Night of the Living Dead

Although nearly 40 years old, Romero’s feature debut remains a seminal horror film, one still capable of surprising, shocking and scaring even the most jaded of audiences. Shot in gritty black and white with a cast of unknowns, it seems almost documentary-like as it follows the plight of seven people who seek refuge from the living dead in an abandoned farmhouse. As the night unfolds, the zombie quotient increases, and their situation grows more dire. Finally, they turn on themselves... The sense of society overrun by irrational forces echoes the enormous social upheaval felt in the U.S. during the late 1960s. Much of the film’s raw power comes from the way Romero defies genre conventions and violates a number of strong taboos, especially with his depiction of explicit gore. Night of the Living Dead redefined the horror film and has become one of the most influential films of all time.