2-Disc Ultimate Edition BD/DVD
Region Code: Region-FREE
Duration: 101 Minutes
Rating: Unrated
Audio: English DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 Mono, 5.1 Surround with Optional English Subtitles
Video: 1080p Widescreen (1.77:1)
Director: George A. Romero
Cast: Lori Cardille, Terry Alexander Joe Pilato, Richard Liberty
Top: Anchor Bay Blu-ray (2007)
Middle: Scream Factory Blu-ray (2013)
Bottom: Umbrella Entrainment Blu-ray (2018)
Day of the Dead (1985), George A. Romero's third and final entry in the original Romero' Dead Trilogy. Day of the Dead opens up sometime after the events of Dawn and it seems that humanity has all but lost the war against the undead hordes, survivors are few and far between, the powers is out and radio communication with other survivors and government agencies have ceased.
Top: Anchor Bay Blu-ray (2007)
Middle: Scream Factory Blu-ray (2013)
Bottom: Umbrella Entertainment Blu-ray (2018)
As the film opens a helicopter flies up and down the coast of Florida looking for survivors and supplies, landing in Fort Myers they find not a single living soul but plenty of the undead, giving up the trio return to an subterranean Army base located in the Everglades. When I first saw this film the sight of the helicopter brought to mind Dawn of the Dead (1978) right away, but there's no connection to it's predecessor, but perhaps it's a poignant visual reminder to the previous story. As they land we meet our principal cast whom are divided-up into three distinct groups; the military, the scientist and the pilots.
Top: Anchor Bay Blu-ray (2007)
Middle: Scream Factory Blu-ray (2013)
Bottom: Umbrella Entertainment Blu-ray (2018)
Our group of scientist are Dr. Sarah Bowman (Lori Cardille, daughter of Chiller Theater host Bill "Chilly Billy" Cardille), Dr. "Frankenstein" Logan (Richard Liberty, The Crazies) and Dr. Fisher (John Amplas, Martin). Logan is the lead scientist and is in the process of devising a cure and/or final solution to the zombie-plague, to this end he experiments on the undead, his latest patient is a zombie he nicknames "Bub" (Howard Sherman, TV's Seinfeld) whom is showing signs of an emerging basic intelligence, giving him hope that zombies can be rehabilitated, which even as a young teen I thought sounded pretty damn ridiculous, but it's an interesting point of exploitation for the film.
Top: Anchor Bay Blu-ray (2007)
Middle: Scream Factory Blu-ray (2013)
Bottom: Umbrella Entrainment Blu-ray (2018)
Our second group are what seem to be civilian helicopter pilots, a whiskey-sipping Irishman McDermott, (Jarlath Conroy, True Grit) and an affable Jamaican named John (Terry Alexander, The Horror Show) whom are content to fly the bird from time to time when duty calls but wisely prefer to distance themselves from the science geeks and the military, preferring to drink and get high, doing their own thing separate from the feuding groups, keeping to themselves in a separate area inside the underground bunker.
Top: Anchor Bay Blu-ray (2007)
Middle: Scream Factory Blu-ray (2013)
Bottom: Umbrella Entertainment Blu-ray (2018)
There's also a small group of brutish soldiers lead by the increasingly frustrated and unstable Capt. Rhodes (Joe Pilato, Pulp Fiction) who in the face of such a dire and apocalyptic situation begins to question just what the science nerds are up to, and if there's any merit to Logan's bizarre and bloody experimentations. This is the set-up that ignites the powder keg, things get tense when Logan suggest that zombies can be trained to behave, a notion that is pretty much the last straw for Rhodes. When it's later discovered that Logan is actually rewarding Bub by feeding him scraps of meat carved from dead soldiers things turn for the worse, and what was previously a tense partnership turns downright deadly.
Top: Anchor Bay Blu-ray (2007)
Middle: Scream Factory Blu-ray (2013)
Bottom: Umbrella Entrainment Blu-ray (2018)
Mostly set in the claustrophobic environs of an underground cavern Day of the Dead (1985) is frighteningly claustrophobic, it's dark and dreary, everyone is stressed to the nth degree, and Rhodes is a particularly venous and dangerous presence, threatening to shoot anyone one who disobeys his direct orders. Sure, he's the "bad guy" but just as unhinged as Rhodes is the demented doc Logan, a very memorable mad scientist archetype who is clearly every bit as insane as the Capt., in fact I think I sympathize with Rhodes a bit more with each viewing of the film, it's a really fucked situation.
Top: Anchor Bay Blu-ray (2007)
Middle: Scream Factory Blu-ray (2013)
Bottom: Umbrella Entrainment Blu-ray (2018) 
I loved the gore-effects in the film, in Logan's lab a zombie breaks free of it's restraints and rises, his exposed intestines spill onto the floor as Logan casually walks over and puts a drill-bit through his forehead ceasing the threat, the whole lab is a real horror-show. Another zombie strapped to a table has had it's face and skull removed leaving only a brain attached to the body via the spinal cord, it's great stuff, and I think it would be safe to say that no gorehound has ever walked away from a viewing of Day of the Dead disappointed. Special effects makeup master Tom Savini assisted by a pre-KNB FX Group Greg Nicotero and Howard Berger were in top form, the effects are gut-churning, during the film's fantastic final third when the zombies make their way into the facility with the help of an unhinged, suicidal soldier they just start tearing chunks of flesh from the living in short order, ripping people open and in really creative stuff, a lot of it is on par with what we saw in John Carpenter's The Thing (1982), and it's certainly more visceral, as a special effects film this is one of the goriest of 'em all for the era.
Top: Anchor Bay Blu-ray (2007)
Middle: Scream Factory Blu-ray (2013)
Bottom: Umbrella Entertainment Blu-ray (2018)
Of course George A. Romero's use of social commentary is fully intact here, it may not be as in-your-face and/or as goofy as the consumerism critique of Dawn but it's there, this time out Romero plays with the tensions between the scientists and the military, and it's pretty tense stuff. Can you imagine being holed-up in an underground cavern, zombies are encroaching at an alarming rate, soldiers are dying at a steady clip, and the lead science guy wants to train the undead! All the while the military presence is becoming increasingly unhinged and hostile, it's a ripe recipe for apocalyptic conflict, a pretty bleak film from the top down. It's much darker than the previous entry, and not just because it's set underground, it's a depressing watch and one without the benefit (or detriment, depends on your view) of the occasional comedy breaks we had with Dawn, which may be why I prefer the Argento cut of Dawn, it removes a lot of the goofiness of Romero's cut.
Top: Anchor Bay Blu-ray (2007)
Middle: Scream Factory Blu-ray (2013)
Bottom: Umbrella Entertainment Blu-ray (2018)
Top: Anchor Bay Blu-ray (2007)
Middle: Scream Factory Blu-ray (2013)
Bottom: Umbrella Entertainment Blu-ray (2018)
Audio/Video: George A. Romero's Day of the Dead (1985) arrives on Blu-ray from Umbrella Entertainment in 1080p HD framed in 1.77:1 widescreen. The lineage of the HD master is vaguely being advertised as new to Australia, and from the looks of it this appears to be the same 2013 HD Master used by Scream Factory for their U.S. release, but a tad brighter than the SF release. There's a pleasing layer of film grain throughout that's not too intrusive, the colors are significantly warmer than the previous Anchor Bay Blu-ray from 2007, which was a bit cold with a heavy blue/green leanings. This is a film that was shot in a lot of subterranean low-light conditions, so don't expect the most vibrant viewing, but colors do occasionally show some vibrancy by way of reddish blood and gore. Notably, as with Scream Factory's release, which seems to have used the same master, this image is slightly cropped at 1.77:1, the correct ratio is 1.85:1, losing a sliver of information predominantly on the bottom and right of the frame. Personally the framing issue is a small consideration for me, but I know it won't be for many others. The Anchor Bay Blu-ray release was framed properly at 1.85:1 but that dated HD master really pales in comparison to this release, the colors are more natural and warmer here, though slightly cooler than the SF release, and fine detail and clarity is also much improved.
Top: Anchor Bay Blu-ray (2007)
Middle: Scream Factory Blu-ray (2013)
Bottom: Umbrella Entertainment Blu-ray (2018)
Umbrella offer both both English DTS-HD MA Mono 2.0 and Surround 5.1 with optional English subtitles, I am glad they offered both options, as I recall the Scream Factory release only offered mono. Both mixes are solid, with John Harrison's score sounding terrific, having some nice depth in the mix, dialogue is crisp and clean. In past reviews of the film I've noted that the Anchor Bay Blu-ray featured some re-dubbed dialogue, at about the 9:35 mark the word "shit" was replaced with "right", and I can confirm that, like Scream Factory's Collector's Edition, the Umbrella release features the original uncensored dialogue, so enjoy that "shit" in both stereo and surround!
The 2-disc edition from Umbrella offers loads of extras, spread out over the two discs, we get extras culled from previous Anchor Bay, Scream Factory and Arrow Video releases, plus one I think is exclusive to this set. Looking at the Blu-ray disc we get the 85-min 'World's End: The Legacy of Day of the Dead' which was produced by Red Shirt Pictures for the Scream Factory release initially, it's a first-rate feature length doc that is packed to the rafters with interviews from the major players.
Screenshots from Umbrella Blu-ray
Screenshots from Umbrella Blu-ray
Finishing up the extras on the Blu-ray disc we have two sets of behind-the-scenes video footage with about an hour's worth of video between them, plus a 49-minute interview with Romero from the 2008 MIFF which was a good watch, Romero is in good form, speaking about his career, making Land of the Dead, and fielding questions from the audience, the Blu-ray disc is buttoned up with trailers and TV spots.
Screenshots from Umbrella Blu-ray
Onto the bonus DVD disc of extras we have loads more, the 40-min 'The Many Days of the Dead', the 51-min 'Joe of the Dead' and the 18-min 'Travelogue of the Dead', which were all on the Arrow Video release, plus the 68-min 'Reflections of the Dead' from 2005, which was an extra on Umbrella's previous Blu-ray release of the film, this one is very NOTLD-centric, featuring a group interview with George A. Romero, John Russo, Russell Streiner, Judith O'Dea, Karl Hardman, Marilyn Eastmen plus special guests interviews with Sam Raimi, Tobe Hooper, Wes Craven, John Landis, Scott Spiegel, Fred Olen Ray, and David DeCoteau among others heaping praise on the seminal flesh-muncher classic. The DVD is finished-up with 9-min gallery of behind-the-scenes images.
While this truly is an ultimate-ish edition as far as extras go, it should be noted that is still missing a few notable extras from previous releases, this includes an audio commentary from Day of the Dead super-fan, writer/director Roger Avery (Pulp Fiction, Killing Zoe), a 16-min audio interview with the late actor Richard Liberty, and a 7-min tour of the Wampum Mines guided by Ed Demko of Bloodtype Online, plus a DVD-ROM of the original 166 page draft of Day of the Dead with Production Memos, so you may not want to trade in those other Blu-ray versions just yet.
The 2-disc release comes housed in an oversized Blu-ray keepcase with a 2-sided sleeve of artwork, the a-side is the original one-sheet (which Scream Factory and Arrow also featured on their releases) plus a brand new illustration from Simon Sherry, a pencil drawing of the main title card zombie from the film. Both artworks are also features on the two discs inside the case.
Special Features (Blu-ray):
- Documentary - World’s End: The Legacy of “Day of the Dead (85 min)
- Audio Commentary with writer/director George A. Romero, Special Make-up Effects artist Tom Savini, Production Designer Cletus Anderson and
actress Lori Cardille
- Audio Commentary with Greg Nicotero, Howard Berger, Everett Burrell ans Mike Deak
- Gateway Commerce Centre Promotional Video (8 min)
- Behind-The-Scenes: On-Set (22 min)
- Behind-The-Scenes Footage from Special Make-up Effects Creator Tom Savini’s
archives (31 min)
- Interview with George A. Romero from the 2008 Melbourne International Film Festival (49 min)
- Theatrical Trailers (5 min)
- TV Spots (3 min)
Special Features (DVD):
- The Many Days of the Dead (40 min)
- Joe of the Dead (51 min)
- Reflections of the Dead (68 min)
- Travelogue of the Dead (18 min)
- Image Gallery (9 min)
Top: Anchor Bay Blu-ray (2007)
Middle: Scream Factory Blu-ray (2013)
Bottom: Umbrella Entertainment Blu-ray (2018)
For years I preferred Romero's Dawn of the Dead (1978) over this one, I just loved the location, the mall was such an inspired idea to me as a teen, the social commentary on consumerism appealed to me and I loved the goofiness of it. As I have aged I've definitely turned more towards Day of the Dead, and now I can say that it's truly my favorite of Romero's Dead films, for now anyway. Umbrella come through with a fine looking release with a near ultimate collection of extras, highly recommended for fans of the undead.
Screenshots from Umbrella Blu-ray
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