its collapse, to watch the disintegration of the old guard as its downfall is brought about. But I didn’t want to do vampires because he had already done vampires. So what could I do to make it my own? I made them flesh-eaters instead of blood-drinkers. But I never thought of them as zombies; I never called them zombies in NIGHT. They were ‘ghouls’ or ‘those things.’ But it was never really about them. They were just the problem driving the characters – it could have been anything, like a Hitchcock MacGuffin.” “That is what happens every day! You’re constantly faced with having to make compromises. I speak to the young aspiring filmmakers, and I say, ‘The most important thing is to know exactly what you want – and to prioritize what you want - because you’re going to have to cut something. You need to go in knowing what the least important thing is, and the next thing, and the next thing. And what the most important thing is – that’s what you have to preserve.’ People don’t get that. I’ve seen so many young filmmakers – even professional filmmakers who get a Hollywood deal – they don’t quite know where to begin, where to end, and they’ll waste a lot of time making this perfect shot, an establishing shot, and then there’s no time left to shoot the dialogue.” This one is HUGE with me because a number of us have argued time and time again a lot of what George stumbles across (especially in the early days were not stroked of brilliance but fate or just good fortune) “We weren’t actually trying to use NIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD as a forum for our socio-political leanings,” Romero continues. “They crept in through the back door. There was no racial statement when I wrote the script. It only came about because we cast Duane Jones. I didn’t realize it, but he did. This wasn’t a politically motivated choice; Duane Jones was simply the best actor among our friends and acquaintances. When I wrote that Ben gets shot at the end, he was a white guy.” “I’ve seen enough not to see any more,” he says. “Recent horror movies lack soul – and it’s not just horror. Take ATONEMENT: I brought some tissues with me expecting to shed a tear, and I didn’t. Later, I watched an old Bette Davis movie – the kind of thing you smile at because it’s so old-fashioned, but when it’s over, you do shed a tear.”

[DjfunkmasterG]

Even with some of his mediocre outings, I still love George's zombie films, even as much as I hate LAND, it has zombies so I still somewhat respect that it is a zombie film. George was the reason I got into making my first attempt at a movie. Although my films are a different style of zombie film somewhat removed from the romero universe, it was that on set experience, along with the DAWN remake set experience that made me wanna do it. Of course taking into account my 30+ year obsession with zombie film in general because of DAWN of the DEAD. George made a horror monster so terrifying that no one in horror has been able to match the concept. Zombies just rule period. No other monster, alien, r Vampire can compare. Neither F13, NOES, Alien, The Exorcist, or any vampire flick gave me the kind of nightmares zombie films have.

[bassman]

Everybody knows that there is one single reason that Romero rocks.... It's the trademark glasses....

[DawnGirl27]

I've always liked the fact that he lets his actors/actresses put their two-cents worth in if they see something to add/change with their character and development of it. You hear time and time again also, that GAR is a pleasure to work with, and how passionate he is for his work. And that smile paired with the huge glasses - the twinkle in his eyes - he really is still having a blast doing what he loves, whether it makes money or not. That's true dedication and love for your art.

[MoonSylver]

One thing that I think bears mentioning is that regardless of if you like his last couple of films or not, for me the ol' gent still scores high marks because he's TRYING. He's trying to say something. He's trying something new & different. He's putting effort into these films. So even if you feel me didn't hit the mark, I still contend they stand above most of the other films out there. There are no cookie cutter paint by numbers films here, made with no heart or soul, just to make a quick buck. This is one of many reasons why GAR rules to me. IMO the least work of Rembrandt is still a freakin' Rembrandt! So even a lesser GAR film is still a film by a master of the genre who cares a lot about movies & making them.