Day of the Dead

George Romero's Day of the Dead shows the continuing transitions of humans to something less than human and zombies to something closely resembling humanity. It is probably the least accessible of the Romero zombie films, since the human characters are not all that likable, and much of the film is spent without zombies lightening the mood (or scaring the audience, as the case may be).

Sarah, the female doctor/scientist, is ostensibly the heroine of this film (with a little help from John and Bill). She is trying to find a way to reverse the zombie epidemic, while at the same time trying to hold the human community together.

Dr. Logan, on the other hand, believes that the only solution is to domesticate the zombies. Humans are drastically outnumbered (400,000 to 1 by Logan's calculations), so would not be able to simply eradicate the zombies. Logan works out a teach and reward system, so that zombies have an incentive to behave properly. "Reward is the key," he says over and over throughout the film.

These characters, and their actions, lead to several thematic questions:

1. What would be the result of reversing a zombie epidemic? Would people be cured and return to normal, or would they simply die on the spot? And which result would be preferable to the survivors?
2. Does Dr. Logan's approach to the problem reflect a Marxist perspective? Is the film suggesting that the only way to prevent a revolution is to reward the uneducated majority for its menial work?
3. Does the ending of the film imply that the rules of the "old society" must be forgotten in order to start fresh?
4. Thinking of Romero's other films, where African Americans are the heroes, why is Sarah the hero in this film? What is John's role in this film, and is it important that he is African American?

I may have to watch this one more time before I feel like I can discuss it fully.