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scoot395
Reviews
The Fire Next Time (1993)
I not only saw this, I was -in- it! LOL!
This movie is a decent movie. It's message is a "save the earth" type of thing, and makes its point pretty well, I'd guess. Overall, I'd say the movie does not live up to what it could have been. I was an extra in this movie, and the things the directors described to those of us who were in it were just mindblowing. This film, as described to us by one of the directors, had the feel of something apocalyptic. Sort of like a "Road Warrior" type setting, but without the punk-haired bandits. Kind of a wasteland, bleak existance. But for some reason, that just didn't translate to the screen. I still feel it was a decent movie, though. Not great, but decent. But, I may have a biased opinion, seeing how we all heard a very vivid description of what it was going to be.
As I said, I was an extra in this movie. I was in the Morgan City, LA scenes. From what I remember, these scenes consisted of everything in part 1, up until they left after the storm. There were some things that were planned to be put in the movie that would have clarified alot of stuff, but for some unknown reason, they left them out. For example, the reason all the clothes were such drab colors was supposed to be something along the lines of chemicals being banned. Therefore, fabrics were no longer dyed the way we do it now. And there was something else I seem to remember about there no longer being soap, due to its manufacturing process causing some kind of pollution. Or something of that sort. There were a few little details that were left out, that in my opinion would have portrayed the world as an even harder place to live.
This movie was filmed in my area in more than just Morgan City, as the Filming Locations link has. It was also filmed in Berwick, LA and Stephensville, LA, as well as a scene shot offshore. I was in the scenes shot in Berwick, at the Civic Center. In the scene where Justin Whalin is watching TV in the shelter, he turns around in his chair and jumps up yelling "Paw!". I am seated on the floor directly in front of him when he does that. And he kicked me in the lower back on every take of that shot when he jumped out of the chair! LOL!
I have noticed this movie playing on the Action channel alot. If anyone is interested in seeing it, that would be a safe place to look.
Night of the Living Dead (1968)
They ruined a great movie!
Don't waste your time with the 30th Anniversary version of this movie. I ordered a copy of the Limited Edition of this movie, and today I got it. It just isn't the same as the old NOTLD we all know and love.
Let me list the reasons why you should avoid this like the plague:
1. They have filmed about 20-25 minutes of new footage that just doesn't fit in. It adds a _little_ to the story, but mostly it just looks out of place. For instance, one scene near the end has a teenage girl zombie that has a 90's haircut! Also, they _removed_ some scenes to replace them with the new scenes!!
2. The part of Reverend Hicks, played by the guy who rescored the music was just totally lame. That added absolutely _nothing_ to the film, and only made me regret buying this DVD. Also, the music this guy scored isn't all that great. It is just basic synthesizer music like you would find in any 80's movie. The original music matched the look and feel of this movie _much_ better than the new score.
3. The sound in the new footage is just horrible. The audio track is about a half second off from the video track. Seems to me, that if a couple guys on a small budget in 1968 can match words to lips, then it can also be done in 1998.
4. As far as I know, George Romero didn't have anything to do with this project. Maybe they should have left it for him to do.
There were some good things about this version, though. Not many, but some. They elaborate on Bill Hinzman's graveyard zombie character a little more. And his real-life daughter, Heidi, is in the movie now too, playing a waitress zombie named Rosie. The DVD version has a behind-the-scenes featurette that shows Bill and his daughter without makeup. She is a cutie. :) Bill Hinzman was also the director of photography. He did a really good job. The new scenes he filmed _look_ good, although someone else screwed up on the scripting of them. Also, there is a new scene showing a car that has hit a tree, turning its occupants into more zombies. A board has gone through the windshield, hitting the driver in the head. The driver is not real, but even shown up close in the BTS featurette, it looks pretty realistic. That was definitely a good job.
Final word: Thank God I have the original release of NOTLD on DVD. This 30th Anniversary version murders it. Avoid this at all costs.