Survival of the dead reviews thread

[Mike70]

Trin, I agree that his original trilogy has cemented a legacy for Romero. But past glories are exactly that. At some point, purely relying on past glories to get you everywhere is really quite sad. At what point do you start accepting that maybe he is past it? Land was gash, Diary was gash, what of Survivors then? If it's a piece of shit too, that means half of his dead films officially suck balls, all of which were made in the past 5 years, which is a good indicator that he is done. is it possible that we've found someone more cynical than me? do you really think romero is trying to live off the past? isn't it possible that as he's gotten older, he's lost some of the edge he had in his 30s and 40s? there is a vast difference between how you see the world and the things you want to do at nearly 70 years old. i'm not on the land hater wagon. if some of you detest it, fine. i respect your opinion but keep in mind there are people who do like land and diary. that doesn't mean those who like the movies are engaging in blind faith in romero. it's more a case of different strokes. and as far as the reaction to the reviews goes, i think it only natural that people would want and hope for their favorite film maker to keep putting out good movies, even if his last efforts haven't been up to par in some people's eyes. i think it comes down to being willing to give romero the benefit of the doubt until we see the movie for ourselves.

[clanglee]

Besides it seems like most revies are moderately positive. . or at the least half and half. . .which is to be expected judging by his last 2 films. *shrug* no need to get the panties in a wad tho. It will be what it will be. We will either love it, or hate it.. . .or both. .or neither. And then we will all get on here and argue about it till we are blue in the face. Tis our job. . Tis what we do.

[MinionZombie]

Heaven forbid you look at his films with some objectivity and not be all doe eyed. Not sure how often you swing by these forums, but I've said on several occasions about how disappointed I was with Diary - it's "okay", and has moments, but I don't care for any of the characters and the message is far too blunt, I mean REALLY fuckin' blunt - I don't despise it by any means and I have it on DVD (had it pre-ordered too). I've also said more than once on these forums recently about how when re-watching a few clips of Land of the Dead when it was on one of the ITV channels, that I noticed a variety of things that jarred with me - often bits of dialogue - as well as the very fast pace everything gets rushed along at. I still love Land of the Dead, but it's no Night, Dawn or Day - however, did I ever expect it to be? Nope. ... This is still a GAR dedicated website, so why can't people love his work - new & old - and be excited for it? There's plenty of moaning about his recent work on these forums, and plenty of hopefulness, and plenty of lovers - that's a solid mix, and everyone is entitled to their opinion. And I don't care much for reviews, especially when they're so split - I'll make up my own fucking mind. *rant over*

[Neil]

I watched Diary once, and have never managed to bring myself to watch again!

[MinionZombie]

I watched Diary once, and have never managed to bring myself to watch again! And that's from the Pimp Daddy who runs this site! Objectivity? HPOTD's got plenty of it.

[darth los]

And that's from the Pimp Daddy who runs this site! Objectivity? HPOTD's got plenty of it. I agree. Neil's definitely a pimp. Seriously, Andy is on record saying he can't stand LOTD as well. So yeah, there are very diverse opinions here on the subject but we disagree respectfully here. It's the secret to our success .

[AcesandEights]

So yeah, there are very diverse opinions here on the subject but we disagree respectfully here. *COUGH* Usually. *COUGH*

[MinionZombie]

*COUGH* Usually. *COUGH* Although a definitive poll on Land of the Dead did find more people in favour of Land than against it. A more convoluted "yay/meh/nay" poll showed the extreme diversity of opinion regarding Land and Diary combined.

[Trin]

Heaven forbid you look at his films with some objectivity and not be all doe eyed. Trin, I agree that his original trilogy has cemented a legacy for Romero. But past glories are exactly that. At some point, purely relying on past glories to get you everywhere is really quite sad. Blind faith. Past glories have earned Romero the benefit of the doubt, not blind faith. I guess I'm just disillusioned to the point of having no faith in him delivering. It just grinds me (and it's kind of sad that I let it do so) that people completely disregard overwhelming negative reviews because it's about a film they have complete blind faith in. How can you criticize people for being hopeful and reserving judgement when you yourself are making huge assumptions based on your own preconceived notions and third party reviews? You have blind faith in his failure to a much greater extent than anyone here has blind faith in his success. Go back and read all the threads in this section where the banter is largely skeptical of Survival. There's no blind faith here.

[darth los]

Past glories have earned Romero the benefit of the doubt, not blind faith. How can you criticize people for being hopeful and reserving judgement when you yourself are making huge assumptions based on your own preconceived notions and third party reviews? You have blind faith in his failure to a much greater extent than anyone here has blind faith in his success. Go back and read all the threads in this section where the banter is largely skeptical of Survival. There's no blind faith here. Very eloquently put. Furthermore, the fact that he has made the best zombie films to date have implications that are twofold. !0 Yes he has earned the benefit of the doubt. 2) it's a sad endicment on the industry that no one has been able to top any of the original triology in what ? 40 years?

[Trin]

it's a sad endicment on the industry that no one has been able to top any of the original triology in what ? 40 years? What a fantastic point. In a world where people turn out an idea only to be mimiced and one-upped almost immediately, GAR has his work sitting atop a pedestal seemingly untouchable for decades.

[AcesandEights]

I watched Diary once, and have never managed to bring myself to watch again! I got that topped. I did see Diary twice, but my second time, which was on dvd, I was so done with the film I never returned it to the case. The DVD circulated the apartment for months and eventually ended up with my former roommate, who I don't think will ever watch it. A sad, sad fate, indeed, but no less than it deserves, I reckon. I only bring it up, as Neil's comment reminded me about it and I thought it interesting, as I've never really done that before with another DVD that I can recall.

[Mike70]

i'll jump in to say that diary is one romero movie that does not get regular viewings at mike's house. most of the rest of george's stuff probably gets looked at once a month or once every other month (stuff like monkey shines) but interestingly enough, diary never seems to make the cut.

[Trin]

I saw Diary in the theater and have watched the DVD three times I think. I did not like it, but more than that I didn't care enough about it to get worked up over it. So why have I seen it 3 times? I keep getting sucker punched around here by someone who says it will get better over time, or that certain parts of it are good, etc. Then I watch it again and the memories of past traumas all come flooding back. I walk around for a week scared and angry anytime I see a camera or hear about YouTube. And I'll watch it again. I'm planning a pre-Survival Dead marathon. Diary may be the retarded bastard stepchild, but it still gets invited to the family reunions.

[clanglee]

. Diary may be the retarded bastard stepchild, but it still gets invited to the family reunions. I guess that makes Land the creepy Uncle who once touched you inapproriately when you were 7.