(no subject)
Howdy!
A few things I'll be updating today.
The first is my essay on George A. Romero's Dead Series (well, most of it), which you can read. Criticism is always welcome.
The second, is a painting. It isn't very good, I don't really like painting. It's watercolour, and it's supposed to be an Earth Mother sort of thing. I like the eyebrow. That's about it XD. Enjoy.
Fiercer than the vampire and more frightening than a man in a hockey mask, zombies have at last secured their spot at the top of the horror story food chain. For decades, zombie flicks have entertained North American audiences with their wit, and scary ghouls. Responsible for this flesh eating genre, is George A. Romero. George Romero began making films at the tender age of 14 (The Masters), and with his indie cult sensation Night of the Living Dead, he created what is one of the most popular subgenre of horror movies, the zombie film. Romero’s dedication to his films shines through, especially in his first film where he did much of the filming, as well as editing (The Masters). The sounds and sights of his films are not the only thing that stands out, however; Romero is well known for his social commentary which he infuses each film with, in his Dead series. This social commentary helps to create a rather soulful film which is a treat for the brains of those whom are lucky enough to have theirs intact. The sights, sounds and soul of Romero’s films come together to create masterpiece after masterpiece, which is why I feel that George A. Romero is a filmmaker who is most impressive.
The Dead Series is known for being so strong visually, and there is good reason for that to be so. Romero seems to have an exceptional amount of talent, equaled by luck, when it comes to filming. The extremely low budget for Night of the Living Dead resulted in some sacrifices being made, one of which was that Romero and his crew could not afford colour stock (The Masters). Little did they know that the film being shot in black and white would set the film so far apart from other films of the time, and add to the chill and fright they worked so hard to create. I was also very impressed with the makeup work in the Dead Series. In Dawn of the Dead, there was an obvious increase in gory content from Night of the Living Dead. Unfortunately, the “blood” which was used in Dawn was not at all life-like, and merely looked like pinkish paint. Even in black and white, the real pig’s entrails used in Night of the Living Dead (The Masters) for scenes of cannibalism, really added something special. The way in which the pigs’ blood glistened on the faces and hands of the zombies gave a very realistic touch, realistic enough to be rather unsettling, the way horror movies ought to be. The makeup in Land of the Dead is, as can be expected, the most remarkable of all the Dead films. The eyes of the zombies look very sunken in, and their cheekbones have been built up with putty, giving them a very severe and ghoulish appearance. All in all, though somewhat repulsive, George A Romero’s visual work is so rich that you can’t look away, even when you’d like to.
The use of sound in a film has the capability of doing so much more than just filling in dead air. The sound of a scream piercing the silence of the night in NotLD does more than just inform you that someone is screaming; it chills you down to your core. George A. Romero consistently uses music and foleys to create moods which I feel are unparalleled by the attempts of other auteurs. One scene which I felt had the best choices in sound in Dawn of the Dead, is a scene in which the protagonists are in the mall, killing zombies. “Mall music” is playing on a loudspeaker in the background, which slightly mutes but does not drown out the distinct sound of zombies having their heads caved in. The contrast between the two sounds and their origins, made this scene far more humorous than it would have been, had these sounds not been chosen. Another superb use of sound is in Land of the Dead. In the opening scene, a “zombie band” can be seen, absently playing the trombone and the tuba. These pitiful sounds carry on the near silence surrounding them, disturbed only by the slight whistle of the wind. These sounds helped to create an atmosphere which was very desolate, even though it was rather crowded with reanimated corpses. It is Romero’s ability to use sound to create an atmosphere contrary to what you see that I feel makes his talent truly exceptional.
The souls of George Romero’s films consist of a lot of social commentary, and he agrees that he is “much more concerned about getting in some observations underneath [the plot] or some satire” (Curnutte). Romero is skilled at reeling people into his movies with promises of blood and gore, but what they don’t expect is the dissection of human nature taking place before them. In Night of the Living Dead, he began slowly, first studying “how we react to adversity, fear and hate” (The Masters) so subtly that you may never know the underlying content until someone informed you of it. More daring was the depiction of American consumerism and greed in Dawn of the Dead, which gives one a frightening, extreme view of how people seem to be selling their souls at the local mall. This theme was summed up so perfectly in two lines as said by one of the protagonists as they arrive at the mall for shelter: “[The mall] was an important place in [the zombie’s] lives”, and even more disturbingly “They don’t know why, they just want to be [in the mall]”. Perhaps it is not only the reanimated dead who are mindless zombies, but perhaps our need to spend money has made us into zombies as well. Land of the Dead keeps up with the trend of social commentary, and looks closely at class conflict in Northern American societies. In this film, I feel that there are more than one ways to define the antagonists and protagonists, depending on how you look at it. To the “standard” protagonists, who are in effect freedom fighters, the fat cats who live it large in the city, as well as the zombies, are the antagonists. However, the zombies in this film take on a slightly different role, as they have become a sort of commodity and are being exploited by the living. Thus, to them, all of the humans are the antagonists. Each of Romero’s films in his Dead Series gives the viewer a chance to critically analyze our ways of life, without even knowing it; a gift which I feel could only be given effectively by a filmmaker with extraordinary talent.
Films possess more than just the power to persuade an audience to feel a certain emotion, or to sit on the edge of their seats; one film has the ability to change the way that people view their lives. With his remarkable talent in filmmaking, George A. Romero has taken the horror genre and altered it to do more than just to fright, but to go further and make a political statement, all the while enticing us with images and sounds far beyond those of the realm of the living. Romero speaks of his zombie’s as creating “a revolution, a new society coming in and devouring the old” (Curnutte). This idea of the zombies “devouring” the old society is inspiring, and relates very much to what Romero has done for the film industry, by rejecting the overuse of technology like CGI, and instead devoting himself to creating films of substance. His dedication to the sights, sounds and soul of his films make George A. Romero a truly unique and inspiring filmmaker.
Ew, my signature... stupid ink!
That's it for now.
A few things I'll be updating today.
The first is my essay on George A. Romero's Dead Series (well, most of it), which you can read. Criticism is always welcome.
The second, is a painting. It isn't very good, I don't really like painting. It's watercolour, and it's supposed to be an Earth Mother sort of thing. I like the eyebrow. That's about it XD. Enjoy.
Fiercer than the vampire and more frightening than a man in a hockey mask, zombies have at last secured their spot at the top of the horror story food chain. For decades, zombie flicks have entertained North American audiences with their wit, and scary ghouls. Responsible for this flesh eating genre, is George A. Romero. George Romero began making films at the tender age of 14 (The Masters), and with his indie cult sensation Night of the Living Dead, he created what is one of the most popular subgenre of horror movies, the zombie film. Romero’s dedication to his films shines through, especially in his first film where he did much of the filming, as well as editing (The Masters). The sounds and sights of his films are not the only thing that stands out, however; Romero is well known for his social commentary which he infuses each film with, in his Dead series. This social commentary helps to create a rather soulful film which is a treat for the brains of those whom are lucky enough to have theirs intact. The sights, sounds and soul of Romero’s films come together to create masterpiece after masterpiece, which is why I feel that George A. Romero is a filmmaker who is most impressive.
The Dead Series is known for being so strong visually, and there is good reason for that to be so. Romero seems to have an exceptional amount of talent, equaled by luck, when it comes to filming. The extremely low budget for Night of the Living Dead resulted in some sacrifices being made, one of which was that Romero and his crew could not afford colour stock (The Masters). Little did they know that the film being shot in black and white would set the film so far apart from other films of the time, and add to the chill and fright they worked so hard to create. I was also very impressed with the makeup work in the Dead Series. In Dawn of the Dead, there was an obvious increase in gory content from Night of the Living Dead. Unfortunately, the “blood” which was used in Dawn was not at all life-like, and merely looked like pinkish paint. Even in black and white, the real pig’s entrails used in Night of the Living Dead (The Masters) for scenes of cannibalism, really added something special. The way in which the pigs’ blood glistened on the faces and hands of the zombies gave a very realistic touch, realistic enough to be rather unsettling, the way horror movies ought to be. The makeup in Land of the Dead is, as can be expected, the most remarkable of all the Dead films. The eyes of the zombies look very sunken in, and their cheekbones have been built up with putty, giving them a very severe and ghoulish appearance. All in all, though somewhat repulsive, George A Romero’s visual work is so rich that you can’t look away, even when you’d like to.
The use of sound in a film has the capability of doing so much more than just filling in dead air. The sound of a scream piercing the silence of the night in NotLD does more than just inform you that someone is screaming; it chills you down to your core. George A. Romero consistently uses music and foleys to create moods which I feel are unparalleled by the attempts of other auteurs. One scene which I felt had the best choices in sound in Dawn of the Dead, is a scene in which the protagonists are in the mall, killing zombies. “Mall music” is playing on a loudspeaker in the background, which slightly mutes but does not drown out the distinct sound of zombies having their heads caved in. The contrast between the two sounds and their origins, made this scene far more humorous than it would have been, had these sounds not been chosen. Another superb use of sound is in Land of the Dead. In the opening scene, a “zombie band” can be seen, absently playing the trombone and the tuba. These pitiful sounds carry on the near silence surrounding them, disturbed only by the slight whistle of the wind. These sounds helped to create an atmosphere which was very desolate, even though it was rather crowded with reanimated corpses. It is Romero’s ability to use sound to create an atmosphere contrary to what you see that I feel makes his talent truly exceptional.
The souls of George Romero’s films consist of a lot of social commentary, and he agrees that he is “much more concerned about getting in some observations underneath [the plot] or some satire” (Curnutte). Romero is skilled at reeling people into his movies with promises of blood and gore, but what they don’t expect is the dissection of human nature taking place before them. In Night of the Living Dead, he began slowly, first studying “how we react to adversity, fear and hate” (The Masters) so subtly that you may never know the underlying content until someone informed you of it. More daring was the depiction of American consumerism and greed in Dawn of the Dead, which gives one a frightening, extreme view of how people seem to be selling their souls at the local mall. This theme was summed up so perfectly in two lines as said by one of the protagonists as they arrive at the mall for shelter: “[The mall] was an important place in [the zombie’s] lives”, and even more disturbingly “They don’t know why, they just want to be [in the mall]”. Perhaps it is not only the reanimated dead who are mindless zombies, but perhaps our need to spend money has made us into zombies as well. Land of the Dead keeps up with the trend of social commentary, and looks closely at class conflict in Northern American societies. In this film, I feel that there are more than one ways to define the antagonists and protagonists, depending on how you look at it. To the “standard” protagonists, who are in effect freedom fighters, the fat cats who live it large in the city, as well as the zombies, are the antagonists. However, the zombies in this film take on a slightly different role, as they have become a sort of commodity and are being exploited by the living. Thus, to them, all of the humans are the antagonists. Each of Romero’s films in his Dead Series gives the viewer a chance to critically analyze our ways of life, without even knowing it; a gift which I feel could only be given effectively by a filmmaker with extraordinary talent.
Films possess more than just the power to persuade an audience to feel a certain emotion, or to sit on the edge of their seats; one film has the ability to change the way that people view their lives. With his remarkable talent in filmmaking, George A. Romero has taken the horror genre and altered it to do more than just to fright, but to go further and make a political statement, all the while enticing us with images and sounds far beyond those of the realm of the living. Romero speaks of his zombie’s as creating “a revolution, a new society coming in and devouring the old” (Curnutte). This idea of the zombies “devouring” the old society is inspiring, and relates very much to what Romero has done for the film industry, by rejecting the overuse of technology like CGI, and instead devoting himself to creating films of substance. His dedication to the sights, sounds and soul of his films make George A. Romero a truly unique and inspiring filmmaker.
Ew, my signature... stupid ink!
That's it for now.