Dawn of the Dead (2004) Still analysis 2

Here we see Michael shooting the zombies just outside the backdoor of the mall, automatically comparing him to Flyboy of the 1979 version of DOTD, we clearly see a change in skill, and likability in him. He is also very skilled with his phallic weapon, a pistol, making him a more masculine character already, whereas Flyboy was useless with a bigger a more powerful rifle. Linking to the historical context, this scene is a classic example of how times have changed, where not only are the zombies a lot more realistic and scary looking, they are also a lot faster (fast moving monster), which strikes more fear into the audience of current times. This also makes it harder for the characters to escape, almost giving you a feeling of claustrophobia and being trapped.

The over the shoulder, medium close-up shot puts the audience into the scene, as if we are really standing behind Michael, and the zombies are coming after ‘us’, causing the audience to feel a little uncomfortable, but also wanting the characters to survive because we feel closer to them.