Shaun of the Dead (2004)

User Rating:

8.0/10   

Director:

Edgar Wright

Writers:

Simon Pegg (written by) and
Edgar Wright (written by)

Release Date:

9 April 2004 (UK)

Genre:

Comedy | Horror

Tagline:

It's just one of those days when you're feeling a little...dead.

Plot:

A man decides to turn his moribund life around by winning back his ex-girlfriend, reconciling his relationship with his mother, and dealing with an entire community that has returned from the dead to eat the living.

Plot Keywords:

Love | Zombie | Cricket Bat | Pub | Record Collection

Awards:

6 wins & 16 nominations

Cast

Simon Pegg	...	Shaun
Kate Ashfield	...	Liz
Nick Frost	...	Ed
Lucy Davis	...	Dianne
Dylan Moran	...	David
Nicola Cunningham	...	Mary
Keir Mills	...	Clubber 1 (as Kier Mills)
Matt Jaynes	...	Clubber 2
Gavin Ferguson	...	Football Kid
Peter Serafinowicz	...	Pete
Horton Jupiter	...	Homeless Man
Tim Baggaley	...	The Usher
Arvind Doshi	...	Nelson
Rafe Spall	...	Noel
Sonnell Dadral	...	Danny (as Sonell Dadral)

Also Known As:

Shaun of the Dead (France)
Tea-Time of the Dead (UK) (working title)

MPAA:

Rated R for zombie violence/gore and language.

Runtime:

99 min

Country:

UK | France

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital EX

Certification:

Iceland:16 | France:-12 | South Korea:18 | Argentina:13 | Australia:MA | Brazil:18 | Canada:13+ (Quebec) | Canada:18A (British Columbia/Ontario) | Chile:14 | Finland:K-15 | Germany:16 | Hong Kong:III | Ireland:18 | Italy:VM14 | Japan:R-15 | Netherlands:16 | New Zealand:R13 | Singapore:R21 | Spain:18 | UK:15 | USA:R

Filming Locations:

Archway, London, England, UK

Company:

Studio Canal

Trivia:

In the beginning of the film, when Shaun is riding the bus, the young man in front of him is listening to music. The song that can be heard is the dance club classic "Kernkraft 400" by Zombie Nation, which itself is a track from the 1984 Commodore 64 game "Lazy Jones".

Goofs:

Revealing mistakes: After Shaun picks up Liz at her home, the Jaguar the group is using to get to the pub has a rear-view mirror in some scenes and it is missing in others moments later.

Quotes:

[first lines]
John: Last orders, please!

Movie Connections:

References King Kong (1976)

Soundtrack:

White Lines

Like Spaced...with zombies

In a London suburbia, Shawn is almost 30 and hasn't really achieved much in his life. He comes home from his mundane job each day, and goes to the same pub (The Winchester) that he always has gone to. He shares his flat with an ex-student friend, and his lifelong slob of a friend. On top of that, his girlfriend has had enough of him. Oh.and the dead have started walking the earth!

Hot on the heels of recent remake Dawn of the Dead comes Simon 'Spaced' Pegg's black comedy zombie spoof, in which Shawn must save his friends, mum, and ex-girlfriend from the masses of lumbering dead by, erm, going to the Winchester! Unlike recent zombie-fests, these dead-ites are pretty lame, lumbering monstrosities, much like the ones from the older zombie films. This is used to simple comic effect throughout as the 'heroes' seem to have plenty of time to think about things before being attacked.

The film balances the humour excellently with a decent zombie-story, and the array of characters within are not there just for laughs, there are plenty of poignant moments scattered throughout. Issues of family, love, and friendship, along with growing older and accepting responsibility are contained within the script. Much in the way that TV series Spaced managed to play the absurd with the serious, so does this film. It is easy to compare it to a 'big screen Spaced' episode, but that doesn't sell the film enough. It is much more than that, and is the perfect homage to zombie flicks, and social satire too. Watch towards the early stages of the film to see that most of the population could be confused for zombies anyway, and as for the end scenes of the film.well.suffice to say it will keep you laughing right to the end.

With a cast pulled from many cult British shows (Dylan Moran from Black Books, Matt Lucas from Little Britain, and nearly everyone from Spaced), and an excellent appearance by Bill `Love Actually' Nighy, there isn't really anything negative I can think of in the film. Even the action is well handled, with enough gore to satisfy any fans of zombie flicks.

This is a must see film which showcases Simon Pegg's talents excellently. The only drawback is that if it catapults him to international stardom he may never get around to making that final season of Spaced!!