| Shaun of the Dead | |
|---|---|
| |
| Directed by | Edgar Wright |
| Produced by | Tim Bevan Eric Fellner Nira Park |
| Written by | Edgar Wright Simon Pegg |
| Studio | StudioCanal Working Title Films WT2 Productions Big Talk Productions |
| Distributed by | Rogue Pictures Universal Pictures |
| Release date | 9 April 2004 |
| Running time | 99 minutes |
| Budget | £4 million |
| Gross revenue | $30,039,392 |
| Followed by | Hot Fuzz |
Shaun of the Dead is the rom zom com co-written by Simon Pegg and Edgar Wright, released on April 9, 2004 in the UK and September 24, 2004 in the US. It was directed by Wright and stars Simon Pegg as Shaun, Nick Frost as Ed, Kate Ashfield as Liz, Lucy Davis as Dianne and Dylan Moran as David.
Plot[]
Shaun (Simon Pegg) is a 29-year-old salesman whose life has no direction. His younger colleagues at work show him no respect and he has a rocky relationship with his stepfather, Phillip (Bill Nighy). He also has a tense relationship with his housemate, Pete (Peter Serafinowicz), because of Ed (Nick Frost), Shaun's crude best friend who lives on their sofa and deals marijuana. His girlfriend, Liz (Kate Ashfield), is unsatisfied with their social life because it consists primarily of spending every evening at the Winchester, Shaun's favourite pub, as well as the fact that they never do anything alone together - Shaun always brings Ed and she has to bring her flatmates, David (Dylan Moran) and Dianne (Lucy Davis). After a routine day at work where he is confronted by Phillip, a friend, Yvonne (Jessica Stevenson), and others he interacts with, Liz breaks up with Shaun when he fails to book a table at a restaurant for their anniversary. Shaun drowns his sorrows with Ed at the Winchester and they return home late, only to have Pete confront them. Pete, suffering a headache after being mugged and bitten by "some crackheads", berates Shaun and tells him to sort his life out. Shaun resolves to do so the next morning.
This revelation comes at the same time as an apocalyptic uprising of zombies, although Shaun fails to notice at first. He and Ed finally realize what is happening after watching reports on TV and several zombies appear in the house, and they decide they need to ensure they are somewhere safe. Shaun and Ed arm themselves with weapons from the shed and realise that the safest place they know is the Winchester. They plan to collect Shaun's mother, Barbara (Penelope Wilton), and Phillip, and Liz and her flatmates and head to the Winchester. They discover that Pete is still in the house and is now a zombie, and manage to escape in Pete's car. After collecting Barbara and Phillip, who is bitten in the process, they switch cars and drive in Phillip's Jaguar and head to Liz, Dianne and David's flat, and collect them. Before they make it to the Winchester, Phillip dies of his bite,after he manages to make peace with Shaun. Forced to abandon the car, they set off on foot, bumping into Yvonne, a close friend of Shaun's, and her own band of survivors. Discovering that the path is infested with zombies, they devise a plan to sneak by, pretending to be zombies, with the help of Dianne, who is an aspiring actress. Ed and Shaun get into an argument and the zombies, after watching the commotion, realise they are not dead and approach. David smashes the window with a dustbin and, while Shaun distracts the zombies, everyone takes refuge inside the pub. Shaun joins them after giving the zombies the slip.
After several hours, the zombies return. Ed inadvertently gives away their position when he wins on a Slot Machine game and the zombies converge on the pub. At that moment, the pub's landlords, also zombies, arrive and attack them. Ed manages to get a Winchester rifle above the bar working and they use it to fend off the zombies breaking in. However, Barbara reveals a bite wound she picked up along the way and subsequently dies. Realising she is about to become a zombie, David points the rifle at her, only to meet resistance from Shaun and Ed, and in the ensuing confrontation, Dianne reveals that she is aware that David loves Liz and not her. After Barbara returns as a zombie, Shaun shoots her, and punches David. David angrily storms to the door, but Dianne talks him away from it. At that moment, the zombies break through a window and drag him out, disemboweling and dismembering him. Frantic, Dianne unbolts the door to rescue David, exposing Shaun, Liz and Ed to the zombies. Ed prepares a Molotov cocktail to fend them off, but Pete arrives and bites him. He manages to get over the bar and Shaun uses the cocktail to ignite the bar. They escape into the cellar. Finding themselves cornered, they contemplate suicide, but discover a service hatch. Shaun and Liz escape through the hatch, and Ed, now mortally wounded from the ensuing zombie attack, stays behind with a cigarette and the rifle. Back on the street, Shaun and Liz prepare to fight the zombies once more, but at that moment, the British Army arrives and they are rescued. Yvonne, who has also survived, shows up and tells Shaun and Liz to follow her. They approach the safety of the trucks, reconciled.
Six months after the outbreak, all of the uninfected have returned to daily life, and the remaining zombies, retaining their instincts, are used as cheap labour and entertainment. Liz and Shaun have moved in together in Shaun's house, and Shaun is keeping Ed as a pet, tethered in the shed and playing TimeSplitters 2.
Cast[]
In order of appearance[]
- Shaun … Simon Pegg
- Liz … Kate Ashfield
- Ed … Nick Frost
- Dianne … Lucy Davis
- David … Dylan Moran
- Mary … Nicola Cunningham
- Clubber 1 … Kier Mills
- Clubber 2 … Matt Jaynes
- Football Kid … Gavin Ferguson
- Pete … Peter Serafinowicz
- Homeless Man … Horton Jupiter
- The Usher … Tim Baggaley
- Nelson … Arvind Doshi
- Noel … Rafe Spall
- Danny … Sonell Dadral
- Woman on Trisha … Samantha Day
- Trisha Goddard … Herself
- Grave Scientist … David Park
- Distraught Vox Pop … Finola Geraghty
- Phillip … Bill Nighy
- Distressed Man … Robert Fitch
- Florist … Sharon Gavin
- Pigeon Man … Patch Connolly
- Yvonne … Jessica Stevenson
- Snakehips … Stuart Powell
- Spinster … Patricia Franklin
- John … Steve Emerson
- Bernie … Phyllis McMahon
- Krishnan Guru-Murthy … Himself
- Carol Barnes … Herself
- Rob Butler … Himself
- Jeremy Thompson … Himself
- Vernon Kay … Himself
- Hulking Zombie … Mark Donovan
- Grizzled Zombie … Christopher Harwood
- Barbara … Penelope Wilton
- Declan … Martin Freeman
- Mark … Reece Shearsmith
- Maggie … Tamsin Greig
- Yvonne's Mum … Julia Deakin
- Cousin Tom … Matt Lucas
- Pyjama Zombie … Nick Ewans
- Trisha Zombie … Alex Lutes
- Chris Martin … Himself
- Jonny Buckland … Himself
- Keith Chegwin … Himself
Uncredited[]
- Zombie shot by soldiers … Lucy Akhurst
- Livid Commuter … Peter Bateson
- Army Officer … Paul Bayfield
- Man in Street … Peter Baynham
- Football Commentator/'Zombies From Hell!' Presenter (voice) … Rob Brydon
- Wheelchair Zombie … Liz Cater
- Livid Commuter … Chris Clarke
- Zombie shot by soldiers … Joe Cornish
- News Reporter (voice) … Julia Davis
- Radio Presenter With 'Spaceship' Theory/Wildlife voiceover (voice) … Mark Gatiss
- "Fun-Dead" Zombie … Nick Goldsmith
- "Fun-Dead" Zombie … Garth Jennings
- Zombie … Rich Johnston
- Zombie behind the Winchester … Paul Kaye
- Zombie outside flat … Lauren Laverne
- Zombie … Jason McDonald
- Zombie … Michael O'Mahony
- News Reporter (voice) … Robert Popper
- Zombie … Paul Putner
- Zombie … Peter Rnic
- "Tyres" Zombie … Michael Smiley
- Zombie Monkey … Dave Smith
- Zombie shot by soldiers … David Spratt
- SWAT Team Officer … Greg Tanner
- Zombie … Ben Thompson
- Zombie … Kenneth Thompson Marchesi
- Livid Commuter … Ronaldo Vasconcellos
- News Reporter (voice) … David Walliams
- Zombie … Julianne Watling
- Zombie Twin … Kevin Wilson
- Zombie Twin … Nicholas Wilson
- Rabid Monkeys Newsreader/Prat-falling Zombie/Italian Restaurant Voice … Edgar Wright
Ed's foreshadowing[]
When Ed tries to help Shaun with his break up he states the following:
- "We'll have a bloody mary in the morning, a bite at the King's Head, a couple at the Little Princess, stagger back here and BANG! back at the bar for shots."
- ―Ed
Ed actually tells the entire plot, or rather the entire day, that transpires.
- "We'll have a bloody mary in the morning..." - The first zombie that Shaun and Ed interact with is a woman whose name tag reads "Mary"
- "...a bite at the King's Head..." - When they head over to rescue Barbara, they discover that Phillip (who shares his name with numerous kings named Phillip) was bitten in the neck by a zombie.
- "...a couple at the Little Princess..." - Shaun battles a zombie in the backyard of a little girl.
- "...stagger back here..." - When the group find the Winchester, it is surrounded by zombies and they have to pretend to be them so that they can pass through.
- "...and BANG! back at the bar for shots." - The climax is held within the Winchester where they do battle with a whole zombie horde.
Errors[]
The Winchester owner says that the bar is closed and yet there were still patrons inside of it.