Shaun (Simon Pegg) has been having a bad day. His girlfriend's broken up with him for being, well, useless; he's had a hellish day at work complete with a visit from his evil stepdad (Bill Nighy); his best friend Ed (Nick Frost) is being a lazy wanker and flatmate Pete (Peter Serafinowicz) is going berserk. It adds up to one of those nightmares that can, just occasionally force you out of your rut. He wakes the next morning determined to start a new life but there's a slight hitch… there's something odd on the streets of London and it looks awfully like it might be zombies.
Apparently built around the Rosencrantz and Guildenstern premise (something big is happening but that's not what we're here to watch) Shaun of Dead is a charming mixture of, yes, Richard Curtis school rom-com-a-ding-dong plot with comedy ranging from outrageously puerile (though the final fart gag is surprisingly emotionally affecting) to the downright clever (little obscure references and puns litter the film). Despite being produced by Curtis' Working Title something of a miracle has occurred: Shaun of the Dead is truly a uniquely cinematic and original British movie experience. This is almost certainly down to the months of getting every detail right (the film was in development with FilmFour back in 2001 before they folded) and an enormous amount of genuine enthusiasm of über-geeky but very skilled writers: Simon Pegg and director Edgar Wright.
Indeed the film is an enjoyable geek-fest from start to finish with every moment apparently chocked full of references (including plenty to the original Dawn ofthe Dead ), detail and character histories than will ever be noticed by any semi-functional film fan (in fact there probably isn't room for it all on the IMDB's trivia page: take that Lord of the bloody Rings.). And yet, like the pair's previous collaboration, Spaced, Shaun of the Dead remains totally accessible and enjoyable even if not a single reference or in-joke hits home. It's a subtle trick to pull off but it looks more and more like genius the more you watch the film.
The writing has the Spaced hallmark of surreal realism with little in-jokes, random slang and brand names (a rare but important part of making things seem real) thrown in to the mix. Things are made funnier by the fact that a gag is always in close proximity to something genuinely scary – though this is a comedy the zombies are never parodied and are both extremely realistically realised (through spectacular makeup from Jane Walker) and genuinely terrifying. Things may start light but by the final showdown we are in very dark territory indeed. Adding to the realism are a host of real UK news anchors (deadpanning brilliantly), a huge selection of spooky test cards, and cameos from Vernon Kay, Coldplay and Trisha in a series of cleverly mocked up TV bits that – like the eclectic kick ass soundtrack – are both hilarious and crucially raise the film's credibility (if only with UK audiences).
A good script, a lot of clever clever ideas and a shed full of cameos (there are zombie cameos too – good luck spotting them though) make a good film. What hoists this up a league are some seriously great actors doing their thang. Simon Pegg makes up for his years as a mediocre stand-up by putting in a rich and surprisingly convincing performance as Shaun. He even manages several very powerfully emotional scenes that, along with Pegg & Wright's ruthless scripting, gives the film a real kick and impact (you do genuinely have pause to consider the emotional and social consequence of zombie invasion). However Pegg's always most enjoyable to watch as the underdog made good – in early scenes with work colleague Noel (Timothy Spall's son Ralf) with girlfriend Liz (Kate Ashfield) he's particularly endearingly hopeless.
Shaun's closest friend Ed is played by Nick Frost (Spaced's Mike), who has a limited acting range but helpfully sticks to roles tailor-made for his affable, silly, bawdy but always weirdly affectionate personality. If nothing else his excellent monkey impression is now safely recorded in history. Peter Serafinowicz meanwhile takes pride in the unlikable role of their big bad flat mate: if ever you thought zombies were silly and unthreatening then witness his performance as the tallest and probably scariest zombie ever committed to film. Eek.
Kate Ashfield is good as Liz but she's an actress apparently always limited by her tomboy blonde beauty into taking feisty but forgiving put-upon girlfriend roles. She does it very well and holds her own in a cast full of chummy boys but you have to wonder if she'll ever make use of what seem to be fine acting talents in something more challenging. still it's a step up from years as TV sitcom's favorite young bit on the side.
Also putting in nice if not extraordinary performances are Lucy Davis (from BBC2's The Office) and Dylan Moran (now best known for C4's Black Books). Davis manages a handful of little scene stealing moments though both her character Dianne and Moran as boyfriend David are essentially the sincere foils and obstacles for Shaun's quest to sort his life out. If this all sounds very TV sitcom land then look out for the scene featuring cameos from all the great and the good of established TV comic talent.
Adding a little gravitas to proceedings are Bill Nighy (in a funny but unusually restrained performance as Phillip) and Penelope Wilton as Shaun's mum. Wilton is both every boy (and a few girls) of a certain age's dream lady and a sort of universally lovely shorthand for woolly mum's everywhere. She's ace and why she's not cast more often is a complete mystery as her looks remain and her acting only ever gets better.
The cast of familiar British names (and the easy cult Spaced appeal) and TV credentials of many of the crew (indeed it's a clever mix of tried and trusted TV colleagues for the important admin roles and very experienced cinema pros for the bits that really count – Director of Photography, Make-up etc.) fit the British movie clichè BUT the alarmingly accomplished cinematic eye of Edgar Wright is something to behold. He deliberately shoots the most mundane activities with such snappy tricks and fluidity that it seems his intent is to shame legendary directors everywhere. Whilst he borrows ideas liberally he seems very happy to be open about it and often makes more of an idea than the original source could. And there are some genuinely novel ideas and brilliant mise en scene to consider too. Every shot is pitch perfect and looks gloriously like a big proper cinematic experience – it's a breath of fresh air that also hopefully gives this film a fighting chance outside the UK's usual grittily televisual cul-de-sac.
The quality of craftsmanship complimented by the anoraky attention to detail ensure that not only is Shaun of the Dead an extremely enjoyable rom-com-zom romp but it's also highly rewatchable (every new view you'll find yourself rewarded with something new) and promises much for the future. If there's any sense in the world Edgar Wright should, as long as he retains his eccentric geeky groundings, go very far indeed.
Made with probably significantly less time and money but the same high standards this is a glossy and complete DVD package. It's probably aiming for Fight Club standards and pretty much gets there including more onto one disc than most movies manage on two.
We have commentaries a plenty:
Then there are the subtitles. German, French, Hindu and Yiddish? I don't think so! No we have English, we have the "Zomb-o-meter" (a trivia track of stupendous completeness – particularly good for notes on the excellent soundtrack) and we have a storyboard comparison track which essentially flashes up demonic eyes at appropriate scenes, click on the eyes and you get some nice Edgar/Oscar Wright animated storyboards to check against (for true trivia purists only).
Finally we have the actual extras which include all the usual trailers, TV spots and stills (though the stills here are backstage and feature rather better photography than usually gets relegated to DVD galleries), a chance for less hardcore fans to see the 2000AD comic strip released to compliment the film (telling the story of "Bloody Mary") and of course the obligatory special effects background – in this case a low key filmed sequence showing what was filmed when and how it was all put back together by the miracle workers at Double Negative (of course available with and without commentary).
There are also a series of lovely little filmed bits from outtakes and extended scenes to Joe Cornish's Diary (a day in the life of a zombie extra), the excellent Wright/Pegg flipchart section (our co-writers show us the entire idea from start to finish as scribbled on a big notepad with drawings, character histories, ideas for shooting, etc. Revealingly seriously presented it all is too) and perhaps the finest DVD extra ever conceived: the Plot Holes section. Here you discover the writers knew EXACTLY what their characters were doing even if it seemed mildly baffling on screen – cue a minute or two of comic book storyboard and character narration to fill you in on the gaps. Genius.
All in all film and DVD package make for a very complete and enjoyable Shaun of the Dead feast. Fried gold indeed.
Copyright © Nicola Osborne 2002-2005
Rating:
5.0 / 5
(3 votes)
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