The Running of the Dead

[Scattercat]

Fascinating article on zombies, literary referents, and political theory.  Here.

[Sgarre1]

Excellent!  Thanks for sharing.  My Philosophy Professor friend, Labor Lawyer friend and I had hashed over similar thoughts after the DAWN OF THE DEAD remake and 28 DAYS LATERS were released - this guy's analysis is thorough and impeccable.  I'd always felt, instinctually, that the popularity of the new version of zombie movies (in general) had to do with an unconscious rejection of the complexities of democracy ("things would work out fine if we didn't have to respect the rights of these greedy, violent, awful people...and there are too many of "them" anyway!") and desire for near-fascistic, simplistic solutions.  Thank goodness this guy did all the heavy lifting!

“Is there still a message – political or cultural - to get across to the masses when socialism is declared dead, history terminated and the autonomous, postmodern individual the monarch of all he or she surveys?”
Paul Stump in Test Dept. interview, The Wire # 144, February, 1996

[Scattercat]

And how any sort of dithering or wavering of purpose is rewarded with chaos and bloody death?  With slow zombies, you had the time to hash out how your group of survivors was going to continue surviving, but now, disobeying (or even hesitating) when the Strong Leader urges action is a recipe for disaster.