By: Hayden Fitzsimons

George Romero is likely a name that goes over the heads of many, however his affect on film and pop culture is immeasurable.

George Romero is one of the main reasons zombies have become as popular as they are today. Prior to Romero, very few pieces of media involving zombies existed. There were enough to inspire Romero, films such as ‘The White Zombie’ were a main influence to the creation of Romero’s first film ‘Night of the Living Dead,’ which was released in 1968. His film was unlike any other film before it, as his film contained extreme gore and a focus on the living dead, believe it or not.

17 years later, George Romero releases another zombie film, the staple of his filmmaking career. This film is ‘Day of the Dead,’ one of his lesser known and lesser appreciated films. Even so, many of Romero’s fans claim ‘Day of the Dead’ as their favorite Romero film. Personally, ‘Day of the Dead’ is the only film I’ve seen of his, however I’m greatly looking forward to seeing more as this film is quite entertaining.

‘Day of the Dead’ is, to put it simply, an entertaining yet extremely corny movie. This is a common thread in Romero’s films, as they are all low budget and kitschy films. Even despite the film’s corniness it remains a very entertaining film.

Yet, the first act of the film is a major issue in my opinion. I found the first 20 to 30 minutes extremely boring and borderline irritating. This issue is one that plagues many older films, but that doesn’t excuse ‘Day of the Dead.’

But, if you make it through the first act, which I highly recommend that you do, the film quickly picks up. The story which takes place is that of Dr. Sarah Bowman and a whole cast of characters ranging from soldiers to nearly insane scientists, trapped in an underground facility. They’ve been assigned the task of learning about the zombies which have ravaged America, but the soldiers are quickly becoming irritated with losing their men and resources to protect a collection of nerds who seem to be making very little progress. 

The issues and strengths of ‘Day of the Dead’ both derive from the characters. In the beginning of the film, many of the characters are nearly perfect cliches. The characters start as extremely one dimensional, irritating, and poorly acted. This makes the film become somewhat of a slog, a painful crawl until the film very quickly improves.

Once an actual threat and conflict arises, the characters who were once cliches have become endearing to the viewer and are now a set of fun characters who the viewer is rooting wholeheartedly for. After the film overcomes their initially poorly written characters, it becomes an action packed thrill ride that is non-stop entertainment.

By: Teah Henry

It’s October! This is the month of Halloween, which means candy, spooky decorations, and of course horror movies. Many people spend this month watching scary films, and if you were looking for any suggestions then you’ve come to the right place. In this article, we’ll be looking at some of the most influential horror films that have ever been made. Let’s start with:

‘Psycho’ (dir. Alfred Hitchcock, 1960) 

Psycho’ is one of the most well known movies; even if you haven’t seen it, you’ve surely seen references, heard the score, or at least seen the famous shower scene. There’s also the well known prequel series, ‘Bates Motel’. 

At its release, it shocked most American audiences. Alfred Hitchcock had trouble with funding due to the horrific nature of the film, and had to put his own money into the making of it. It was filmed and released during the “Hays Code Era of Hollywood”. The code prohibited many things from being in movies. Only “correct standards of life” could be shown in a movie, and things like crime could not be shown unless the criminal was punished. This meant many movies did not show anything like the terror in ‘Psycho’, and Hitchcock’s clever avoidance of the censors and masterful filmmaking helped create one of the most well known horror films of all time. 

It was also the first Hollywood film to show a toilet on screen! 

‘The Exorcist’ (dir. William Friedkin, 1973)

‘The Exorcist’ did not have a good start. Many major stars turned down the request to be in it, sets had burned down, and it had to double the budget to finish filming. Not only that, but it had gotten mixed reviews from critics when it finally released.

Despite its problems, audiences loved it. Long lines formed to buy tickets, people waited outside in the cold to see it, and it gained notoriety for being absolutely horrifying. Many people fainted, threw up, and there were even heart attacks. Ozzy Osbourne said the movie inspired him and Black Sabbath to write even scarier music. 

It was the highest grossing horror movie until ‘It: Chapter One’s’ release in 2017. ‘The Exorcist’ was also the first horror movie to be nominated for Best Picture at the Oscars. It’s a movie that everyone remembers after viewing, and it’s influence on horror and our culture is undeniable. 

‘The Texas Chainsaw Massacre’ (dir. Tobe Hooper, 1974)

Similar to ‘The Exorcist’, ‘Texas Chainsaw’ caused a huge reaction among audiences. The violence in the film stirred a controversy. Many theaters refused to show it, and Hooper had trouble even finding a studio to distribute the movie.

It did make a lot of money however, and helped boost common horror tropes to the mainstream. It used the “based on the true story” tactic that is seen often now (such as in ‘The Conjuring’ franchise). Even though it is not really based on real events, it is loosely inspired by serial killer Ed Gein. 

‘Texas Chainsaw’ is cited as the movie starting many slasher movie tropes, and it is safe to say that the genre would not be the same if this film had not been released. 

Those are some of the most influential horror movies ever made, and if you’re looking for a spooky movie to watch this season, it wouldn’t hurt to check any of these three movies out.