Makeup used as a shock device

Figure 1: Girl meets freak (2006) Movie discussion

This is no clearer to many movie makeup artists that horror films make is very clear that realistic, blood, guts, and gore are a pretty effective way of getting a response from an audience. Day of the Dead is one film where makeup effects play a major role in the film. Makeup effects creator Tom Savini was in charge of the special effects here, and would work on other films with George A Romero, (Tom Savini) He also worked on the first four Friday the 13^th films and would later go on to work with Robert Rodriguez. Savini was a pioneer of prosthetics, making sure they looked more realistic on films and at times giving them a functional role. He used his experiences as a combat photographer in the Vietnam war to make his effects more realistic. Day of the Dead uses Savini’s talents to great effect, such that his work is the highlight of the film.

Figure 2: Girl meets freak (2006) Movie discussion

As a pioneering zombie film, the film showcases a lot of gag-including moments in order to push audiences towards the edge of their seats. If the visuals were not realistic-looking, audiences would have had a difficult time cheering on the protagonists in their fight against the undead. To accomplish this realism for shock value, Savini and Romero created a lot of sequences where the makeup effects are dynamic. When a character is shooting a gun, the camera isn’t just focused on the person firing the gun, it shows what happens to the zombies, instead of them just fall over incapacitated. The film uses real meat for zombies to munch on to mimic human flesh, including one moment where a zombie takes a bite out of a living person. Another iconic sequence that showcases Savini’s aptitude for prosthetics is when a character is being torn apart by the zombies. Such violent and bloody imagery is difficult to forget since it is executed so convincingly.


Figure 3: Pintrest (2010) glindagb

The makeup for the multitudes of extras in the film was a basic blue or gray tinge to the face of each extra. some featured zombies, who would be seen close- up or on- screen longer than others, had more time spent on their look. Many of the featured zombies became part of the fanfare, with nicknames based upon their look or activity - such as Machete Zombie, Sweater zombie, and Nurse zombie.(Wilson D Blood Disgusting)  

References:

Figure 1:
         Girl meets freak (2006) Movie discussion Retrieved from;
  http://girlmeetsfreak.com/2013/12/17/movie-discussion-george-a-romeros-day-of-the-dead-1985/

Figure 2:
            Girl meets freak (2006) Movie discussion Retrieved from;
  http://girlmeetsfreak.com/2013/12/17/movie-discussion-george-a-romeros-day-of-the-dead-1985/

Figure 3:
       Pintrest (2010) glindagb Retrived from:  
https://www.pinterest.com/pin/61994932344058767/

Tom Savini Retrieved from:
       https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tom_Savini 

George A. Girl meets freak (2006) Retrieved from:
          Girl meets freak (2016) Movie discussion Retrieved from;
  http://girlmeetsfreak.com/2013/12/17/movie-discussion-george-a-romeros-day-of-the-dead-1985/      

Wilson D. Blood Disgusting (2016) Retrieved from:
    http://bloody-disgusting.com/mag/3406602/depth-analysis-day-dead-1985/