Night of the Living Dead: Millennium Edition (US)

Content:
Night of the Living Dead. So much has been said about this movie, I think I will skip this section completely.

Young George Romero`s first movie, filmed on incredibly low budget, is one of the most famous horror films ever. Quite unlike other horror films of it`s time, I don`t want to spoil anything for you in case you haven`t seen this yet.

Video:
Elite has, once again, done excellent work on this. This work surpasses all the other releases hands down, except maybe Elite`s previous Collector`s Edition. There is no dirt, no scratches...well, except for one or two really big ones which are such a magnitude that I don`t think any digital enhancing would have helped. Nevertheless, Elite has done extremely good work on this one.

Sound:
Contains both original mono soundtrack and a newly mixed 5.1 soundtrack. Just like on the video side, Elite has done great work on this one as well. There is no cracks, no pops, no hiss, nothing. However, the 5.1 seems a bit useless as there isn`t too much difference between that and the mono soundtrack, but I won`t complain.

Features:
Dual commentary track with George Romero, the cast and the crew. This is quite enjoyable to listen, since there isn`t really any kind of "making of"-documentary on the disc. There are also some interviews, like the now-dead Duane Jones (RIP), but since I haven`t really watched these, I cannot judge. There are also some extras related to the "lost" Romero film, "There is always Vanilla", but if you know nothing about the said film, you won`t find these any use. Most enjoyable extra, however, is the short film parody "Night of the Living Bread", in which slices of bread attack people.

Overall:
If you haven`t seen NOTLD, get this. If you have, get this. If you already have it, throw it into garbage and get this. You won`t regret it.

Intro- To keep it short, this is the benchmark for horror films. George A. Romero`s Night of the Living Dead is well...exceptional despite being made on a really low budget(I don`t mean a few million dollars!). Since then it spawn 2 sequels(or are they considered sequels? They aren`t any references to NOTLD in Dawn of the Dead but the subject is still the same) and imitated by many films.

Video- Night of the Living Dead is presented in the original 1.33:1 fullscreen and in black and white. Forget the colour versions, this is what many fans are most familiar with. It`s a pleasing transfer throughout, the image is sharp and well defined. The downside is that the print has infrequent major print damage on a few scenes and that can be a bit distracting. This is the original version and not the so-called 30th anniversary edition with 15 minutes of new footage. From many sources I`ve read, it has bad acting. I`ll take their word from their viewing experience.

Audio- In this edition, there`s a 5.1 remix and it isn`t a bad one. The rears get used a lot, from ambient noise to err...the music. What else can I say? it`s pleasing. Purists, dont worry! there`s the original mono soundtrack for those who dislike the remix. Both tracks are free of hisses or pops.

Extras- The extras are acceptable, IMO. Ported from the laserdisc version, there are 2 audio commentaries. The 1st one is from Romero and some of the actors and the 2nd is from the rest of the actors involved in NOTLD. Both are worth listening to.

"Night of the Living Bread" is a parody to the main feature. This time, the bread is attacking the living instead of zombies. The beginning copies the main feature but this time... I won`t spoil any more from here. It`s short but very funny. This clocks in at 8 mins.

There are still galleries from Romero`s "lost" film, "There`s always Vanilla"

"Scrapbooks and Memorabilia" shows a bunch of memorabilia and some memos from someone.

There are 2 interviews, one from Judith Ridley and the other from Duane Jones in audio only. The clock in at 10 and 16 mins respectively. The former has Judith Ridley interviewed by someone. The interviewer talks about how she got involved in the production etc. The latter is a radio interview from the late Duane Jones. He talks about the film. It is recorded in 1988 before his death.

There are a few scenes from that lost Romero film "There`s Always Vanilla. It clocks in at 5 mins. The scene is quite weird and I don`t understand why some people are manufacturing beer. It`s poorly acted and I can see why Romero considers it his worst. This was the reason why Romero went back to the horror genre.

The extras are top off with the original script and ads directed by Romero. They speak for themselves. It`s funny to look back at ads dating back to the 60`s and 70`s; very cheesy. Speaking of ads, they are still cheesy today.

Overall- The Dead Trilogy can`t be completed without this. The classic gets the treatment it deserves. This is the original classic not the 30th anniversary edition (with new scenes) or the " `98 edition" with a new score. It is untampered, period. Don`t bother with the Dead Trilogy release in the UK as it contains the anniversary edition with the badly acted guy as the priest.