Dir.
Edgar Wright, 2004, UK, 99 mins
Cast: Simon Pegg, Kate Ashfield, Nick Frost, Dylan Moran, Lucy Davis, Bill Nighy, Penelope Wilton
Horror returns to our doorsteps. It's not in the middle of some wood miles from the beaten track or picking off teenagers at Stereotype High but down the street and to your left. Shaun of the Dead captures that impending doom that all frighteners require as the cities of merry old England slowly become slightly less merry and a lot more bloody. From the outset the writing team behind cult TV hit Spaced bring to life the very possibility that the commuters on the bus around you are in fact turning into shuffling, mindless zombies. That's how they are, many would argue, but when they start hanging around in Shaun's (Pegg) back garden to pick his brains it's time to start fighting back - with a cricket bat.
Shaun is one of life's losers, jilted by his girlfriend Liz (Ashfield) he's left to waste precious hours in a meaningless job and vegetate with his flatmate/pet Ed (Frost) at his favourite place: "down the Winchester". Sounds like me, I hear you cry and that's part of the charm, this is about everyday people sitting around watching telly. Luckily a plague spreads through London providing Shaun with the perfect opportunity to actually get off his arse and do something so he sets about rescuing the people he loves and hoping they may love him back whilst dodging the hordes of flesh eating undead that now rule with a somewhat ineffectual and limp iron fist. For these zombies, remaining true to the Romero rulebook, are laughably inept but get a group of them together and they're sure to cause a dismembered mess.
Rest assured that this is a horror first and the comedy is purely incidental, but at the same time marvellously English in a 'let's make the best of a bad situation' way. So its stiff upper lip, draw the curtains and put the kettle on time in the hope that things don't get worse. The title may suggest a parody on various classics of the genre but Shaun of the Dead (a working title that stuck, expect a tentatively titled sequel; From Dusk 'Til Shaun) stands up as a worthy addition to the horror ranks. As well as being sublimely funny with Pegg's honed comic timing rattling off three times the number of jokes a normal rom-com would struggle to accomplish, it also revels in the no-holes barred 18 certificate that allows for plenty of blood to splatter, saving most for the dramatic siege that makes up the tense, final act.
While it's a shame some characters are marginalised, Dave (Moran) and Di (Davis) in particular are left underdeveloped but Moran sidesteps typecasting by playing the bookish, four-eyed wimp, a million miles from the psychotic Bernard in Black Books, the movie is a testament to Pegg as leading man material. He may not be as macho as most, sticking to reality everyone in the film are amateur gunmen, but earnest enough to pick up the gauntlet that's been thrown to him and lead everyone to safety. With plenty of subtle running gags, "you've got red on you", the filmmakers can never be accused of descending into showy set-pieces and the plot is carefully teased out so never feels like it has a checklist of big scenes.
As some feared this is not Spaced: The Movie, nowhere even close. While director Edgar Wright does build on his pacey direction style, segueing expertly between scenes with flashy Evil Dead relish, the team have gotten all movie references out of their system and have taken time to produce a mature work that not only matches horror contemporaries but also pushes the boundaries of what they can be. Like Spaced though, Shaun of the Dead will find a loyal audience through sheer word of mouth. It's not everyday that a British film like this comes along so make the most of it, besides it's a perfect precursor to the local visit to your Winchester.
Richard Badley
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