George A. Romero's bleak masterpiece Day of the Dead finally gets a 4K upgrade, thanks to Scream Factory (physical media review)

Image courtesy of Scream Factory

Though Day of the Dead was a box office dud upon its release in 1985, over the years, the film has found acceptance within the horror community and it's been reevaluated. Its themes of the military versus science, a breakdown of communication during a global crisis, and its strong female lead, Dr. Sarah Bowman (Lori Cardille), were ahead of the time. More than forty years after its release, George A. Romero's zombie masterpiece has finally been given a 4K restoration, thanks to Scream Factory.

The restoration was created from the film's interpositive, and the 4K package includes an extensive special feature titled "Monster Mania: Restoring Day of the Dead" about the laborious process. For movie nerds, this is absolutely worth a watch. In fact, it took Duplitech, the company Scream Factory hired for the restoration, three times to complete the work because the first two times, they were sent film reels for the Day of the Dead remake. At the end of that special feature, there's footage where the restoration is screened for the first time and Scream Factory producer Jeff Roland gives a detailed speech about how difficult it was to recover the film because no one knew where the original footage was located. If you consider Roland's speech, it's a miracle that the restoration ever happened.

As for the actual restoration, there is a noticeable difference from previous DVD and Blu-ray releases. The colors of the exterior shots, which were mostly the Florida Everglades, are much richer and more vibrant, especially contrasted with the subterranean mine/bunker locations where most of the film occurs. Further, the gore and special effects, created by long-time Romero collaborator Tom Savini and a young Greg Nicotero, also stand out. Day of the Dead is known for its blood and guts, and they sure look great in 4K, especially the infamous scene where Rhodes (Joseph Pilato) is ripped apart by zombies near the film's conclusion. Bub's makeup (Howard Sherman) also looks much more textured in the new release.

However, the film's audio is not the best. The synth score by John Harrison sounds fantastic, but the dialogue, especially early in the movie, sounds muddy and too low, and there's also been some controversy about the altered audio track used in the restoration. You can read more about that here. There's no doubt that the audio track is going to offend some purists, and perhaps rightfully so.

Regarding the artwork, Scream Factory really went all out. The package contains a series of collectible lobby cards with various shots from the film and two plastic disc holders featuring the original poster artwork. The gnarly artwork adds to the justification of the sticker price; however, the image of Bub on the front cover isn't the best, and there's been some debate as to whether or not that image is AI-generated. Let's hope not!

Scream Factory also loaded this up with plenty of special features. I already mentioned "Monster Mania: Restoring Day of the Dead," but there's new interviews with Cardille, Nicotero, Harrison, Suzanne Romero, founder of the George A. Romero Foundation and the director's wife, actor John Amplas, 2nd unit cameraman Ernest Dickerson, and filmmaker Tina Romero, the director's daughter. Most of these interviews are over 30 minutes long, and they're all worth a watch, especially the ones with Tina Romero, Suzanne Romero, and Cardille. They really give insight into George Romero's creative process and what he was like on and off set. Tina Romero especially shares some really sweet memories about her dad, including her time on Day of the Dead's set. She was so young that she had just learned to walk. There's also other behind-the-scenes extras, including from Savini's archives, the original TV spots and trailers, and a cool look at the mines. In short, there are hours of special features loaded on this release.

Day of the Dead in many ways feels prophetic, especially for the way it conveys the increasing distrust of science and doctors and growing militarization, heck, even fascism via Rhodes and his military henchmen. Though the movie wasn't well-received upon its release, it's since gone on to acclaim. It's also one of, if not, Romero's bleakest films. As for the 4K restoration, the special features alone make it worth the cost. The colors also look great, though the audio quality is flawed. If Romero fans are willing to spend the money, the Scream Factory release is absolutely worth a purchase. There are rumblings that another boutique physical media company is working on a 4K release, but right now, that's just a rumor.

Day of the Dead can be purchased here.