2K Replay: LAND OF THE DEAD

 by Adam Riske

Nominated for “Best Actor” (John Leguizamo) at the Fangoria Chainsaw Awards. He lost to Sid Haig in The Devil’s Rejects.

• Best Scene/Moment: The zombies overtaking the Fiddler’s Green apartment building.

• Best Song: “Requiem: Agnus Dei” by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart.

• Best Merch: A “Land of the Dead 2005 Big Daddy Eugene Clark Autograph Display 11x14…” for $70.00. This is a weird sentiment but I’m kind of rooting for Eugene Clark because he’s a guest at so many horror conventions. I wish him the best. Has anyone met him? Is he nice? His cursive handwriting is aesthetically pleasing but I wouldn’t tell him that because that’s weird.

• Director Grade: Land of the Dead was directed by George A. Romero.
Great Movies: Night of the Living Dead, The Amusement Park, Martin, Dawn of the Dead, Creepshow
Good Movies: Monkey Shines, Two Evil Eyes
OK Movies: The Crazies, Day of the Dead, Land of the Dead
Bad Movies: Season of the Witch, The Dark Half, Diary of the Dead, Survival of the Dead
Unseen By Me: There’s Always Vanilla, Knightriders, Bruiser
Overall Grade: B+

• Double It with This 2005 Movie: Undead

• Year 2005 Movies to Trailer Before Them: Cursed, The Devil’s Rejects, Dominion: A Prequel to the Exorcist

• Never Talk to Strangers or Land of the Dead? Never Talk to Strangers

• Mall Movie? Definitely. It would seem disrespectful to play a zombie movie directed by George A. Romero anywhere else.

• Only in 2005 (tie): The Rogue Pictures/Screen Gems aesthetic. I know the movie is from Universal Pictures, but it has such Rogue Pictures/Resident Evil vibes. Also, Simon Baker - horror lead.

• Scene Stealer (tie): Dennis Hopper and John Leguizamo.

• I Miss (tie): Dennis Hopper and George A. Romero.

• I Don’t Miss (tie): Zombie movies. I know they’re not gone or anything, but they were everywhere for a long time in the 2000s and 2010s and needed a rest. Also, whatever Robert Joy is doing in this movie.

• 2005 Crush: Asia Argento.

• 2025 Crush: Krista Bridges.

• What I Thought in 2005: I remember people were down on Land of the Dead (especially in comparison to the original Dead trilogy) so by the time I saw it on DVD I was pleasantly surprised that I liked it. The ensemble (including my guy John Leguizamo) was fun enough, and I thought the new zombie makeup & effects were cool. My big complaint at the time was the movie wasn’t as good as the Dawn of the Dead remake, which had more energy.

• What I Think in 2025: It’s fine, especially compared withg Diary of the Dead and Survival of the Dead. I like that Land of the Dead has such a quiet, mellow vibe for a horror movie. I recently dubbed it ‘brunch horror.’ This feels just as much like a late '90s/early 2000s John Carpenter movie (e.g. Vampires or Ghosts of Mars) than a George A. Romero movie.