A week or so ago, I was able to get my hands on the yet-to-be-released Night of the Living Dead: Reanimated screener. I quickly learned that this film is a terribly interesting experiment of where film and art converge.

The premise behind the film:
Using the full original sound track (including voice, music, etc) from the 1968 classic Night of the Living Dead by George Romero, the creators of NOTLD:R replaced the original black and white video portion of the cult classic with a series of artwork from over 100 different artists.

According the NOTLD:R website,

Night of the Living Dead: Reanimated is an art show hung on the cult classic’s timeline. Every scene serves as walls to hang artworks, the audio becomes the ambiance of the space and the original narrative serves as the theme that holds the show together.

One thing of note is that the film is a no-budget creation with 100% volunteer contributed art.  That said, it certainly serves as an experiment in liberal usage of public domain.

The art used with the film is interesting in many ways.  The film uses all types of art forms including animation, puppetry, clay-motion & still imagery.  As a work of art, I believe the film does a great job in showcasing the imagination and re-imagining of a cult classic that has had such a large impact on the genre.

As a movie, I ultimately felt that something was lost.  Romero’s genius often falls within the angles & tension that he can create.  The art, although interesting & creative, in many ways eliminated that tension felt in the original.

At the end of the day, for fans of the genre and the original Night of the Living Dead, NOTLD:R is worth watching if you can get your hands on it.  If for no other reason, check it out to see the showcase of really cool art that has been created and volunteered as part of the project.  My hats off to the organizers & volunteers that created this film with no budget.  Great accomplishment!

Interested in a trailer of NOTLD:R, check it out below:

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