Comments on UK Blu-ray of Romero’s DAY OF THE DEAD

By Michael Gingold

Britain’s Arrow Video is preparing to unleash a new Blu-ray release of George A. Romero’s classic DAY OF THE DEAD with all-new bonus features, and Fango scribe Calum Waddell, one of the creators of the fresh material, got in touch with details of what it has to offer. The disc is set to street March 29.

“The Blu-ray will have brand new cover art, along with three more sleeve options à la Arrow’s recent DAWN OF THE DEAD Blu-ray,” Waddell tells us. “Then there’s a collector’s booklet with an extensive 5,000-word essay written by me called ‘For Every Dawn There Is a Day,’ featuring all-new interviews with Romero, editor Pasquale Buba, assistant director/soundtrack composer John Harrison and actors Lori Cardille, Joe Pilato and Gary Steele.”

Pilato, who memorably played the villainous Captain Rhodes in DAY, is the focus of a pair of documentaries shot on HD by High Rising Productions, the company run by Waddell and Naomi Holwill (pictured at bottom of page with Pilato). “ ‘Joe of the Dead: Acting in a George Romero Classic’ is a 50-minute look at Joe’s career,” Waddell says. “It takes in everything about his experiences on DAY OF THE DEAD, as well as his career before and after Romero’s nightmare vision! It’s stocked with never-before-seen pictures, and Joe was even so kind as to preview his role in the upcoming NIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD: ORIGINS for us!”

Waddell directed “Joe of the Dead,” while Holwill helmed the 17-minute “Travelogue of the Dead.” “This one focuses on Joe’s visit to Ireland and Scotland last year to promote the 25th anniversary of DAY OF THE DEAD,” Waddell explains, “complete with fans talking about the movies and live footage from each cinema. It is lots of fun—it really drops the fans into the action as they get to see the actor, with hardly any sleep, travel from place to place and drink with the best of them!”

The Blu-ray will also contain the following:

• Audio commentary by the makeup FX team, including Greg Nicotero, Howard Berger, Everett Burrell and Mike Deak

• “The Many Days of the Dead” documentary

• Behind-the-scenes featurette

• Photo galleries

• Filmographies and biographies for Romero and FX creator Tom Savini

• Theatrical trailer

In addition, Waddell and Holwill recently journeyed to Rome, where they shot material for an upcoming UK Blu-ray and DVD of the Lucio Fulci favorite CITY OF THE LIVING DEAD (a.k.a. THE GATES OF HELL). “We also have plans to work on two more cult classics for the Brit market in the coming year,” Waddell notes; stay tuned for further details.