Cast:
Sarah Polley as Ana
Ving Rhames as Kenneth
Jake Weber as Michael
Mekhi Phifer as Andre
Ty Burrell as Steve
Michael Kelly as CJ
Kevin Zegers as Terry
Michael Barry as Bart
Lindy Booth as Nicole
Jayne Eastwood as Norma
Boyd Banks as Tucker
Inna Korobkina as Luda
R.D. Reid as Glen
Kim Poirier as Monica
Matt Frewer as Frank
Critique:
Over the past few years Hollywood has remade several of the classic horror movies. Most of them have been done very well and show that even though the horror genre does not have top billing status, it does get a lot of respect.
Dawn of the Dead is another very well done re-imagination of the original. The location remains mostly the same, a group of people trapped inside of a mall with a hoard of zombies waiting to tear them apart outside.
The cast is a great one. It might not be full of A-list actors, but it is full of very talented people, which is always a joy in a horror movie. Sarah Polly, Ving Rhames, Jake Webber, and Mekhi Phifer come together very well and are believable in an unbelievable situation.
It is the zombies that are the real stars of the movie and they are an updated zombie. They still roam around slowly and without purpose when there are no people around, but when they see a person they movie with speed and determination. This makes the action much more intense and adds to the horror when they are seen.
As with the original there is a lot of humor, dark humor but still funny. The plot is unbelievable but no one expects reality from a zombie movie. The hard rock score meshes well with the updated zombies.
Who should see this movie? If you are a horror movie fan you should already be in line. The original was a classic and this is a very well done remake of it. There is plenty of action with a fair amount of humor. The blood and guts are ever present but it is not overly graphic (considering the subject), making the movie more accessible to non-horror fans. A small romance does build, but it is far in the background to the main action. You do not need to think to enjoy the movie, but you do need to be able to stomach seeing blood. Dawn of the Dead 2004 is a great addition to the horror movie catalog.
