Product Description

Customer Reviews (1)

A wonderful adition to the written books about the man who recreated zombies!
If you are a fan of Book of the dead by Jamie Russell and Gagne's, Zombie's in Pittsburgh, as well as Waller's, The living and the Undead, and Tony Williams ridiculously dry attempt, then this little book is wonderful.
The best part is that because I am familiar with the other books mentioned here I don't feel this book is simply reprinting those works. The writing flows and even if the tidbits of info are familiar they are told through fresh eyes. And the other movies covered such as Season of the Witch, Knightriders, Bruiser, The Crazies, and Monkey Shines makes this book a winner.
If you are fan of Romero's movies then this book is as the title suggests...essential.
J.H. ... Read more

Product Description
Winner of the silver medal in popular culture for the 2006 ForeWord Book of the Year Awards. This volume connects American social and religious views with the classic American movie genre of the zombie horror film. For nearly forty years, the films of George A. Romero have presented viewers with hellish visions of our world overrun by flesh-eating ghouls. This study proves that Romero's films, like apocalyptic literature or Dante's Commedia, go beyond the surface experience of repulsion to probe deeper questions of human nature and purpose, often giving a chilling and darkly humorous critique of modern, secular America.
... Read more

Customer Reviews (21)

Interesting little book
Reviews the plot lines and the signifigance of the Romero living dead films (and the 2005 remake of Dawn of the Dead).Fairly interesting although the author's obsession with Dante's Inferno gets a little old at times.Interesting book.

A good read
I recently finished Kim Paffenroth's Gospel of the Living Dead: George Romero's Visions of Hell on Earth and enjoyed it. It helped me understand what Romero's artistic motivations were.
This book examines the zombie movies of George Romero. All of Romeros films deal with the end of the world and this scholarly book reads like a text book study of those films. Lots of references are made to Dante's Inferno, American Consumerism and imperfect human survivors. This author has a highly developed understanding of religion and incorporates that into this articulate work.
Some characters in Romero's films, who survive the apocalypse , as in many PA books become filled with malice and are filled with a predatory sense of self importance. They feel no guilt in robbing and killing other survivors in order to steal what they have. If you enjoy zombie genre novels you may enjoy this book? It is a study of the influential post apocalyptic zombie movies that most such novels are based on.

A (slightly) new take on zombies.
Kim Paffenroth, Gospel of the Living Dead: George Romero's Vision of Hell on Earth (Baylor University Press, 2006)

I have to say that just about the last book I ever expected to see would be a religious deconstruction of George A. Romero's zombie flicks. And yet that's exactly what we have here; divinity student Paffenroth (who has since graduated into horror-writing himself) offers up a dissection of Romero's films that is quite unlike any other I've ever seen-- he's looking for the religious side of Romero's messages about life, the universe, and everything. And while Paffenroth does make some of the same mistakes a number of other amateur film critics do, especially when discussing Night of the Living Dead (there's this odd belief among amateur film critics that the casting of Ben Jones was some sort of attack on the evil empire, rather than a last-minute casting decision because Jones happened to be the only guy around who could act well enough--the guy originally cast for the part was white, and the racial element of the film is entirely accidental, as has been repeatedly stated in more scholarly discussions of the film), it's hard not to be impressed with Paffenroth's logic. The guy's obviously done his homework. Most of it, anyway.

Paffenroth opens his chapters (each is dedicated to a specific film; he considers Romero's first four zombie films and Zack Snyder's 2004 remake of Dawn of the Dead for comparison purposes) with a summary of the film he's looking at, and then a pretty standard deconstruction of Romero's criticisms of contemporary society. (This is where the whole overrating of Ben Jones' stature comes into play, obviously.) Where Paffenroth differs from most critics is that he's looking at all this through the lens of being a divinity student. I don't mean to suggest that he's tossing in altar calls at random places, but the Christian viewpoint on things is different than the viewpoint one is likely to find in most film criticism. I grant you, sometimes it's a pretty subtle difference, and critics of the book (metacritics?) who have had a tough time seeing the difference between Paffenroth's take on Romero and that of any hundred others who have written articles about the similarities between zombies and mall shoppers are worth reading; you may find yourself having the same difficulty. I don't believe that makes this book one iota less worth reading, but your mileage may vary. ****

Good Book, But Incomplete
I'm a longtime fan of Romero's work, so a philosophical look at the living dead and what they have represented over time seemed a welcome treat, and for the most part, it was.
Most of the comparisons I'd overheard over the years were mentioned within this work, and made me quite happy. I won't mention them specifically here as to do so would be a Spoiler.
The book is good...but in my opinion, a whole movie, AND it's philosophical value, go completely missing.
The Remake for Dawn of the Dead got it's own chapter, just like the original.
But.
The Night of the Living Dead remake (1990) that Romero had Tom Savini direct, was not given equal treatment.
If the 'Night' remake were no different from the original, I would certainly understand it's absence in this book, but because there were some VERY specific differences...differences equally representative of the changing cultural times, and most certainly deserving of analysis...I cannot say I'm pleased about the absence.

Worth reading, but there's room for improvement
If you enjoy zombie movies, especially the work of George Romero, I recommend that you read this book. It's a pretty quick and easy read and holds some interesting insight -- sociological, economical, philosophical, religious, and otherwise. However, it wasn't exactly what I expected going into it, and while I made some pleasant discoveries while I read, I also met with a bit of disappointment.

Based on the title and the description in the book jacket, I was expecting more talk relating these films to Dante's "Inferno", which the author mostly mentions in passing. I think "Inferno" is one of the most interesting and unique pieces of literature around, and I would have liked for him to focus a bit more on the similarities between it and the zombie movies. If someone were reading this book who had little or no knowledge of Dante's "Inferno", I'm sure the parts where he mentions it could be pretty confusing. He doesn't elaborate on it enough for those who like "Inferno", but he doesn't ignore it enough for those who don't know much about it either.

One reviewer wrote, "At times, I felt this book was overreaching a bit in its textual analysis, which irks me." I agree. While George Romero's movies certainly have plenty of Christian undertones, I feel that Paffenroth overthought and over-analyzed a couple of his interpretations. For example, he interprets Big Daddy and the other zombies in "Land of the Dead" crossing the river to Fiddler's Green as analogous to the Israelites crossing the Red Sea with the help of Moses in the Old Testament. I can certainly see why one would make this analogy, but the zombies crossing the river could be more easily and simply interpreted as a purification process, such as a baptismal ritual. Earlier in the book, he interprets the human desire to bury the dead, zombie or not, as a human desire to have a personal relationship with God. This is also a fair interpretation (merely one sub-par out of many great ones), but I just feel like Paffenroth grasps at straws sometimes in this book. Most every culture has some sort of burial ritual, and they do not necessarily seek a close relationship to the Christian God.

These are really my only complaints about this book, but I feel they are significant ones. If I could give this title 3.5/5 stars, I would. If you love zombie movies and seek deep, philosophical and/or religious insight into the world of zombie movies, it is definitely worth your time. But just check it out at the library and give it a quick read, rather than buy a copy to keep on your bookshelf. ... Read more

Product Description
The Cinema of George A. Romero: Knight of the Living Dead is the first in-depth study in English of the career of this foremost auteur working at the margins of the Hollywood mainstream in the horror genre. In placing Romero's oeuvre in the context of literary naturalism, the book explores the relevance of the director's films within American cultural traditions and thus explains the potency of such work beyond 'splatter movie' models. The author explores the roots of naturalism in the work of Emile Zola and traces this through to the EC Comics of the 1950s and on to the work of Stephen King. In so doing, the book illuminates the importance of seminal Romero texts such as Night of the Living Dead (1968), Creepshow (1982), Monkey Shines (1988), The Dark Half (1992). This study also includes full coverage of Romero's latest feature, Bruiser (2000), as well as his screenplays and teleplays. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (4)

A little forced...
Well written, but a little forced. The author's preconceived theory (a connection between Romero's works and the literary Naturalism inspired by Emile Zola) overwhelms almost every other aspect of his critical analysis and prevails on more objective aspects of Romero's art; not to mention the historical and documentary insight, which is very poor here. Unfortunately, Williams never doubts of his critical intuitions in this book,despite G. A. Romero himself never mentioned any link between his movies and Zola or others. Maybe a relashionship between Naturalism and Romero could have been an interesting idea, but to say that every single element of his work is probably linked to Dreiser, Zola or Norris, is really too much. Nevertherless, the book examines every single movie of Romero's filmography as far as "Bruiser": it is the most exhaustive (even if one-sided) critical essay about his films up to now.

Romero - More than just a zombie maker
I doubt there's a single horror-movie fan on this entire earth who doesn't know who George A. Romero is, the creator of zombie classics Night of the Living Dead, Dawn of the Dead, and Day of the Dead (and the fourth one, Land of the Dead, however, this movie hadn't yet been made when The Cinema of George A. Romero came out and thus it's not included in the book).

But Romero is more than just a creator of zombies, and Tony Williams presents in his book a study of all Romero's movies, not just the ones where the living dead stumbles around in the streets, looking for the next human being they can get a snack from. Romero is a creator of movies where he likes to make a point, or points; he has tons of thoughts and ideas - and especially social criticism - that he includes in his work, and Williams manages to offer a clear picture of Romero's complete production and the reasons as to why it looks the way it does.

This is most definitely a book for movie-lovers, and even though it happens to be a scholarly book this still doesn't mean that movie-lovers who are not scholars cannot get something good out of it. Or put in other words, The Cinema of George A. Romero is a book that can be read by all, scholars as well as non-scholars.

But even though Romero, as we all know, not only masters how to create creepy zombies it's still these creatures and the movies they star in that most people think of when they hear his name. And perhaps that isn't much of a surprise, considering how immensely popular they still are, despite having been made quite a few years ago. The horror genre of today isn't what it used to be, and most contemporary horror flicks are "almost entirely devoid of social meaning and dependent upon gratuitous sensationalism" (p. 21).

Well, not so with the ones made by Romero, and this book will most definitely tell you the reasons why.

A Well-Deserved Comprehensive Critical Treatment
I am submitting these comments largely to serve as a sort of counterpoint to those of N. P. Stathoupolous.Mr./Ms. Stathoupolous's point regarding the arid, academic tenor of this work is valid.I would suggest, however, that the popular critical evaluations of Romero's better known films for which Mr./Ms. Stathoupolous is looking have already been published; while a comprehensive academic evaluation of the whole of Romero's oeuvre was lacking.I feel that Mr. Williams has done a great service to american cinephiles by giving Romero's corpus the complete exegesis that it deserves.It is unfortunate that the academic community has a general tendency to view the horror genre as somewhat less than true cinematic art.I think it would be an equal disservice for the genre fans of Romero's zombie films to similarly dismiss Mr. Williams' fine work out of hand.

Why do they come here?
When you see a book titled 'The Cinema of', you know it's supposed to be serious.(Instead of 'The Films of', 'The Movies of', etc.)

Williams, who did a good book about families in the American horror film (Hearths of Darkness) asserts that much of Romero's work is connected with the naturalist tradition of writers like Zola.He also traces lines to EC comics, and connects up Romero works like Dawn of the Dead with the director's hometown of Pittsburgh and a certain vision of a consumerist society that masks a certain social decay.

The problem with books like this, however good the points they make, is often the language and the presentation.There is a large body of Romero fans, particularly Dawn of the Dead fans who may appreciate a 'serious' consideration of the director's films (or his 'cinema').However, I think most fans are alienated by work like this, which is too stuck in academia and is often bloated by unnecessarily flowery language and interpretation to appeal to the people who are watching these films regularly.It's unfortunate, because film is such a mass, popular medium, and yet the academic study of the medium is too stuck in the ivory tower.It seems like you can't just write the obvious, or even just discuss the films if you want to be taken seriously.In order to be write a 'serious' book about an American indie's 'cinema', you have to wrap it up in frameworks that are as lifelike as some of Romero's zombies.The book certainly has good points to make and provides some food for thought (or flesh for thought), but I found it a bit much at times as Williams almost painfully recounts scenes from the films with weighty pronouncements (not particularly backed up) and also, annoyingly, gets names and quotes wrong (fact-checking).

Maybe Romero will return to the sub-genre he created with a film about zombies running rampant in a university... ... Read more

Customer Reviews (4)

Great Bio on Early Romero
George Romero has always been one of my all time favorite directors, ever seen I randomly bought Night of the Living Dead at the mall in Kansas City, MO. I'm not sure what prompted me. I remember hearing rumors of how gory it was in junior high school. I now know that I confused Night with the much more graphic Dawn of the Dead.Still, Night is the better horror movie with Dawn being more of an action party movie.
Paul Gagne does good work covering Romero from growing up in the Bronx to making commericals and industrial films in Pittsburgh.
The Zombies That Ate Pittsburgh cover Romero films from Night of the Living Dead to Day of the Dead with a special mention of Tales from the Darkside TV series.
This is a great look at an uncompromising independent director and how he scared Hollywood by sticking to his own guns and not following any studio system.
I have seen most of Romero's work and I am not a big fan of Martin or Knightriders. However I did enjoy, Night, Dawn, Day, and Creepshow.The Crazies was entertaining when I watched it growing up in the 80's and found it at Blockbusters on VHS.
Sadly, Romero has lost his touch with two recent direct-to-dvd movies, Diary of the Dead and Survival of the Dead, which I haven't seen and I have no plans to. The last movie that I remember playing on the big screen andhaving Romero's name on it was Land of the Dead, which was average and not something I can watch repeatedly like Night or Dawn. Day can be such a depressfest that I watch it mainly for Tom Savini's gory effects.
That's the only way to make Day of the Dead fun.
Romero has done a few movies in the 90's that few people saw or even heard of except for hardcore fans.
The Zombies That Ate Pittsburgh is for those of us who appreciate Romero from Night to Day and a few good ones in between, mainly Creepshow.
The biography material is solid and the problems making small indies movies is discussed. I love the appendix section on Paul Gagne playing a zombie extra in Day of the Dead.
Highly recommended and a fun read for Romero and Zombie fans everywhere.

Informative, entertaining and endearing portrait of Romero.
Paul R. Gagne's book on George A. Romero, charts his career from it's beginnings as a kid with a camera, to being an ad man to doing his debut "Night of the Living Dead" and through the subsequent highs (Dawn of the Dead, Creepshow and Martin)and lows (There's Always Vanilla, Jack's Wife) and everything else in between (Day of the Dead, Knightriders, The Crazies, television series' et al.) up until about 1986 or so.

After a historical background, the book is divided up into a film by film basis and each chapter covers the origins of each project, the inspirations behind them, how they were done, anecdotes from various participants and then conclude with Romero's point-of-view on the particular venture. It's a nice comprehensive format and makes for good reading.

The book also contains a chapter at the end on Savini's work and how it was achieved, a comprehensive filmography, discography and possible future direction for Romero which at the time of purchase (1988) were probably a bit more accurate. Also of note are the large amounts of photos within the text (B&W), and the very nice colour spread in the centre. A very well written and well researched biog/filmography on one of films less understood and less represented auters.

Informative bio is a joy to read.
For those who do not believe that horror icon Romero is an artist passionate about his work I submit this book as a testament that he in fact is. Although hopelessly out of date by now (it ends with a mention of Monkeyshines being his next movie) it still remains a vibrant look at the independant spirit that brings all of Romero's work life. Required reading for Romero fans (both fair weather and die hard). Highly recommended.

The complete George A. Romero story-Kudos to Paul R. Gagne
This book is the definative story of the films of George A. Romero. In fact, it's the only book that's soley dedicated to his films.Gagne recounts Romero's humble beginings at Image Ten Inc. working with JohnRusso, Bill Hinzman, and Russ Streiner. He concludes with Romero'sproduction and writing credits for 'Tales from the Darkside'(The book waspublished in 1987).The book is very well written, researched, andcontains information not published elsewhere. Gagne's writing-style isstraight-forward and insightful. Obviously, Gagne is a fan and writes withgreat care and affinity.This is a magnificent book and is a must for all George A. Romero fans. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (637)

Dawn of the Dead
What can I say, this basically started the Zombie film genre. I recommend this
as a starter movie for any George Romero fan.

Violent, bloody zombie flick
Dawn Of The Dead (1978) is one of the great zombie movies ever made.Now I'm talking about the original, of course.George Romero once again delivers a great zombie movie.It stars David Emge, Ken Foree, Scott H. Reiniger, Gaylen Ross, and Tom Savini.

Basically the movie is about some unknown pandemic that causes flesh-eating zombies to emerge.This phenomena spreads throughout the U.S.Four survivors hide in a shopping mall and find themselves fighting the zombies.The movie is extremely gorey.Extremely bloody.It has great special gore effects by special effects guru Tom Savini, who also appears in the movie.You'll see blood splatter everywhere.Lots of gunfire.Lots of violence.

The zombies are very basic looking.The vast majority of them just have their faces painted with grey or blueish-grey makeup.Since the movie had a budget of only about $650,000 and there were SO MANY zombies, this basic makeup had to do.Besides that, there was no such thing as CGI back in 1978.Had there been CGI, the zombies would have looked more realistic, but I'm not a fan of CGI for the most part.

This DVD has some good special features.It's in widescreen format and is remastered in 5.1 DTS & Dolby Digital Surround Sound.It also has audio commentary from writer and director George Romero, assistant director Chris Romero, special makeup effects artist Tom Savini, and is moderated by Perry Martin.Also included are the theatrical trailers, TV spots, radio spots, poster and advertising gallery, a bio on George Romero, and a comic book preview.

If you like extremely violent zombie movies, then this George Romero classic should entertain you.It's not a Halloween-ish kind of zombie movie, but it's highly entertaining nevertheless.

Scariest book I ever read...
This has to be the most scary book I ever read, the movie was alright, but nothing compares to the book. I won't even rent it from the library anymore because last time I did I was up all night finishing it and then believed for nights and nights that I was hearing sounds and seeing things. It is a claustrophobic book, that really puts you in the middle of it, and you feel like you are going to be eaten next. Seriously it is that good. Go read it! Highly reccommended!

1978 never looked so good...
It's been years since I've seen this movie. None of my local stores carried DotD, and miraculously I found it, on blu-ray, for $10. Although movies back then weren't as advanced as now, the quality in HD makes Tom Savini and George Romero's work really come to life. If you have a brain, or any left at all*nom nom*, you will take advantage of this classic in HD. It's a perfect price and a perfect addition in your horror collection. Do it... Do it...

AWESOME MOVIE!!!!!!!
This was a great movie, good acting, the blood was a too bright to be realistic and the make-up for the zombies were pretty simple.But eventually it doesnt even matter, because as soon as they get to the mall it has you hooked.Usually I have a problem with movies that have slow walking zombies because its not scary, just walk pass them, thats it, running zombies thats something different. But in this, Romero did good job(of course) showing what they do in numbers, so I was cool with it.Tom Savini has a little role which was cool, overall great zombie movie! ... Read more

Product Description
In San Diego, an autopsy seems routine until the corpse sits up and begins to walk--after all of his organs have been removed.Suddenly, the rules of this world have been rewritten and the dead now walk the earth.In Atlanta, a reporter covers the epidemic, showing viewers glimpses of increasing chaos from across the globe.Nowhere, it seems, is safe.The captain of an aircraft carrier hopes to save his crew from the disease by remaining at sea, but seemingly within moments zombies are wreaking havoc on the ship.THE LIVING DEAD follows different groups of people as they react to the crisis, working together or, for some, using their limited knowledge of zombies to try to survive.But is survival even possible?Or desirable? ... Read more

Customer Reviews (529)

must have for any classic zombie fan
wicked awesome movie!if you are a fan of classic horror and zombie flicks.. its a must have!

night of the living dead--blu-ray--forgotten Films
this blu-ray presents the original film in its entirety in 1080p and looks absolutely INCREDIBLE.
this is the BEST version of the original film on any disc.
this film has received 2 releases in the UK, and neither one is as good as this gray area release from Forgotten Films.
btw: the original black and white film was created in 4:3 and was NOT meant to be shown in widescreen.
in other words, the 4:3 presentation is the CORRECT original aspect ratio of the 1968 film.
If Forgotten Films can release other public domain titles on blu-ray in this quality it will be wonderful.
they have done an incredible job with this blu-ray
HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!

NOT in Widescreen Format
This is the best edition of "Night of the Living Dead" you can currently get on DVD. It's restored and re-mastered just as it says on the cover.

However, beware of this somewhat misleading statement on the back cover:

"Widescreen Version presented in a format preserving the 1.33:1 aspect ratio of its original theatrical exhibition."

When people read "Widescreen Version" on the back of DVDs, buyers normally take that as referring to the film itself. Well, the film on this DVD is in "Fullscreen" (1.33:1 aspect ratio). It seems that when it says "Widescreen Version," it is only referring to the Menus and Special Features on the disc. Only people who know what "1.33:1" means will understand from this statement that the film is Fullscreen. It should be more clear and say something like "Film presented in Fullscreen 1.33:1 aspect ratio of its original theatrical exhibition. Menus and Features presented in Widescreen." Otherwise, this statement on the back cover is very confusing to buyers.

Amazon should also specify that the film is Fullscreen and that the features are Widescreen.

Like I said, this is the best release currently available, and I definitely recommend it above all other releases. The fact that it's licensed by George A. Romero should tell you that. And the film's original aspect ratio IS Fullscreen, so you're really not getting ripped off here. It is just that I found this release to be very misleading in regard to the DVD's aspect ratio statement on the back cover.

Color Not a Problem
I have seen this excellent movie about 5 times (in B&W Laserdisc) in the past. I am very happy with this color version (I will watch the the B&W portion next year). After I noticed the colored automobile, I became engrossed in the story and I didn't notice the color much thereafter.

This reissue is obviously better than tape or Laserdisc. If you have not upgraded to DVD yet, this is the version I would choose.

Note that this the only "Living Dead" Type Movie I possess.

Get only the Weinstein print/Romero approved version!
Of all the movies referred to as "Low Budget" or "Cult Classic", Night of the Living Dead deserves the gold medal.The well known problem with public domain issues surrounding the film make it very difficult, however, to find a decent definitive print of the original.

There are so many sequels, reprints, and remakes that it's become an industry unto itself.

For those who aren't sure which is the correct version to get, be sure that the cover is the one with a black background and red bold lettering and imagery.The phrase "Original Film Restored and Re-mastered" is in white at the top, and George Romero's signature is in white at the bottom.

In the product details be sure it says Weinstein Company. Don't be misled by the myriad "anniversary", "colorized", "Blu-Ray", "3-D", or "Special Editions".This one is a perfect print with excellent extras. ... Read more

Product Description
In celebration of the classic motion picture that defined a unique genre of horror, award-winning author Christopher Andrews brings his unique talents to this blood-chilling novelization.Join Barbra, Ben, Tom and Judy, and the Coopers as they struggle to survive through the night surrounded by legions of the living dead. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

One of the best terror reads in a long time
This is one of the best scary stories I have read in a long time.I am a long standing fan of the zombie genre, with such hits as "The Zombie Survival Guide" adorning my shelves.I'm in college now and it is always hard to find a good quick read that can keep you picking it up even when you've looked at text on a page for way to long; this is one of those books.I think I finished it in a week, and a test heavy week at that.This book though was so scary and engrossed me so much.One night, I was reading it in our Chemistry library at our university and had not moved for so long that the motion sensing lights turned off, and I probably jumped a foot out of my seat.I'm a big horror fan and I haven't had a scare like that in ages.Anyone who is a fan of the zombie genre, and likes a book that takes you by the neck and runs with it should read this book.I still have it in my library and recommend it to all my friends who borrow my survival guide.

Incredibly Faithful and Well Done Adaption...
If you are looking for a beautifully done adaption to N.O.T.L.D. then you MUST read this novelization.Since "Night" falls in the public domain and anyone can do anything they like to it I really had no idea what to expect.What I got was a very well written and extremely faithful book that makes it very easy to picture the characters in the film being dragged through their night of hell.Some authors would have taken it too far.Mr.Andrews does it perfectly -- in fact, the best praise I can give him is that the only stuff he added only paints a better picture of each characters psyche.He adds explanation of how each character got to the little farm house in the middle of nowhere and does so in a way that answers a lot of questions that die hard fans have had for years.One of my favorite things the author does is find intelligent ways to explain things that have been thought of as "film flubs" in the movie for years by only adding a voice to what's going on inside the characters head (my favorite is he manages an intelligent explanation as to why the "live" broadcast they are watching of the posse in the middle of the night seem to be standing in a field in the middle of the day).If you want to find out what makes Mr.Cooper such a jerk -- Why does his wife even bother putting up with him? -- How did little Karen get bit -- How did Tom and Judy end up in the basement even listening to this blow hard?Read this book and you shall see.Even the characters that you are unsympathetic to are written so well you understand at least why they are the way they are (You still want to shake the unholy hell out of 'em...but now you understand them).The only negative thing I can say about this book is that Christopher Andrews hasn't yet followed it up with his novelizations of Mr.Romero's other works -- I do hope he plans on fixing these blaring errors soon! ... Read more

Product Description
After a bus turns over in a quiet American town, the entire country is thrown into the grip of the hands of the dead--or undead. No one is safe from the flesh-eating ghouls who have risen from their deathbeds to feed on the living. As the horror spreads, the blood begins to flow. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (5)

Great zombie story
This book was great to read. At times when I was reading it, I actually got scared. It kinda pulls you into the horrfing world that the characters are in. It was a great zombie story, that in my opinon should be adaped to film the way this story is written!! I highly recommend this book to read.

Don't bother with this book!
The fact that there are entire chapters that are completely lifted wordfor word from Night Of The Living Dead doesn't bother me...much... but thefact that this book is poorly written as a Whole does. The characters weare given are not even developed enough to be called cardboard and thestory jumps around aimlessly. The bus wreck in the begining is the onlyreally well thought out part and even that is put on the very back burner.Skip this one if you can!

Doesn't age well....
RETURN OF THE LIVING DEAD is a reissue of a book published in the mid-1970s, and when I read it as a kid, it gave me nightmares until puberty (I am serious!).Now, however....This book has big problems.Typos and grammatical mistakes abound--in fact, they are the same ones as in the poorly-edited original.Obviously, the new publisher didn't bother to edit the text.Also, RETURN takes entire word-for-word pages from Russo's previous novelization of the classic Night of the Living Dead--all of RETURN's "news" reports were used in the first novel, verbatim.Regarding the story itself, RETURN is really depressing.There are few likable human characters, and terrible things (murder, torture, rape, etc.) befall them mostly because of their own stupidity.In fact, the real scares come from the human villains and not the cannibal zombies.I realize that this theme was expressed in the Living Dead movies, but the book doesn't execute the concepts well.RETURN OF THE LIVING DEAD is a great time-killer, but if you want truly terrifying tales of carnivorous corpses, track down the two zombie collections, The Books of the Dead, edited by Skipp and Spector.

Interesting
This book was born from a screenplay written over 20 years ago and it shows.It reads like a screenplay.This was the originally intended sequel to the cult classic "Night Of The Living Dead".10 years after the so-called "plague" was vanquished, a bus topples over in middle america. A Baptist congregation rushes to the scene of the accident(they drive metal spikes through the dead to prevent the plague from reoccuring).Needless to say the plague returns and all hell breaks loose.The last few chapters are a rehash of "Night", with our heroes running from house to house.Although the book is never boring it suffers from sequelitis.A far cry from the brillance of Romero's cinematic sequel.

A worthy follow up to a classic movie.
This book is a worthy follow up to the classic horror movie "Night of the Living Dead."It occurs ten years after the movie, and the cinematic sequels, "Dawn of the Dead" and "Day of the Dead," are not part of the story.In this version of the "Dead" universe, the first "outbreak" has been squelched and life has returned to normal, or as close to normal as it can be in a world where the dead walk and feed on the living, as is exemplified by the first chapter, which by the way will chill you to the bone.It concerns a simple family funeral but with a ghoulish twist.

Plot twists are many as characters come and go (often consumed) and the book comes to a satisfying conclusion.One finds oneself wishing that Mr. Russo might return to this well someday.

One caveat:The book could have greatly benefitted from a good proof reader.Typos, missing words, and other errors are frequent. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (3)

Great variation on a great story!
I listened to this old audio book when I was traveling from NYC to LA.Excellent version of a great movie.Interesting to see how they changed it to make it fit within the time.

I recommend it for those who are true fans of the Night of the Living Dead movies.

An above average radio play style adaptation.
As far as radio plays go, this is an above average adaptation of the movie.No doubt the original screenwriters doing the writing helped.Some of the voice actors lay it one a bit thick though.Nonetheless, fans will want this in their libraries.

this film bites, flesh that is
this cassette is the next best thing to watching or reading any of romero's work. truly the best in the living dead trilogy ... Read more

Product Description
Bizarro includes 400 photos-100 in full color-of Savini's work on screen and behind the scenes. Many of these photographs have never been seen before. All the effects he has created in each of his films are explored and explained. Also included are step-by-step make-up demonstrations (shot especially for the book) to offer budding make-up artists and film fans a firsthand look at how cinematic illusions are created.For the first time, Tom Savini has put his knowledge of technique and his experience in the field of special make-up effects down on paper. Bizarro is both a chronicle of his work and a learning guide for anyone who wishes to pursue special make-up effects as a career.
Tom Savini not only makes dreams real-he brings nightmares to life. In Bizarro he shows step-by-step how he created some of the most amazing special make-up effects in horror films today. Savini's films includeCreepshow, Friday the 13th, Eyes of a Stranger, The Burning, Maniac, and The Prowler. His effects rangefrom walking corpses to exploding zombies. He has also created some wonderful monsters, including Creepshow's Fluffy and Friday the 13th's spine-tingling Jason.
TOM SAVINI is an actor and stuntman, as well as being one of the top make-up artists in film. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

The Best!!
This is the best special make up effects book on the market. It shows and teaches you the effects Tom Savini has done in movies, such as The Burning, The Prowler, Dawn of the Dead, Friday the 13th, Creepshow, and many more. It is a must for all who love make up effects, even if you dont like make up it is still a cool book for those who love horror movies. Being a make up artist myself, i dont know what i would do without this book.

This book is one of the best learning manuals for smuefx!
For those who are interested in learning all the fundamentals of special makeup effects.Thourough detail that answers all questions you may have. ... Read more

Product Description

This book presents the refereed joint proceedings of seven workshops on evolutionary computing, EvoWorkshops 2006, held in Budapest in April 2006. 65 revised full papers and 13 revised short papers presented were carefully reviewed and selected from a total of 149 submissions. The book is organized in topical sections including evolutionary bioinformatics, evolutionary computation in communications, networks, and connected systems, and more.

Customer Reviews (1)

a great adaption to a horror icon
Susanna Sparrow did a wonderful job with this book. While staying true to the characters of Fran, Roger and Peter, she also gave them a little something extra you can't see in the movie.
She allowed us to hear their thoughts.
By doing this the characters become even more real and I really enjoyed this book.
To those who want to buy the hardcover it is only 6 by 9, so its not very big compared to most hardcover editions.
No zombie fan can say they have it all if this book is't in their library.
Even after 30 years it's still one of the best books out there because of the origination of the story. ... Read more

Product Description
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Product Description
One of the true icons of horror lives! The story of Karen, the little zombie girl from the Night of the Living Dead film, can finally be told! Picking up at the end of the film, this special issue continues her zombie tale and also fills in her tumultuous history. Can a little girl zombie survive long in a dangerous world or has this girl been living in danger her whole life? Written by John Russo, co-writer of the original film, and featuring art by talented newcomer Edison George, this is a horror story for the ages! ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Russo Turns Harry Cooper into a Total Psychopath! Bad Work! (Spoilers)
'Night of the Living Dead: Just a Girl' is a one shot graphic novel featuring a story by 'Night of the Living Dead' co-write John A.Russo.

The artwork and the dialogue are both first rate, but the major problem with this piece is Russo's story and his complete retcon of the characters of Harry and Helen Cooper. Here Harry is presented as a completely hostile madman who runs an unsuccessful dry cleaning business(??!!). Although his profession was never specified in the original story, I think that it was clear that he was a very low level businessman or salesman. Quite frankly, Cooper, as he is present here, is certainly not someone who would be working with the wider public due to his irrational and hostile manner.

Helen Cooper is presented as a weakling, in total conflict with her assertive personality in the original film.

Karen Cooper is shown as an abandoned child taken from the orphanage (??!!) by the Coopers, so that Harry can have someone to work for him for free at his dry cleaners (??!!).

The narrative presents Karen's attack on her parents (when she turns into a ghoul) as a revenge story, when it has long been established that Ghouls are operating on instinct and the desire for warm flesh, not out of a desire to settle a grudge.

In the original film, Harry Cooper is presented as a difficult man who is essentially a control freak with an attitude problem, but a man who also loved and was worried about his injured daughter. He was a man who was cowardly and petty in the worst of situations, but he bears little resemblance to the amoral, hate filled lunatic charactiturethat is presented in these pages.

Helen's portrayal as a week willed mouse terrified of Harry's mood swings is also a total contradiction.

The 1990 'Night of the Living Dead' remake also featured a hostile, cartoon Cooper which was all the more surprising given that it was scripted by George A. Romero himself.

As with his wrong headed novels, cinematic atrocities such as the 30th Anniversary edition of 'Night of the Living Dead' (which featured an over 60 year old William Hinzman reprising his role of the 30 year old graveyard ghoul in footage newly filmed by Russo) and the totally incoherent 'Children of The Living Dead', Russo, once again, proves that he incapable or unwilling to write anything that makes sense or possesses artistic merit.

The graphic novel would have been more interesting had the characters not been the Coopers, but some generic dysfunctional family.

The story itself is fairly solid, but the re-imaging of NOTLD characters ruins it.

Recommended for Night of the Living Dead completists and zombie comic fans only. ... Read more