Horror in the Aughts, Issue 5: Remembering Snyder’s Genius in a Pre-Toxic Fandom World
[Editor’s Note: Our very own Eric Mayo came to me in December with an idea for a new series. While he plans to still chime in about video games from time to time (including our delayed best of 2023 series which will appear before the end of February), 2024 is the year in which he’ll be putting together some great pieces highlighting his favorite horror films from the first decade of our current century… or as many refer to it, “the Aughts”. Since this decade was also a very important one for my horror tastes and sensibilities, I will be joining him in this venture, highlighting some of my faves, as well. Each installment will be dubbed an “issue” in keeping with our early 2000s theme – think of it as our very own horror fanzine… something that punks, film nerds, and other weirdos like us will remember as a big part of the 90s and aughts. If you head over to the first issue, you can read Eric explaining the column’s inspiration himself – thepaintedman]
After the remake of The Texas Chainsaw Massacre absorbed 28M in its opening weekend and finished off at around 80M in the domestic box office in October 2003, the remake boon was officially off and running. Studio executives could not contain themselves in revisiting their old horror IP’s and churning out updated versions for the modern horror audience. As with most trends, the landscape was littered with some good ones – The Texas Chainsaw Massacre, The Hills Have Eyes, House of Wax – and some truly awful ones – The Fog, Prom Night, A Nightmare on Elm Street. All these remakes had one thing in common – the old school horror fan loathed the idea of them. Statements such as “Hollywood has no original ideas anymore” and “Why remake a classic?” were being thrown around by all, and I must admit, for one such movie, I was having the same thoughts. The cries from the horror fandom were vehemently against a 1978 classic getting the remake treatment, especially from – at the time – a first-time director known for music videos and written by the guy who was known for the grade A sleaze of Troma films. Little did we know that this remake would not only be a worthy heir to the original, but even surpass it for pure visceral horror fans. The writer – James Gunn – and director – Zack Snyder – would eventually go on to Marvel and DC tentpole films in their own time, but they first collided with the remake of George A. Romero’s classic zombie apocalypse flick, Dawn of the Dead.
One day, you are just trying to survive the long day at work to come home and get your freak on before bed. The next, a viral outbreak spreads across the country, turning people into ravenous creatures. This is the plight of a subsection of civilians who end up converging at the local shopping mall to hold up and protect themselves from a world gone horrific. Among the group we have nurse Ana (indie darling Sarah Polley), policeman Kenneth (Ving Rhames), retail manager Michael (Jake Weber) and a man ewith his pregnant wife in tow (Mekhi Phifer and Inna Korobkina). Them, along with some overzealous security guards who keep them as prisoners of sorts, end up creating their fortress within this massive retail mecca, holding out hope that the world will solve the problem in the meantime as they stay all sealed off from the outside world. As more survivors come to the mall looking for safety, the life that these survivors begin to carve out for themselves slowly begins to unravel as one mistake after another begins to pile up. The world is not getting better, and the last survivors of this apocalypse must find a way to escape the mall and get themselves to real seclusion, an island paradise, and hope the virus hasn’t reached across the oceans.
The vitriol around the DotD remake was feverish. No one thought it was a good idea to redo the great Romero classic and not a soul thought the social commentary on display would be replicated. After DotD 2004 was released, it was correct that the social commentary was not present in this new iteration (for which I am thankful, Romero perfected it, no need to try and replicate it) but not a single soul though this was a waste of time or a shoddy remake (at least the smart ones). Dawn of the Dead 2004 completely rips in a multitude of ways. We get baby Zack Snyder helming his first pic, all full of ideas and his own unique style/brand of filmmaking before he became high on his own supply and spawned the “Snyder-heads” cult that has spawned since his involvement in the DC Extended Universe. There is a kinetic energy that is infectious throughout the movie, and it owes a lot to the manic directing of Snyder. The zombies move fast (unlike Romero’s lumbering corpses), the action flies across the screen, and there is always a palpable sense of danger and tension ongoing throughout its 100+ minute running time. DotD 2004 also contains probably the best opening of any horror movie ever. By the time the title card hits the screen, the tone is set, and the mood of the entire picture is established. I also believe the end credits are some of the most engaging I have seen in any film. While I’d prefer it to end on the shot BEFORE the credits roll, I do love that the kinetic energy of the film carries throughout the brisk end credits. Special mention should also be noted that this is the first major studio script from Troma disciple James Gunn (who wrote the Scooby-Doo live action flick the same year). Its chock full of solid dialogue, amusing situations and surprisingly substantial character development for the leads without feeling like it’s dragging down the pace of the movie.
The cast assembled for this remake is also TOP NOTCH. Main lead Sarah Polley was not known for working within the studio system (with Doug Liman’s GO probably being her most identifiable role to the masses) and she is a welcome presence of strong female empowerment and a solid character journey. She is a great audience surrogate and brings a lot to the table whenever she pops up. Ving Rhames brings his usual suave and swagger to the movie while also having the most emotional character relationship in the film (his back and forth with the gun shop owner via a whiteboard/binocular). Jake Weber is a tad plain and boring but brings a reliable stability to what could have been a truly thankless role. Mekhi Phifer also makes his presence felt in the limited time we have with him in the movie, always drawing eyes to him. We even get a pre-Modern Family Ty Burrell sleazing up the joint as douche Steve, a rich dude who would just love to hate, a complete 180 from the sweetheart character he will eventually play on Modern Family for many years. Hell, even the lead security guard CJ (Michael Kelly), who is not exactly welcoming to our central cast at the beginning of the movie, ends up being a favorite of mine as the movie enters its final act, putting him in the same care boat as the rest of our survivors. The one lone disappointment is the brief presence of Matt Frewer. He does a great job of eliciting emotion and tears in his few minutes of screentime, and I truly wish he was around more to add on top of the spoils this movie already provides.
You can hate on Zack Snyder now all you want with the toxic fanbase that has surrounded his involvement in the DC films and their shift away from that created universe (still amusing that WB hired Gunn to move away from what Snyder wrought), but the man knew how to create a hyper kinetic movie in his early days and knocked it out of the park with Dawn of the Dead (and truly moved into icon status with his next gig, 2006’s CG epic of Spartan rage, 300). Universal should be credited for giving Snyder and Gunn their breakthrough in the industry, letting them show off what they are good at and not getting in the way. The cast assembled are all solid and make the viewer truly care for their fates. Dawn of the Dead is topflight entertainment, and a worthy remake of the revered ’78 Romero original. Remakes are not a bad idea by any stretch of the imagination if the people involved give a shit about the final product. It’s clear everyone gave a shit about Dawn of the Dead 2004.
