Yes, The Crazies, 2010 edition, is a remake of a George A. Romero cult classic of the same name from 1973. And that’s all I’m going to say about this. I’m not going to rant about how the studios don’t want to try something new and authentic. Mostly because already established movies and ideas have a better chance of making more money. The Crazies is a brooding and dark horror thriller about a small town that’s about to descend into hell. People will start behaving strangely, getting these murderous urges they have to act on.
Hence the title of the movie, The Crazies. What we have here is your standard-issue early seventies thriller with some horror elements. We’ve got a small sleepy town, a lot of familiar characters, and a whole lot of trouble heading their way. Of course, we shouldn’t forget about the military. And that’s all I’m going to say about the plot. I don’t want to spoil anything for you. It’s funny how you could freely explore these things back in the seventies but now the military-industrial complex is so strong you won’t get the funding to make such a movie.
So, it’s actually quite refreshing to see a movie like this these days. After a highly successful remake of the Dawn of the Dead [2004], it’s not surprising we’re getting another Romero movie so soon. The Crazies, 2010 edition, is a movie worth watching. This is a simple and straightforward horror featuring a dark atmosphere and a solid cast. What can I say, I’ve been a huge Timothy Olyphant fan ever since I saw him in one of my favorite television shows Deadwood. Radha Mitchell was also quite good.
I can respect their decision to stick to the original script without any of the modern shenanigans. The only thing that feels modern is the editing. Sure, you might get a feeling that there’s something missing here but it’s quite nice to see a horror movie without jump scares, lame attempts at humor, or nudity. Yes, I’ve actually said those things. I only wish they threw in a couple of twists because the story was far too predictable for my taste. Still, the story unfolds at a decent pace and it kicks off pretty much immediately. It would be so tiresome if we had to sit through the whole intro section.
I guess the ultimate question is The Crazies a zombie movie. In my humble opinion, it is. The very fact that it’s coming from the official father of the genre, Romero should be enough to make that decision. He was also the executive producer on this, updated version of the movie. When it comes to gore and graphic violence, there will be a couple of nasty scenes. Nothing too outrageous or timid but just enough scary and fucked up.
Director: Breck Eisner
Writers: Scott Kosar, Ray Wright, George A. Romero
Cast: Timothy Olyphant, Radha Mitchell, Joe Anderson, Danielle Panabaker, Christie Lynn Smith
Fun Stuff: The codename of the virus in the movie The Crazies is Trixie and the infected are called Trixies. Director Breck Eisner first worked with the make-up department to make the infected look like your ordinary zombies. However, he changed his mind and decided to go for a more realistic look. The inspiration behind the make-up they eventually used were the following diseases: rabies, tetanus, and Stevens–Johnson syndrome.
Rating:
IMDb Link: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0455407/
