Film Review: ‘Land of the Dead’ disappoints with weak characters
Whereas George A. Romero’s other zombie flicks manage to analyze human interaction, his latest release, “Land of the Dead,” manages to leave out the believable characters and situations that made the other films great.
Several years after the initial outbreak, the humans have established a stable city. At the heart of the complex is a tower called Fiddler’s Green where Romero tries to play up power struggles between the rich in tower and the destitute slums surrounding it, but fails to do so.
In previous films, Romero focused on how different types of people fared in claustrophobic conditions, he tries to set up the same drama of human in-fighting that worked in his previous films, but “Land” has weak characters acting on unclear motives. The struggle between the rich and the poor featured in “Land” is just a generic plot and the bland, cardboard storytelling ruins it. The undead almost deserve to eat the cliché characters, from a hooker with a heart of gold to the lone wolf who can’t help saving people.
The best scene, by far, looks like it jumped out of a videogame. Two humans are searching a shed with a flashlight for zombies. As the light pans across the dark room, each new corner reveals a creepy tableau of a zombie munching on a bloody body part.
The only other interesting thing “Land” brings to the zombie genre is a nameless, smart zombie, who can use tools, and leading the other zombies with grunts. Unfortunately, most of the humans remain unaware of this new threat and the movie ends suggesting it will remain that way.
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on Monday, October 29th, 2007 at 11:27 pm and is filed under Arts & Entertainment, Film Reviews.
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