(This review is not spoiler-free.)
An American pop-culture staple, zombies are a concept that can feel like they’ve been in existence forever. Many people today do not even know the source of the flesh-eating corpse-turned-monsters that have defined an entire genre of horror. However, as October brings Halloween ever closer, looking back on iconic horror films can be a great way to appreciate the history of the genre and heighten the fun of the fear. Night of the Living Dead, an independent horror film directed by George A. Romero and released on October 1, 1968, is both a fantastic, suspenseful experience on its own and the source of some of the most well-known horror monsters ever created.
The movie’s plot focuses on a group of seven survivors trapped in a farmhouse against an increasingly large horde of strange cannibalistic ghouls. The impromptu group of strangers all encounter each other by accident; first introduced is Barbara (Judith O’Dea), a woman still in catatonic shock from the loss of her brother. After she finds the farmhouse, we meet Ben (Duane Jones), the protagonist and most competent member of the group. Revealed to be hiding in the cellar are husband and wife Harry (Karl Hardman) and Helen (Marilyn Eastman), who hid in the cellar of the farmhouse after their child, Karen (Kyra Schon) was bitten by a ghoul and fell ill; with them is the younger couple Tom (Keith Wayne) and Judy (Judith Ridley).
The story avoids giving much information on the characters as it never becomes something important. What does matter is how they must struggle to cooperate, as it quickly becomes a key necessity to fend off their impending doom. Isolated from any outside contact, being located next to a cemetery in the countryside and the phone lines being unresponsive, they must board up the house and devise a plan to survive the night and, if they’re lucky, escape.
A masterwork of suspense, the film keeps you on the edge of your seat, never allowing you to truly relax. The quiet moments in between the chaos and violence only enhance the tension as you know the threat is just around the corner at all times. The story makes use of the small scope of the farmhouse combined with its apocalyptic setting, making you feel as though you’re trapped with the characters as well. News of the worldwide chaos only comes through limited radio and television signals, just enough to know that the horror extends far beyond the setting of the story.
The film sets the framework of zombie stories as a whole in many ways. It introduces the rule of requiring a destructive hit to the brain to kill one. It features the viral nature of zombie bites, where those who are bitten by a zombie will slowly become one. It sets the premise of zombies attacking in massive hordes and overwhelming humanity to the point of apocalypse and worldwide desperation, and it presents the common theme of humanity persisting and surviving through said disaster. All of these are staples of the American conception of zombies, which in itself branched into a genre with hundreds of films, shows, and books (though, interestingly, the movie does not once actually use the word “zombie”.)
Night of the Living Dead was also exceptionally macabre for its time. At the time, horror lacked the violence that we associate with today’s exemplars of the genre; this film, on the other hand, shocked audiences with its explicit gore and nihilism. In a scene that went down in film history, the little girl, Karen, becomes a zombie and proceeds to kill and consume both of her parents. This shocked audiences and critics at the time, but this level of gore is now relatively commonplace in popular horror, largely due to this film’s influence.
Alongside setting a precedent for future horror, the movie also reflects and comments (if unintentionally) on its own times. In the story, scientists speculate that the zombies originated from high levels of radiation emitted from a space probe returning from Venus. In 1968, the public attention on space was high; the Space Race between the U.S. and the Soviet Union was ongoing, with the U.S. only a year away from putting a man on the moon. Horror often taps into the fears and topics of the time, and this is no exception; the fear of the unknown that space could bring was looming over many.
Additionally, the lead of the story, Ben, is played by a black man. This was notable for 1968, and gave the film additional controversy upon its release; then, black characters were rare, and the ones that existed largely functioned as supports for white characters. Instead, Ben is not only the protagonist, but the most competent of the cast, assuming the group’s leader role. Ben’s character was not initially intended to be black; actor Duane Jones was given the role simply due to being the best actor in the auditions, with his race being incidental. A movie like this coming from the tail end of the Civil Rights Era is exemplary of a change in both popular culture and in the nation itself.
Night of the Living Dead is a revolutionary film in more ways than one. It’s a suspenseful and fun watch the entire way through and serves as a fascinating look into the origins of zombie horror. Available on Amazon, Max, Hulu, and more, this film is both perfect for October and an absolute must-watch to all fans of horror- and especially fans of zombies.
