Nerds That Geek Blu Ray Review: 'Night of the Living Dead (Criterion Collection)'

Written by John Edward Betancourt

When it comes to completing the task of leaving behind a visible and significant legacy, filmmakers probably have it the easiest. After all, their work lives on forever on disk or in the cloud for anyone to enjoy. But perhaps the best indicator how much of an impact their work has had upon our lives, is how we continue to pour over their films long after they’ve left this world for the next and if there’s one director that fits that particular mold, it’s George A. Romero. 
 
Because following his passing last summer, we’ve received word that his son is working to follow in his father’s footsteps in order to bring new Living Dead stories to resurrected life in cinema, and recently we also learned that author Daniel Kraus will be finishing Romero’s zombie novel, The Living Dead, and really, all of this just goes to show how George lives on. People still believe in his stories, and there are plenty of folks who still wish to fawn over them and analyze their many layers and just last week, another gem in that vein hit the market with the re-release of Night of the Living Dead on blu-ray.
 
Granted, while this seems to happen every other week thanks to the copyright issues the film encountered ages ago, this one is decidedly different. Because this edition comes straight from the Criterion Collection and their incredible work when it comes to this release, may make it the definitive edition of this motion picture for decades to come. That’s largely in part due to the fact that this particular disc set features a magnificent 4K remastering of this film and truly, Night of the Living Dead has never looked better. 

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​In fact, this new print of the film is downright flawless, to the point where you can see every grain of dirt on the living dead’s clothing and well, I have to admit that watching this breathtaking print was almost like experiencing the film for the first time all over again since there are so many incredible details that have never been visible before in this motion picture and my thanks go out to the Museum of Modern Art, the Film Foundation, the George Lucas Family Foundation and the Celeste Bartos Fund for Film Preservation for all contributing in some way to make sure this poignant film received such incredible care by way of a transfer that was supervised by John Russo, Gary and Russell Streiner and Romero before his passing.
 
However, there is plenty more to be found outside of the stunning visuals, since this release is packed to the brim with some engrossing special features. Case in point, this disc set features a never before seen work-print of the film, featuring its alternate title; Night of Anubis and the goodies don’t end there. There are dailies to be found, behind the scenes footage courtesy of Bill ‘Chilly Billy’ Cardille, thanks to his foresight in recording while on set, along with countless interviews and mini documentaries that give fans of this film an unprecedented look at its making and its legacy.
 
If anything, it’s quite wonderful to see this revolutionary film be given the treatment it’s always deserved, and I have to admit that the special features are so engrossing that it’s taking me forever to get through them as I pour over every single detail of every single one. Either way, this is a must-own release for everyone who loves film, quite frankly. After all, despite being released fifty years ago, it’s still relevant in so many ways and it will forever serve as a fine reminder of the fact that George A. Romero was about as talented as they come.

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