George A. Romero's original Dawn of the Dead is often heralded as the greatest zombie film ever made. The reasons for that are plentiful, as it is indeed a fantastic movie. The acting is solid, helping the characters feel more alive than their undead co-stars. The action is sublime, complete with mesmerizing gore effects from the legendary Tom Savini. The mall setting is wonderful and was original for the burgeoning zombie niche, and it has since become a staple. That being said, the story itself is relatively dull.
In both the original and its more action-packed remake, a group of people hang out in a mall and just clear it out over time. That's it. While Romero's satire and social commentary are to die for, the vehicle it uses to get to audiences isn't as interesting as some would hope. This is not to say it's bad but rather that while Dawn of the Dead pioneered zombie fiction, succeeding zombie movies have since improved on its formula of ragtag survivors being somehow worse than the undead hordes. Without further delay, here are ten zombie movies with a better story than Dawn of the Dead.
28 Days Later (2002)
28 Days Later serves as 28 Days Later also told a touching tale about family amidst the end times.
While everyone came for the zombies, they stuck around for the beautiful and humanizing story between Jim, Selena, Frank, and Hannah. Things are made even more interesting in the third act when Jim is forced to go crazy, blurring the line between humanity and the infected.
I Am Legend (2007)
Loosely based on the Richard Matheson novel of the same name, I Am Legend certainly skirts the zombie movie threshold. In the source novel, the undead are clearly portrayed as vampires. However, the movie goes in a slightly different direction, showing the creatures as some type of weird screeching vampire-zombie hybrid that only came to being because a potential cure for cancer turned lethal.
Regardless of their certification, I Am Legend presents a haunting and deeply personal story about one man's survival and isolation. The scene in which Neville is forced to strangle his beloved dog Sam after she starts to turn packs more emotion and humanity than the entirety of Dawn of the Dead.
Warm Bodies (2013)
Warm Bodies is a different kind of zombie film - rather than portraying some apocalyptic end of the world scenario, Warm Bodies ventures into the romantic comedy. At the heart of the story is the human survivor Julie and R, a zombie who falls for Julie.
The movie not only portrays zombies as human and sympathetic creatures, but the story is also told through the zombie's point of view. It was a wholly original and refreshing approach to the then-tiring zombie genre, and it was something that many have never seen before.
Day Of The Dead (1985)
Everyone loves Dawn of the Dead. Day of the Dead -- is often overshadowed by its predecessor. While Day also takes place in an isolated location, it has greater ambitions than Dawn.
For one thing, it perfectly portrays the end of the world, as cities are entirely overtaken by zombies and the last of humanity are bungled together in a dank bunker. It's also more morally ambiguous, offering a philosophical battle between study and hopeful restoration (personified through Dr. Logan) and pure and almost inhuman survival (represented by Col. Rhodes and his posse).
World War Z (2013)
To be clear, not a good adaptation of the Max Brooks novel. However, it's still a good zombie movie in its own right, and possibly the most ambitious of its kind.
Most zombie movies -- including Romero's numerous masterpieces -- take place in enclosed, isolated locations such as a house, shopping mall, or bunker. But World War Z is expansive, jumping from major city to city and country to country to portray the true scale and breadth of the zombie apocalypse. The movie's budget is reported to be somewhere in the $250 million range, which is certainly not surprising.
Shaun Of The Dead (2004)
Shaun of the Dead is a comedy, but it still tells a very humane and touching story encoming themes of family and friendship. Despite all the blood, gore, and laughs, Shaun of the Dead packs a lot of touching material into its short running time, mostly concerning Shaun's personal life.
He grows to care for his stepdad, grows closer to his mother, enforces his solid friendship with best friend Ed, and wins back his ex-girlfriend who had previously dumped him for being complacent. Technically it's a zombie movie, but it's more about Shaun's growth and maturity than anything else.
One Cut Of The Dead (2017)
By the late 2010's, the zombie genre itself was as undead as its subjects. No one seemed to care anymore, zombie films were growing less and less popular, and One Cut of the Dead, which proved that there was still life in the undead genre.
The movie follows the novice director Higurashi, as he attempts to film a zombie movie on a remote island, but is unable to control his actors and crew. Fate strikes and unleashes a real zombie apocalypse, and Higurashi decides to make good on this undead surprise. It's a wickedly funny and original zombie movie, and the less said about One Cut of the Dead's story, the better.
Train To Busan (2017)
Train to Busan brilliantly combines frenetic zombie action with Train to Busan could be seen as a scathing microcosm of the worst of South Korean society.
Most of the movie's action takes place on the titular train to Busan, South Korea, which unfortunately suffers from being the epicenter of a zombie outbreak. Of course, the story offers so much more than that and while it can veer into the melodramatic, Train to Busan is still wickedly compelling, touching, and tragic.
The Girl With All The Gifts (2016)
The Girl with All the Gifts was written by Mike Carey and adapted from his novel of the same name. It's essentially a blend of Children of Men, The Last of Us, and The Road. It seems like "people traveling with others over a post-apocalyptic wasteland" stories were very popular at the time.
This one sees various people -- specifically a scientist and teacher -- escorting a young girl on a perilous journey. The girl, Melanie, is a "hybrid" child who craves human flesh like the "hungries" but who retains control over her mental capacities. Though they don't know how exactly, the adults believe that Melanie could hold the key to mankind's future in the infected wastelands.
Planet Terror (2007)
Planet Terror served as one half of Grindhouse (alongside Robert Rodriguez took on the zombie genre with the absolutely insane Planet Terror.
The movie is impossible to take seriously (as is intended) as proven by the simple fact that it centers on Cherry Darling (Rose McGowan), a former exotic dancer who sports a machine gun leg. The story is ludicrous, but there's a lot of fun and enjoyment to be found in this level of absurdity and ridiculousness.
