I'd like an explanation...

Because it's perfect mixture of comedy and horror. Usually horror comedies are not scary at all. This one has some genuinely creepy moments, but it also cracks me up! James Karen trying to kill the cadaver in the meat locker is comedy gold. But Tarman is the stuff of nightmares. It effectively works, but I understand if it's not everyone's cup of tea.

-Di

if you don't like it its just youre personal taste.
most but not all fans saw it in the 80s. you probably did not.

I have tried to like Return of the Living Dead, but it just hasn't happened.

Too much yelling, and a stupid, cop-out of an ending.



Never defend crap with 'It's just a movie'
http://www.youtube.com/user/BigGreenProds

I don't find Zombieland to be that great of a flick -- except for the Bill Murray scene -- but Return of the Living Dead is one of my all time favorites! Not just one of my favorite horror films, but of any film ever made -- the sectioned animals and butterflies that come alive, the idea of a zombie trying to convince you that you should let them eat you, the cross section of the earth as the hazardous waste seeps into the ground and goes up into the top soil; and wow, that punk rock soundtrack RULES! TSOL, The Damned, Roky Erickson, and The Cramps! Holy *beep* it's good. (Another great punk rock soundtrack from around the same time is Repo Man -- not the genetic opera.)

This movie absolutely stands the test of time -- And, it's really no wonder it stands the test of time, Note the following:

1. The co-writer/director Dan O'Bannon also wrote Ridley Scott's Alien, worked on special effects for Star Wars, co-wrote Tobe Hooper's Lifeforce, and wrote several of the stories for the Heavy Metal animated movie.

2. John A. Russo, the original writer before Dan O'Bannon took over the project and re-wrote the script, was the co-writer for George A. Romero's Night of the Living Dead and wrote the novel for which this film is based.

3. The zombie in the basement was puppeted by a Muppets puppeteer! You may not see the genius, but everything about it is gold.

I don't know what qualities you look for in a good horror film, but to say that Night of the Creeps is better than Return of the Living Dead ignores all of the fundamental qualities of an actual good film in favor of shock value and your personal taste. Return of the Living Dead may not have those moments you're looking for, but the make up, special effects, superior puppeteering, and writing of ROTLD is peerless and not simply a matter of taste or opinion. It's Dan O'Bannon in his prime!!

P.S. You may have seen a poor quality version or a bad edit of ROTLD.

P.P.S. Shaun of the Dead is amazing, but not as great as ROTLD. Fido is also pretty damn good. Dance of the Dead is alright, but the special effects weren't to my liking.

I'm a huge fan of zombie movies, and I've enjoyed several zombie comedies. My favorites are Shaun of the Dead and Zombieland, but I also liked Fido, Dance of the Dead, and Night of the Creeps. The last three weren't great, but they were clever enough and contained elements of one of my favorite sub-genres. That said, I can't see what makes Return of the Living Dead so amazing to some people. I'm not bashing this film, I legitimately want to know what makes it anything more than an average horror comedy

Because it's fun and if you love punk rock, it's a good film. 45 Grave is one of my favorite bands so I loved the soundtrack (they did "Partytime" though in a very censored version from the original). The whole fear of the nuclear bomb fits with the nihilistic punk outlook too.

It has quotables such as "send more cops!" and the following:

Chuck: I like death with sex. Casey, do you like sex with death?

Casey: Yeah so *beep* off and die.

Suicide: You think this is a *beep* costume? This is a way of life.

And so on...


I also thought the special effects were pretty good, with Tarman being one of the most memorable zombies.

You wonder why zombies crave brains? Well this movie is the reason.

I like how it makes fun of Romero's movies a bit.

It also is pretty fast-paced because the zombies become an immediate threat. They say fast zombies were invented during the 2000s, but this movie shows that's crap.

I see you like Night of the Creeps, which is also really funny but in a different way.

Oh, and Trash is hot even though she can't act worth a damn.

you either like it or don't no point wanting to like a film if you dont

This movie won't work for everyone. But for people it works for, it really works.

There's something almost meta about this movie. The way the slapstick meets the grime. It's like the film is laughing at the characters' situation. Unlike a lot of horror comedies, it presents a truly pessimistic worldview. Not only is the world overrun by zombies, but being dead actually hurts. The screaming is over the top--but not really, given the character's situations. They should be screaming. It's like the movie is making fun of the abysmal state of humanity.