Dawn of the Dead: Complete Cut (1978)
Five years ago, I wrote about a fan edit of George Romero’s horror classic Dawn of the Dead that attempted to recreate the original rough cut of the movie. The so-called “Extended Mall Hours” cut was composed of the 139 minute Cannes edit of the film and the 117 minute Dario Argento version. It was a very interesting project but as it consisted of DVD quality material (including deleted scenes) it was not an optimal presentation. Being a fan edit, there were obvious issues regarding legality, so I never really expected to see anything comparable to this version being officially sanctioned or released. So I was therefore most surprised to learn that a recent Blu-ray boxset release by Austrian distributors XT Video included a “Complete Cut” which similarly combines all available material. This is presented in 1080p, at a ratio of 1:85:1 and runs 155 minutes. It is superior in quality to the “Extended Mall Hours” cut and is most likely the nearest any fan is ever going to get to seeing Romero’s initial edit of the film.
Having recently watched the “Complete Cut”, I again reiterate the same comments I made when watching the “Extended Mall Hours” fan edit. The film takes on a somewhat bleaker tone with some additional dialogue scenes between Peter and Stephen. The expanded “Biker Raid” adds to the action and certainly increases the threat that they pose to our protagonists. And there is a lot more additional zombie related violence. However, this version does a far better job of adjusting the soundtrack to accommodate the additional material. Some tracks by Goblin that were not used in previous edits of the film have been integrated back into the movie. Hence we do not get too much repetition of cues. The visual elements are of a superior quality this time round so there is no significant disparity between old and new material. The editing is also seamless and the addition of new content does not disrupt the narrative flow or the overall pacing of the film.
The addition of this version of Dawn of the Dead to the existing three cuts of the film raises the inevitable question of which is best? Although I often prefer the most comprehensive version of movies, I’d advise those who have not seen the film before to start with the standard theatrical version first. It has a sense of immediacy that makes it possibly the most accessible edit. Other versions are best watched once an opinion of the base movie has been established. Some of the material in the “Complete Cut” may mainly be of interest to completists who want to see additional zombie footage. However, some of the extra make up effects and action scenes are not quite as polished as those that have always been present, which may well be the reason that director George Romero removed them. However, if you are an aficionado then this version of the film is worth seeing for scholarly reasons. However, please note that the boxset that contains this cut was a limited edition and is now very expensive to obtain.
