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10 Horror Movies That Were Clearly Inspired By Night Of The Living Dead

John Smith15 min read
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10 Horror Movies That Were Clearly Inspired By Night Of The Living Dead

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10 Horror Movies That Were Clearly Inspired By Night Of The Living Dead


George A. Romero is considered by many to be the Godfather of the horror movie monster, zombies. Though the term was used before, it was not until Night of the Living Dead in 1968 that it began to take shape in the way many know it today. It marked a shift in the cultural landscape of horror movies, where most of the contributions were B movies designed to make audiences laugh at ridiculous monsters and over-the-top performances.

Most of the rules surrounding zombies were established in this first outing, with many filmmakers maintaining these self-evident laws of the walking dead. However, not every horror film is a zombie film, and there were still many different aspects in Night of the Living Dead that paved the way for future horror classics. From introducing social commentary to a genre that hadn’t used it before, to a drastic increase in the level of graphic violence seen on screen. George A. Romero’s zombies in Night of the Living Dead lives on in many movies and filmmakers he inspired with his own, unique, contribution to the horror genre.

10 The Evil Dead (1981)

Raimi’s Comedic Twist On Romero’s Horror Formula

Sam Raimi’s The Evil Dead is a pillar of the horror genre, with its cultural impact that extends a step further than its predecessors. Yet, if not for the influence of Night of the Living Dead, there might never have been Bruce Campbell’s “Groovy” and all the Evil Dead movies that followed. While not a traditional zombie movie, its inspiration from Romero’s classic is evident in its isolated setting and living corpses terrorizing its protagonists.

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Mirroring the visceral impact of each other, the use of terrifying body horror techniques shocked audiences and moviegoers alike, as Raimi sought to replicate this unflinching portrayal of bodily mutilation and the almost depressing fate of his central characters. However, it should be noted that Raimi perhaps took it a step further by introducing elements of humor in his approach to the genre. Like all great filmmakers, Raimi was able to build on the success of Romero’s work and, as a result, progress the evolution of the beloved horror genre.

9 Burial Ground (1981)

A More Risqué Italian Homage

Zombie from Burial Ground 1981

In the case of Andrea Bianchi’s Burial Ground, it is as if this Italian horror movie wears Night of the Living Dead as a choice medallion around its neck. Is this a great movie? No. Is it a fun movie that is inspired by George A. Romero’s classic? Yes, it is. The slow-moving, shambling undead that continuously chases and preys on the living is a clear homage to Night of the Living Dead’s ghouls.

Where Burial Ground differs is in its plot. In Romero’s indie-horror classic, there is a substantial story with real characters and a groundbreaking casting decision in Duane Jones as Ben. Whereas, Bianchi’s offering is far more like a bad fever dream with each moment of graphic violence followed by another, and the use of overtly-sexualized characters, in a world where the line between sexuality and graphic violence is blurred.

8 Return Of The Living Dead (1985)

A Comedic Take On The Zombie Apocalypse

the return of the living dead

Return of the Living Dead is a 1985 horror comedy directed by Dan O’Bannon and starring Clu Gulager, Thom Mathews, James Karen, and Don Calfa. The plot revolves around medical supply store clerk Frank and his apprentice Freddy, who accidentally release a deadly gas that revives the dead in a nearby cemetery. Soon the city is invaded by a horde of hungry zombies, which Frank and Freddy have to fight for their own survival.

Director
Dan O’Bannon
Writers
Dan O’Bannon
Cast
Thom Mathews , Linnea Quigley , Clu Gulager , James Karen , Beverly Randolph
Runtime
91 minutes
Release Date
August 16, 1985
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Return of the Living Dead is cut from the same cloth as its predecessor with its vague zombie origins, much like in the original Living Dead title, and its banding together of a rag-tag team of characters. Though the grim apocalyptic tone remains, Dan O’Brannon injected dark comedy into this cult classic, a feature absent in Romero’s original work.

“I don’t want to walk on [Romero’s] toes… I’m going to do mine as a comedy.”

– Dan O’Bannon

For O’Brannon, Return of the Living Dead also served as a directorial debut and the director set out to do it in his way, “I don’t want to walk on [Romero’s] toes… I’m going to do mine as a comedy.” Return of the Living Dead is a film that can be seen as a loving tribute to Romero’s work but subverts and expands on the, tropes established in Night of the Living Dead. Where the ghouls of Romero’s film wanted human flesh, O’Brannon’s somewhat lucid zombies want only the brains.

Return of the Living Dead

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7 Night Of The Creeps (1986)

Alien Slugs Meet Zombies In A B-Movie Tribute

Alien slugs set loose on a college campus cause havoc as all the students are turned into zombies in Night of the Creeps, a 1980s horror comedy that pays homage to all the beloved B movies of the past. Fred Dekker’s take on the undead was a new and unique one, yet it captured the same tension as Night of the Living Dead as the characters fight for survival in an ever more claustrophobic environment.

As in Romero’s classic, the zombies are slow-moving and on the hunt for flesh. However, as this film pays homage to B movies, there is far more of a comedic tone that suggests the film is designed more as a fun experience than a scary one. The portrayal of aliens at the start of the film may strengthen this argument more than anything.

6 Resident Evil (2002)

One Of The Stronger Video Game Adaptations

Riding on the coattails of the successful video game franchise, Paul W. S Anderson’s Resident Evil brought the zombie movie to a fresh new audience, and it did so, taking on the best elements of Night of the Living Dead. There are characters trapped underground in a space they’re struggling to get out of, all while a hoard of infected tries to eat them. However, there is also a Romero-esque protagonist in Milla Jovovich’s fan favorite Alice.

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Much like the heroine Barbara in Night of the Living Dead, Alice is a progressive character who grows throughout the film into her own action heroine. Fans of the Resident Evil franchise have come back again and again to see its powerful female lead dispatch zombies in new and exciting ways. With action at the core of this film, and the others that followed, Anderson helped to evolve the horror-zombie genre into something that was both scary and awesome.

5 28 Days Later (2003)

Fast-Moving Infected Terrify The New Generation Of Zombie Lovers

Danny Boyle’s iconic 28 Days Later re-imagined Romero’s zombie apocalypse for the 21st century, introducing a fast-moving, rage-fueled infected. Its bleak, post-apocalyptic vision and its exploration of human nature under extreme duress are clearly inspired by Night of the Living Dead, with Romero and Boyle delving deep into the dark side of human nature.

Evident in both films is the idea that in a world without rules or consequences, the foundation of civilization can quickly crumble, revealing the ugly and primal impulses that lie beneath many people, and the way that each film is shot also plays into this similarity. Night of the Living Dead and 28 Days Later play out in a raw, almost documentary style, that allows the level of tension to never drop. This level of realism added to the horror of 28 Days Later, leaving many cinemagoers too scared to leave the theater after the film was finished.

4 Dawn of the Dead (2004)

The Snyder Cut Of Zombie Remakes

zombies on the cover of dawn of the dead 2004
Dawn of the Dead (2004)

A remake of George A. Romero’s classic of the same name, the movie follows a nurse, a policeman, a young married couple, a salesman and other survivors of a worldwide plague that is producing aggressive, flesh-eating zombies, who take refuge in a mega Midwestern shopping mall.

Release Date
March 19, 2004

Cast
Sarah Polley , Ving Rhames , Mekhi Phifer , Jake Weber , Ty Burrell , Michael Kelly

Not all remakes are bad, and Zack Snyder proved that when he successfully pulled off a direct remake of George A. Romero’s Dawn of the Dead. Like its predecessors, Snyder’s film traps a diverse group of survivors in a shopping mall, using the commercial setting as a microcosm for examining larger social issues and critiquing consumerism and materialism. Nonetheless, by the end and much like Night of the Living Dead, Snyder’s take suggests that even if the survivors can outlast the un-dead, the world they once inhabited is gone forever.

In terms of its gore and violence, there is an argument to suggest that in the case of Dawn of the Dead, there are a few moments where Snyder takes it too far in his graphic spin on zombie lore.

This remake levels up the intensity of its action with the use of the 28 Days Later-inspired fast-moving zombies. However, despite its focus more on this side of the narrative, it does not completely abandon that grim feeling of desperation from its characters that permeates throughout the whole film. In terms of its gore and violence, there is an argument to suggest that in the case of Dawn of the Dead, there are a few moments where Snyder takes it too far in his graphic spin on zombie lore.

3 Shaun of the Dead (2004)

Edgar Wright Blends British Humor With Classic Zombies

Shaun of the Dead Movie Poster

From director Edgar Wright, Shaun of the Dead stars Simon Pegg as Shaun, an ambitionless slacker who one day finds his world overrun by zombies. From a script by Wright and Pegg, Shaun of the Dead injects comedy into a typically horror-focused subgenre as Shaun and his lazy friend Ed (Nick Frost) attempt to rescue Shaun’s estranged girlfriend and make it through the apocalypse unscathed.

Release Date
September 24, 2004
Cast
Kate Ashfield , Nick Frost , Simon Pegg , Lucy Davis , Dylan Moran
Runtime
99 minutes

“Want anything from the shop?” Shaun asks Ed before he takes a walk to his local corner shop, totally unaware of the apocalypse that happened overnight. Shaun of the Dead is not just a classic British horror film, it is a classic horror film in its own right. It is a loving homage to all of George A. Romero’s zombie films that use the un-dead uprising as a metaphor for its protagonist’s stagnant and unfulfilling life. 20 years later, it still holds up.

Collage of Simon Pegg and Nick Frost looking confused in Shaun of the Dead with zombies in the background

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Much like Night of the Living Dead, Edgar Wright’s breakthrough film focuses on ordinary people who face extraordinary apocalyptic circumstances. Shaun, much like Ben from the 1968 film, is forced to become a hero in a London that stands on the brink of total collapse. Furthermore, Shaun of the Dead also uses the horror genre for social commentary, suggesting that the routines of modern life are much like a state of ‘living dead’ and the zombies come along as more of a wake-up call to help characters grow out of their inertia and take action in their lives.

2 [REC] (2007)

A Terrifying Spanish Tale

REC is a Spanish-language found footage horror film that is genuinely frightening, and its style mirrors that of the documentary-like realism and mounting dread of Night of the Living Dead. Its characters are cut off from the outside world by a growing threat they struggle to comprehend, and the rapid societal breakdown means that they are truly on their own to face this crisis, no matter their plea for help from relevant authorities.

Much like Night of the Living Dead, REC only suggests some of the reasons for the outbreak and leaves the audience wondering about the cause of the horror. It’s a reflection of how quickly society can be thrown into hysteria when up against something they do not understand. The human impulse to contain, no matter the consequences, lies at the heart of this film. The film was so successful that it received an American remake title Quarantine . However, most agree, that there is something special about the original, as its Spanish setting and unknown actors add to the horrific realism.

1 The Crazies (2010)

Eisner’s Remake Channels Romero’s Societal Paranoia

Breck Eisner’s remake of George A. Romero’s own 1973 horror movie, The Crazies, draws heavily from the template established by Night of the Living Dead. Like Romero’s debut, The Crazies is set in a small, rural town that becomes the epicenter of a terrifying outbreak. As in the 1968 film, the plague transforms normal people into zombie-like killers.

The Crazies
is a remake of an original George A. Romero film from 1973.

The exploration of how fear and paranoia erode trust and turn neighbor against neighbor is a constant theme in Romero’s work, not just in Night of the Living Dead, but is so clearly evident in the original and the remake of The Crazies. Eisner’s updated version offers greater production value and more action set pieces, but it still captures the same sense of creeping dread and social commentary that defined Night of the Living Dead. Its ending also mirrors that of Night of the Living Dead, where the authorities would rather contain than help those afflicted.



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