Return of the Living Dead-Special Edition (1985)

"A funny, gore-spattered homage.  Blake Davis, KFOR Channel 4 News
"A tongue-in-cheek, splatter-laden homage to George A. Romero's zombie pictures.  Jeremiah Kipp, Slant Magazine
"A fresh and immensely entertaining take on the zombie genre...  Pete Vonder Haar, Film Threat
"A real scream for chiller fans!  The Washington Post
"Turns a satirical eye on Reagan's hawkish heart, the sprung logic of Italian zombie movies, and John Hughes' brat-pack films.  Walter Chaw, Film Freak Central

Editor's Note Do you wanna party? The freshly risen undead certainly do in this horror-comedy that finds two employees of a medical supply company unwittingly releasing several zombies from cylinders in which they have been trapped for many years. The nasty brain-eating creatures are as hungry as ever, and eager to make up for lost time. Soon, the local citizenry is forced to deal with a large-scale zombie epidemic. The writer of ALIEN helmed this punk/horror pastiche.

	Clu Gulager
	Don Calfa
	James Karen
	Miguel A. Nunez, Jr.
	Dan O'Bannon - Director
	Dan O'Bannon - Screenplay
	John A. Russo - Based On Book By
	John Daly - Executive Producer
	Jules Brenner - Cinematographer
	Matt Clifford - Original Music By
	Robert Gordon - Editor
	Robert Howland - Art Director
	Tom Fox - Producer
	William Stout - Production Designer

A blood-filled spoof of zombie flicks, which fans of George Romero will especially enjoy (and you know who you are). The rotting cadavers of a graveyard are resurrected by a deadly, gaseous emission. Unfortunately, the gruesome ghoulies just love to dine upon human brains, to the "grave" displeasure of the nearby townsfolk. How will the citizens rid themselves of their gore-lovin', gut-munchin' visitors? Variety
"...Terrifically funny....Genuinely witty..." 06/19/1985

Reel.com 8 of 10
As enjoyable as all of this is, I have to admit that I've never understood the cult that has formed around Return of the Living Dead...It's amiable enough, but nothing remarkable. As a horror film, it isn't remotely scary, aside from a few "boo" moments in which O'Bannon skillfully stages the action so that the eye is directed toward a specific part of the frame before being shocked by a zombie that jumps out somewhere else. And as a comedy, it's well acted by a collection of reliable industry veterans (Clu Gulager, James Karen) and appealing newcomers, but it isn't all that hysterically funny--Sam Raimi's Evil Dead, which came out two years earlier, is an infinitely more hilarious and intense combination of gory horror and slapstick humor. That said, millions of horror fans love Return of the Living Dead, which does have its strengths. O'Bannon's script may be a little short on creativity, but his direction is professional and inspired, and the aforementioned performances are pitch-perfect. Return also has one major innovation that later filmmakers like Danny Boyle (28 Days Later) and Zack Snyder (the Dawn of the Dead remake) picked up on for their zombie movies: instead of trudging along like Romero's sluggish zombies, the undead in this film move fast. - Jim Hemphill

Chicago Sun-Times 8 of 10
Not many movies have the nerve to name their sources right there in the dialogue, so you can make your own comparisons. "Return of the Living Dead" makes no secret of its inspiration. The movie opens with a teenager going to work in one of those supply houses that ship cadavers and skeletons to scientists and, in no time at all, the man who runs the company is leaning over the desk and asking if the kid has ever seen "Night of the Living Dead." Because it wasn't just a movie, see? It was the truth...What's the bottom line on a movie like this? If you are below a certain age, I suppose it's scary, and the R rating is richly deserved. To hardened veterans of ghoul movies, however, a sort of connoisseurship develops. "Return" is a movie with some nice, droll opening scenes and the obligatory horrible climax. It doesn't make the mistake of "Day of the Dead" - talking too much. It's kind of a sensation-machine, made out of the usual ingredients, and the real question is whether it's done with style. It is. - Roger Ebert