Night of the Living Dead (1968)
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A group of people trapped in a farmhouse must defend themselves against a growing horde of flesh-eating reanimated corpses.
The story
After a woman's brother is attacked by a 'ghoul' in a cemetery, she flees to a nearby farmhouse where she encounters a stranger named Ben. They soon discover they are not alone; several other people have taken refuge in the house's cellar to escape the same cannibalistic corpses. As the group huddles together, they learn through radio and television reports that these reanimated beings are roaming the East Coast. The survivors must navigate the tension of their shared confinement while trying to secure supplies and find a way to safety as the siege of the farmhouse intensifies.
Full plot (contains spoilers)
After Barbra's brother is killed by a ghoul in a cemetery, she flees to a farmhouse where she meets Ben. They find others in the cellar: the Cooper family and a young couple, Tom and Judy. The group learns from broadcasts that the ghouls are a widespread threat caused by a space probe's radiation. Ben attempts to get supplies for the children, but the mission results in the deaths of Tom and Judy. During a power failure, ghouls break into the house. In the ensuing chaos, Ben shoots Harry, who dies in the cellar. Barbra is briefly reunited with her brother's corpse before being overwhelmed by the horde. Karen, the young girl, turns into a ghoul and kills her mother. In the morning, a posse arrives; Ben emerges but is mistaken for a ghoul and shot. The film ends with his body burned on a pyre.
- First release year
- 1968
- Runtime (minutes)
- 96
- Production countries
- United States
- Original languages
- English
- Directors
- George A. Romero
- Writers
- George Romero · writer; John Russo · writer
- Cast and characters
- Duane Jones · Ben; Judith O'Dea · Barbra Blair; Russell Streiner · Johnny Blair; Karl Hardman · Harry Cooper; Marilyn Eastman · Helen Cooper; Kyra Schon · Karen Cooper; Keith Wayne · Tom; Judith Ridley · Judy
- Genres
- zombie horror; horror; science fiction
- Themes
- social and cultural changes; cannibalism; humanity's desperate attempts to cope with disaster
- Tone and mood
- grim; nihilistic; alienation
- Premise and plot tags
- siege; survival; zombie apocalypse
- Source material / true-story basis
- Richard Matheson's 1954 novel I Am Legend
- Franchise connections
- Night of the Living Dead
- Content notes
- violence; gore
- Reception
- Initially controversial and poorly reviewed for its violence, it eventually gained a cult following and critical acclaim, becoming a landmark in the horror genre.
- Reported review scores
- Metacritic · score: 89 · scale: 100 · review count: 17
- Awards and nominations
- National Film Registry · preservation · 1999 · win
- Production trivia
- The film was originally titled 'Night of the Flesh Eaters'.; The film was mistakenly released into the public domain due to a missing copyright notice.; The blood used in the film was Bosco Chocolate Syrup.
Film metadata comes from the open sources listed in Credits & Contact. Catalogue details may be incomplete.
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