Dawn of the Dead
Universal Pictures | Release Date: March 19, 2004 CRITIC SCORE DISTRIBUTION
59
METASCORE
Mixed or average reviews based on 37 Critic Reviews
Positive:
21
Mixed:
12
Negative:
4
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Critic Reviews

Critic scorePublicationBy date
100
Entertainment WeeklyLisa Schwarzbaum
Don't leave before the final frame -- if you're still breathing. Read full review
83
Tampa Bay TimesSteve Persall
Dawn of the Dead is very much its own movie, and a disturbing one at that. But it also realizes we're in the theater to have fun, either grotesquely or cleverly. Read full review
83
Portland OregonianM. E. Russell
Tense, bloody, funny and smart; lacks original's conscience, but it's still a surprisingly gritty remake. Read full review
80
Total FilmStaff (Not Credited)
Forgive the blasts of nu-metal. Forget the blunted satire. And allow for the obligatory, they-have-our-blessing cameos. This, as Snyder puts it, is Dawn Of The Dead on "steroids". And it's a blast. Read full review
80
Arizona RepublicBill Muller
A frenetic movie that combines a video-game sensibility with cartoonish, whacked-out violence. As with all good modern horror, one minute you're laughing out loud and the next you're covering your eyes. [19 Mar 2004, p.1P]
80
Los Angeles TimesManohla Dargis
Good zombie fun, the remake of George A. Romero's Dawn of the Dead is the best proof in ages that cannibalizing old material sometimes works fiendishly well. Read full review
80
Washington PostMichael O'Sullivan
Yes, it's essentially a remake of a sequel, albeit a sequel that happens to be one of the greatest horror movies ever made, but it more than surpasses the original. Read full review
80
Washington PostDesson Thomson
The movie has many of the elements that made the first "Dawn" so darkly entertaining. Read full review
80
EmpireWilliam Thomas
A welcome surprise, containing more bona fide scares than Romero's vision, while paying grand lip service to the old master. Truly worthy of that famous title. Read full review
75
Miami HeraldRene Rodriguez
Faster, leaner and more compact than the original. Dumber, too, but that's almost always the case with remakes. Read full review
75
Philadelphia InquirerDavid Hiltbrand
This film plays out like one of those trigger-happy video games -- it's all cranial splatter. Word to the squeamish: Dawn of the Dead merits a very hard R rating. The depictions of violence are exceedingly graphic. Read full review
75
Chicago Sun-TimesRoger Ebert
My only complaint is that its plot flatlines compared to the 1979 version, which was trickier, wittier and smarter. Romero was not above finding parallels between zombies and mall shoppers. Read full review
75
San Francisco ChronicleMick LaSalle
It's silly, witty and good-natured, not scary so much as icky, and not horrifying or horrible but consistently amusing. Read full review
75
New York Daily NewsJami Bernard
There was no burning need for a remake, but this one is respectful of its predecessor. It incorporates the technology and acquisitiveness of the intervening quarter century since Romero's vision. It even features a metrosexual, something unheard of in 1978. Read full review
75
Seattle Post-IntelligencerSean Axmaker
Romero's satire is largely replaced by a sardonic gallows humor (the zombie-shooting contest is as funny as it is grotesque), but otherwise it's a bloody entertaining zombie apocalypse. Read full review
75
Baltimore SunChris Kaltenbach
Dawn of the Dead may depict the end of the world as we know it, but rarely has watching doom proved such a kick. Read full review
75
PremiereAaron Hillis
An amply entertaining tale of survival terror, fully realizing the epicness of Romero's vision by infecting every wide-angled overhead shot with as many computer-generated cadavers as possible, and bridging tense moments with a laugh-aloud, plucky wit. Read full review
75
ReelViewsJames Berardinelli
Calling this version of Dawn of the Dead a remake is applying a misnomer. It's more of a re-imagination. Read full review
70
Film ThreatJim Agnew
First time director Zack Snyder has done an amazing job of creating a sense of doom and dread while sprinkling it with some wicked humor and amazing music. Read full review
67
Austin ChronicleMarc Savlov
Snyder’s film isn't likely to be considered a classic 20 years down the road like Romero's film is, but it's a winningly extreme episode in the ongoing adventures of Zombie and Harriet. (And stick around while the end credits roll: The film isn't over 'til it's over.) Read full review
63
USA TodayMike Clark
Overall, this Dead is zippier than 1995's retake on "Village of the Damned" and somewhat less junky than the recent remake of "The Texas Chainsaw Massacre." Read full review
60
Village VoiceMichael Atkinson
It is, like most, an unnecessary remake, but the new, digitally boosted Dawn of the Dead brings it on with a 10-minute overture that might be the most upsetting tin-can apocalypse modern movies have ever seen. Read full review
50
Slant MagazineJeremiah Kipp
This new Dawn of the Dead doesn't stop to take a breath, and remains frequently scary and engaging in the moment without leaving much to chew on afterward. Read full review
50
Charlotte ObserverLawrence Toppman
The new Dawn of the Dead moves along with speed and slick visual style, but it's soulless and anonymous as -- well, a shopping mall. Read full review
50
Christian Science MonitorDavid Sterritt
Horror buffs will find plenty of split-second suspense and in-your-face carnage, while others will scramble for the exit as quickly as the characters race away from their apocalyptic foes. Read full review
50
TV Guide MagazineMaitland McDonagh
A buzzed-up gloss on the original, it's entertaining -- if fundamentally shallow. Read full review
50
New York PostV.A. Musetto
It's mindless entertainment, so take it or leave it. Read full review
50
The Globe and Mail (Toronto)Rick Groen
This time the script makes scant metaphoric use of the mall. In fact, metaphors are generally in short supply here. Scares too. Read full review
50
The Hollywood ReporterMichael Rechtshaffen
When there's a whole mess of zombie killing to be done, who cares about reflective writing or that time-wasting element of suspense? Read full review
50
VarietyScott Foundas
More palatable than "Texas," Dawn also seems even less necessary, given how effectively the original was reworked last year in Danny Boyle's "28 Days Later." Read full review
50
Boston GlobeWesley Morris
The movie is weak on attempts at survivalist philosophy (anyone bit by a zombie is likely to become one). Even the religious overtones feel tinny and unpronounced. Read full review
50
Chicago ReaderJonathan Rosenbaum
The new version has its share of disturbing moments, but writer James Gunn and director Zack Snyder have stripped away the social satire of the original and put little in its place. Read full review
50
Dallas ObserverGregory Weinkauf
Sensational yet sadly unsatisfying. Read full review
38
Chicago TribuneMichael Wilmington
Despite a big budget, lots of technical flair and a good cast headed by Sarah Polley and Ving Rhames, it's mostly a bloody mess. Read full review
30
The New York TimesElvis Mitchell
The eventual video game is bound to be a lot more fun -- and less slowed down by bad dialogue -- than this "Dead." Read full review
20
Orlando SentinelRoger Moore
Director Zack Snyder choreographs this like a video game, emphasizing the body count over character. Read full review
20
The A.V. ClubScott Tobias
Swarming with zombies on both sides of the camera, the film is unrelentingly relentless, leaving no room for original director George Romero's wry satire on consumerism or his slow-paced, creeping undead. Read full review
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