Day of the Dead
Dir: George A. Romero
1985
*****
Day of the Dead continues the 'Lord of the Flies' theme from Dawn of the Dead and adds ethics into the mix. Night of the Living Dead highlighted a society that doesn't really know who the enemy is, a society that after everything has happened, is still controlled by their ignorance and instinct - like Zombies. The second film focused on two ideas; of opting out of society and being above it (a comment on capitalism). Ignore society at your own peril, society is all of us. With Day of the Dead the outbreak is at its height and the living are outnumbered. A small group of solders and scientist are holding out in a secure underground bunker. The two groups represent brain and brawn, two very different mindsets. Of the three original Zomie films, Day of the Dead is perhaps the most ambitious and has the biggest impact. As the zombies evolve the living fall apart, all important aspects of society; communication, discussion, understanding, democracy have broken down, passion, emotion, aggression, mistrust, etc take over. Comeuppance for the selfish? That's the just the start of it as every character represents a different aspect of society in general, what the Zombies represent is something far less frightening than what the living do.