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Olive Kitteridge: A Novel in Stories
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The Pulitzer prize-winning novel from the author of the Booker longlisted My Name is Lucy Barton...
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Creativity in the British Television Comedy Industry
Brett Mills, Erica Horton and Sarah Ralph
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Welcome to the glamorous life of Alexandra 'Binky' Felstead, original cast member and star of the...
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Bookends
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On the heels of her national bestsellers Jemima J and Mr. Maybe, British sensation Jane Green...
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Social and Political Theatre in 21st-Century Britain: Staging Crisis
Enoch Brater, Vicky Angelaki and Mark Taylor-Batty
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Summer Heat: A Steamy Romance Collection
Caitlyn Lynch, Christina Rose Andrews, Ariel Bishop, Líadáin Douglas, Annika Steele, Gwen Marshall, Abbigail Clark, Livvy Ward, T.D. Crawls, Ava Bari, Avery J. Heath, Tally Bane, Sera Taíno, Moxie Rivers, Siobhan Kearney, Cynthia Miller and Tricia Ramey
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A collection of 17 steamy short stories (5,000 - 10,000 words) by new and established romance...
Anthology Contemporary Romance
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Lonely Planet Cape Town & the Garden Route
Lonely Planet, Simon Richmond and Lucy Corne
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Lonely Planet: The world's leading travel guide publisher Lonely Planet Cape Town & the Garden Route...
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Sarah (7798 KP) rated Shaun of the Dead (2004) in Movies
Dec 26, 2020 (Updated Dec 26, 2020)
Shaun of the Dead (2004) is the first film in the Cornetto trilogy, a series of films directed by Edgar Wright and starring Simon Pegg and Nick Frost. I have to admit I’m a little biased when it comes to Shaun and 2007’s Hot Fuzz (shameful that this isn’t also on the bucket list), the first two films in the trilogy, as they’re two of my comedy favourites and films I can quote far too much from. And as zombie horror comedies go, you can’t get much better than Shaun of the Dead.
The film follows Shaun (Simon Pegg), a hopeless boyfriend who shares a house with his slacker friend Ed (Nick Frost) and stickler Pete (Peter Serafinowicz), while he tried to save his Rocky relationship with girlfriend Liz (Kate Ashfield) whilst trying to battle his way through a zombie apocalypse. The best thing about Shaun of the Dead is how it follows Shaun trudging almost zombie like through his own life, while in the background a real zombie apocalypse is breaking out. It’s so incredibly fun watching all of the zombie related acts in the background that the main characters are completely oblivious about, and not only is it funny, it’s also a rather clever commentary on the state of our culture and society – I’m sure we could all imagine this oblivious self absorbed attitude being very much present in a lot of people if a zombie apocalypse ever really happened.
Shaun also succeeds due to the incredibly clever and witty script and the gags that don’t ever seem to let up. From the subtle zombie nods in the beginning to the wisecracking and snide remarks between Shaun, Ed and virtually everyone else in Shaun’s life, this film is hilarious and infectiously quotable. The zombie apocalypse is tackled in such a typically British way, and not only is this funny but it’s incredibly refreshing too when compared to the overly stylish guns ‘n’ ammo style zombie films we’re used to from across the pond. How often do you see character trying to kill zombies with records before settling down with a cup of tea and a cornetto? It’s a work of genius.
The cast too are equally responsible for how good this film is, and do a great job with the script and pace. Not only do you have the charismatic pairing of Pegg and Frost who’s chemistry is undeniable, there’s also an excellent supporting cast with some rather big names in the UK industry: Bill Nighy, Jessica Hynes, Dylan Moran, Lucy Davis and Penelope Wilton. And some blink and you’ll miss it cameos from comedy greats Matt Lucas, Reece Shearsmith and Tamsin Greig. These names paired with Edgar Wright’s well paced directing style makes for an engaging film.
Shaun of the Dead is basically a big screen zombie version of Spaced, and this definitely isn’t a bad thing. The only negative about this, especially watching it 16 years later, is that it seems so obviously low budget which I think has only been made more obvious with age. Even in HD it does look a tad aged which is a shame, but the amount of blood and gore is still impressive for a 15 rated film.
Despite it’s age, Shaun of the Dead is one of the best zombie films out there and the fact that it’s hilarious too just makes it even better. And after watching this, you’ll never think of Queen’s Don’t Stop Me Now in the same way again.
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Lonely Planet South Africa, Lesotho & Swaziland
Lonely Planet, James Bainbridge, Lucy Corne and Jean-Bernard Carillet
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Lonely Planet: The world's leading travel guide publisher Lonely Planet South Africa, Lesotho &...
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Lonely Planet Africa
Lonely Planet, Simon Richmond, Stuart Butler and Paul Clammer
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