For twenty years, the cult-like legions of George Romero fans have been waiting patiently for another installment in his signature “Dead� series. Two poor imitations (“Resident Evil� + sequel), a remake (“Dawn of the Dead� ’04), and a fantastic homage (“Shaun of the Dead�) later, George has finally received the funding for what has been built up as, “His Ultimate Zombie Masterpiece.�

The big question then becomes: Is this Romero’s ultimate masterpiece? In a word—no, this is not the be-all, end-all of zombie movies. Has the aging George Romero lost his touch on the zombie genre? Also, in a word, no, he hasn’t.

In the truest and most sincere sense, this is an old-school movie. Gone are the slow motion sequences, overabundance on CGI, and jittery, fast editing commonplace in the cinema of today. What we get instead are carefully planned shots that are given focus for longer than a few seconds. It was good to see that, in the age of MTV-style editing, there is still a director that doesn’t feel the need for hyperactivity.

In the previous films in the series, their strong points have always been a small, developed cast of unknown--yet not unskilled-- actors. While not unknown, the cast for “Land� is filled mostly by lesser (in the sense that they aren’t widely utilized) actors. As is the case in the original trilogy, this is a welcome and contributing factor to the film. Whether or not the characters are as relatable as in the other films is sort of hit and miss.

However enjoyable, and probably one of the best horror movies in the last 10 years, period, I simply don’t think this has the lasting appeal and built-in social commentary that keeps the original three “Dead� films popular, to this day. There are some often overly obvious references to post 9/11 rhetoric, and some similarities to the political climate of the world, but I didn’t feel these satires were as well scripted or delivered in “Land.� It was just too obvious! Another great downside is the lack of a memorable score. I still find myself humming the terrific “Dawn of the Dead� mall music, but, for the life of me, I cannot recall one piece of theme music from “Land.�

In summary, this is a slightly flawed, however delightfully enjoyable piece of zombie horror. If you’re a zombie or Romero fan, don’t miss this one. And hey, who knows? Maybe “Land,� like “Day of the Dead,� just needs 20 years for its greatness to be fully realized.

Rating: 4/5

~ Khyron, 2005

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