# Shaun of the Dead-RomZomCom Excellence **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [April 14, 2004, 11:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shaun-of-the-dead-romzomcom-excellence/239943 "2004-04-14T11:16:30Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![irishgirl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/8edcca/32.png) [@irishgirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/irishgirl)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2004, 11:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shaun-of-the-dead-romzomcom-excellence/239943/1 "2004-04-14T11:16:30Z")
(I suspect mostly for British/Irish people, but everyone else is missing out) From the writers of Spaced, a romantic comedy with zombies. It’s the funniest thing I’ve seen in ages, and I highly recommend it. If you like surreal comedy, Simon Pegg, drinking in your local and Queen, this is the movie for you. Go see. ---
**Author:** ![Max\_Carnage](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/max_carnage/32/12775_2.png) [@Max\_Carnage](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Max_Carnage)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2004, 1:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shaun-of-the-dead-romzomcom-excellence/239943/2 "2004-04-14T13:36:17Z")
Yep, I’ve been watching online trailers and reading about Shaun of the Dead for a couple of months now and I’m un-dying to see it. I only hope some American distributor picks it up and releases it over here. Zombie movies being all the rage (28 Days Later pun not intended) lately, I don’t see why it wouldn’t do well here in the colonies. ---
**Author:** ![Baldwin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/baldwin/32/7264_2.png) [@Baldwin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Baldwin)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2004, 3:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shaun-of-the-dead-romzomcom-excellence/239943/3 "2004-04-14T15:37:34Z")
Is this gonna be like _Bubba-Hotep_, where I hear about the movie, want to see it, then have to wait a year for an American release, then miss it when it _is_ finally distributed, then have to wait for the DVD? Okay. (And what the hell ever happened to _Shaolin Soccer_?) ---
**Author:** ![PookahMacPhellimey](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pookahmacphellimey/32/3175_2.png) [@PookahMacPhellimey](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PookahMacPhellimey)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2004, 3:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shaun-of-the-dead-romzomcom-excellence/239943/4 "2004-04-14T15:43:35Z")
Yes, I’m dying to see that too. I love Spaced and anything Simon Pegg turns up in. (He was great as the pushy boss of Goliath Bookstores in Black Books) Hope we get it in the cinema round here. ---
**Author:** ![Tuco](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/46a35a/32.png) [@Tuco](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tuco)\ **Post date:** [April 15, 2004, 9:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shaun-of-the-dead-romzomcom-excellence/239943/5 "2004-04-15T09:48:44Z")
Saw Shaun of the Dead last night - what a superb film! Jokes playing on the slow zombie idea were thick throughout the film, got a bit serious towards the end but well worth watching. Unfortunatly for our US Dopers, IMDB doesn’t even have a US release date, though they would have to change a few things to make it a bit more acceptable (fags is used for cigarettes a lot). ---
**Author:** ![irishgirl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/8edcca/32.png) [@irishgirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/irishgirl)\ **Post date:** [April 15, 2004, 2:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shaun-of-the-dead-romzomcom-excellence/239943/6 "2004-04-15T14:02:57Z")
Tuco, never mind fag for cig, I don’t think the line “Do any of you c\*\*ts want a drink?” will go over well! But I don’t think they should change it, we get US films with all their weirdness intact, I feel the opposite should be true. I thought it was nice the way they managed to get Dylan Moran, Matt Lucas, Jessica Stephenson, Reece Shearsmith from the League of Gentlemen and Martin Freeman and Lucy Davis from The Office, even if some of them were just cameos. ---
**Author:** ![PookahMacPhellimey](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pookahmacphellimey/32/3175_2.png) [@PookahMacPhellimey](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PookahMacPhellimey)\ **Post date:** [April 15, 2004, 3:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shaun-of-the-dead-romzomcom-excellence/239943/7 "2004-04-15T15:01:33Z")
Dylan Moran is in it? Yay! I kind of identify with his Black Books character and his comic persona in general. I’m female version but not quite as nasty to my friends as Bernard is, at least most of the time I’m not. Black Books tonight. Hooray! ---
**Author:** ![owlstretchingtime](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/958977/32.png) [@owlstretchingtime](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/owlstretchingtime)\ **Post date:** [April 15, 2004, 3:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shaun-of-the-dead-romzomcom-excellence/239943/8 "2004-04-15T15:31:52Z")
I’ve seen it and its grrrreeeaaat! I like the fact that it takes him a long time to notice that they are zombies. Highly recommended. God alone knows what the yanks will make of it. “i’ve only got a henry left” will pretty much baffle them. ---
**Author:** ![MovieMogul](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f08c70/32.png) [@MovieMogul](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MovieMogul)\ **Post date:** [April 15, 2004, 10:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shaun-of-the-dead-romzomcom-excellence/239943/9 "2004-04-15T22:33:25Z")
> [@Baldwin](#): > > (And what the hell ever happened to _Shaolin Soccer_?) I don’t know about you, but it’s currently out in my neck of the woods (SF, CA). It’s had an extremely limited release (6 theaters thus far), though (by comparison, _Bubba Ho-Tep_ was, at is peak, in 25 theaters nationwide). ---
**Author:** ![owlstretchingtime](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/958977/32.png) [@owlstretchingtime](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/owlstretchingtime)\ **Post date:** [April 16, 2004, 10:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shaun-of-the-dead-romzomcom-excellence/239943/10 "2004-04-16T10:55:04Z")
Alright I’ll bite: Bubba Ho-Tep and Shaolin Soccer. What are these all about then? ---
**Author:** ![Max\_Carnage](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/max_carnage/32/12775_2.png) [@Max\_Carnage](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Max_Carnage)\ **Post date:** [April 16, 2004, 2:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shaun-of-the-dead-romzomcom-excellence/239943/11 "2004-04-16T14:53:43Z")
Both should have listings on [IMDB.com](http://IMDB.com) but in brief: Bubba Ho-Tep stars Bruce Campbell as an elderly Elvis who teams up with a black John F Kennedy at a nursing home to fight a mummy. How can you NOT want to see it? Shaolin Soccer is a combination of Bend It Like Beckham and Sailor Moon…except with guys. Soccer film played with kung-fu/wirework/special effects. Looks pretty funny but I’ve heard the joke gets old. I have a friend who bought an import dvd but I’ve not got to borrow it yet. Bastard. ---
**Author:** ![kingpengvin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/9dc877/32.png) [@kingpengvin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kingpengvin)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2004, 1:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shaun-of-the-dead-romzomcom-excellence/239943/12 "2004-09-21T13:06:09Z")
Saw a North American Sneak preview on Friday. Any Romero Zombie fans will love this film. Funny, sad and poignant at times, it has the right spirit! This movie is what they forgot when remaking Dawn of the Dead. Updated effects alone do not a Zombie movie make. There has to be the human element with real characters not just types. This movie has it. And damn is it funny… The morning after scene as shaun drags himself to the corner store, oblivious of what is happening around him is a gut buster. The slight slip in the store was a masterful bit of comedy. “sorry no change today.” Go… nay run out and see this when it opens this week!! Or at least shmble out in large droves. ---
**Author:** ![Spoke](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a88e57/32.png) [@Spoke](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spoke)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2004, 1:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shaun-of-the-dead-romzomcom-excellence/239943/13 "2004-09-21T13:42:46Z")
The soundtrack was a treat. (“Ghost Town” by the Specials was especially fitting.) Also, look for winking references to other zombie movies. And for those who enjoy this movie, check out Peter Jackson’s earlier RomZomCom, [Braindead (released as Dead Alive in the US, I believe)](http://us.imdb.com/title/tt0103873/). Word of warning, though. The gross factor is high. ---
**Author:** ![ftg](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ftg/32/2801_2.png) [@ftg](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ftg)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2004, 3:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shaun-of-the-dead-romzomcom-excellence/239943/14 "2004-09-21T15:54:02Z")
I rate it as a “nice film”. Worth seeing, but not worth fighting crowds and such (not that there’ll be any). So it will probably end up in the 2nd 10 on my year end list of fav movies. Besides, “Who died and made you king of the zombies?” ---
**Author:** ![Revtim](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/revtim/32/1042_2.png) [@Revtim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Revtim)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2004, 4:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shaun-of-the-dead-romzomcom-excellence/239943/15 "2004-09-21T16:12:05Z")
I LOVED this movie. The ad says it’s a “perfect blend of horror and comedy”, which isn’t true, because it’s a perfect blend of horror, comedy, and drama. The serious bits worked, the comedy worked, and the horror worked. YMMV of course. But I enjoyed this flick more than any I’ve seen in long while. ---
**Author:** ![ultrafilter](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/3d9bf3/32.png) [@ultrafilter](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ultrafilter)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2004, 4:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shaun-of-the-dead-romzomcom-excellence/239943/16 "2004-09-21T16:12:12Z")
I’m stoked to see this, but I have no idea whether it’s playing anywhere near me. ---
**Author:** ![Ultraviolet](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/c77e96/32.png) [@Ultraviolet](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ultraviolet)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2004, 4:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shaun-of-the-dead-romzomcom-excellence/239943/17 "2004-09-21T16:13:36Z")
I’m so excited about seeing this movie! I love Spaced and Black Books, and am looking forward to seeing more of Simon Pegg and Dylan Moran. It’s zooming its way to me from [amazon.co.uk](http://amazon.co.uk) as we speak. ---
**Author:** ![Larry\_Mudd](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/f14d63/32.png) [@Larry\_Mudd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Larry_Mudd)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2004, 4:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shaun-of-the-dead-romzomcom-excellence/239943/18 "2004-09-21T16:24:01Z")
I’ve had a VHS screener of _Shaun of the Dead_ for about six months. Everyone I’ve shown it to agrees it’s the best romantic comedy with zombies _ever_. Even people who don’t like zombie movies love _Shaun of the Dead_. I can’t wait to see it in the theatre. “That’s _perfect_, Mary.” “Eh? Sorry dear, I was miles away.” Heh heh heh. ---
**Author:** ![Zebra](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/c0e974/32.png) [@Zebra](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zebra)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2004, 8:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shaun-of-the-dead-romzomcom-excellence/239943/19 "2004-09-21T20:50:20Z")
It’s getting a decent release in the US starting this Friday. After I watch Star Wars on DVD I’ll go check this out. ---
**Author:** ![Mirror\_Image\_egamI\_rorriM](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e56c9b/32.png) [@Mirror\_Image\_egamI\_rorriM](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mirror_Image_egamI_rorriM)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2004, 11:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shaun-of-the-dead-romzomcom-excellence/239943/20 "2004-09-21T23:06:30Z")
Shaun of the Dead is out in the US! I saw it last Friday, the 17th, at a special sneak preview showing, and it’s coming out for real on the 24th. I did see it at the indie movie theater, though, so maybe it isn’t going to be at all the big cineplexes, but I’m willing to bet that if it’s showing in somepace as unhip as Kansas City, it’ll definately be in a lot of places. Anyway, I absolutely loved it. I hate romantic comedies, but this one was hilarious, and I really liked the characters. It was serious in parts, but I didn’t think it was particularly scary, just gory. The “horror” parts were mostly the style of camerawork when Shaun was making a cup of tea or something…you think a zombie’s going to grab his arm, but he’s just adding some cream. (Psst, Larry Mudd; Shaun’s mum’s name was Barbara.) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shaun-of-the-dead-romzomcom-excellence/239943.md?page=2)