Dawn of the Dead Alternate Ending

[QUENTIN]

Dawn of the Dead is one of my favorite horror movies and my favorite zombie movie, although I always thought the ending seemed tacked on at the last minute. I was right... in the original ending Peter (Ken Foree) does blow his brains out and Francine (Gaylen Ross) gets the helicopter running and then lifts her head into the spinning helicopter blades and her head is sliced open like a melon, her brains fall out then the zombies climb up the ladder onto the roof and eat her. Then, as we see the zombies feasting on their last meal, the credits start to roll and as the credits end there is a brief sputter of the helicopter, then silence. Personally, I think that is a much better ending and if it had ended that way it may have been my all-time favorite horror movie. What are your thoughts on the tacked on happy ending as opposed to the darker finale?

[TheNuke]

Quentin I don't know where you got your info but I remeber both Romero and Foree saying the other ending (the scripted ending) was never filmed but changed at the last minute because3 Romero said he wanted a positive ending. Also Tom Savini the make-up artist for the film and many other horror films wrote a book about his work and he talked about shots he did that were cut from movies and he mentioned nothing of the other ending. When there's no more room in hell the dead will walk the earth!

[DarkLight]

DOTD was a great movie and one of the zombie greats. From what I know they never got round to filming that alternate ending because of exactly what TheNuke said: Romero wanted a positive ending.

When I was watching DOTD there was that question in the back of my mind about how they'd be able to end this movie. The ending QUENTIN mentions would be a poor ending in my opinion because the characters spent the whole film trying not to get turned into zombie-meal. If they all died at the end, I don't believe there would have been much point to the movie. The whole point of the build up to the end was to show that life goes on even when hell has supposedly been unleashed on Earth.

If I had it my way, I would have ended the film the same way as the final cut. I thought is was a nice way to end it and made it different from the other mindless works. Refreshing...

DL

[PackBacker]

I would have preferred a darker ending as seen in the other two films in the trilogy. Just seems to fit better. In "Day" you are almost rooting for the zombies.

[QUENTIN]

I know it was never filmed, I never said it was filmed I just said it was changed at the last minute which is something you said yourself Nuke. I just knew it was scripted and then during the filming changed because Romero wanted a happy ending which in my (and apparently PackBacker's) mind was a bad idea.

[Jon Lyrik]

I heard that the Argento cut had an ending like this, where did you hear about it?

[pyscho dude]

The original ending is a much darker ending but really it would be all for nothing. They struggle throughout the whole film only to give up in the last couple of minutes. It seems like a waste. But you can kinda tell that the ending was changed as you see Roger holding the gun to his head and you think he's gonna do it but he doesn't.

[J.Sledge]

I happen to like the happy ending. I can see Fran & Peter fly off to they're own private island where Fran had her baby & named him Steven Roger....... & lived happily ever after(Well I can hope can't I?)

[Five Years]

SPOILERS, but I guess you've already figured that out.



I never really thought the actual ending was tacked on, or happy. It was a very uncertain ending (like, I find, many endings to the second in a trilogy). We don't know what will happen to them. We don't know if they have enough fuel, or if they'll land in the same situation. And the alternate ending actually sounds kind of stupid. I mean, it'd be fine if Peter shot himself, but the whole helicopter thing is just plain silly. The movie was dark enough.

[Dark_One79]

I don't know.

Sorry to disagree with most of my fellow schmoes here, and you know I respect nearly every opinion here on the board. But, I must admit, I've always liked the bleak, depressing ending.

I don't think it negates the first two hours of the film. Sure they fought for two hours (months in the movie) to survive. But the final act of "giving up" is very grotesque and unsettling. Which, I think, would've been the entire point, had it been used.

I'm fine with the ending the way it is now, and I would've been fine with the sad ending.

Horror doesn't have to end happily. Actually a depressing end can be much more fitting in many horror films.

I don't find the alternative ending "silly" at all. Fran chopping her own head off is nothing but a recollection of the demise of the zombie they encountered during their first stop once that had stolen the helicopter. Fran had reached her breaking point and realized that life isn't worth living alone. That, at least to me, is very poignant, and would've been quite a moving ending.

But, the way it ended is fine with me as well. DotD is one of my favorite films of all time and one of my first horror films ever.

[dellamorte dellamore]

Just because they fly off into the sunset doesn't mean it was a happy ending , because i don't think it was . Remember they were fugitives with a stolen helicopter , they had very little fuel left ( and no doubt it will be hard to find any ) , ammunition was running low , the food supply will only last for a spell , the cities are too dangerous and Marshall Law is in efect ( noone is allowed to occupy private residences ) , and basically they have nothing to look foward too except a hellish existence .


So , i don't see this as a happy ending , just not as dark and depressing as it could have been . The ending is much more depressing when you take into account the events in Day of the Dead , you realize that Fran and Peter probably survived only a short time after they fled the confines of the Mall , because the virus was already spreading at a ferverent pace in Dawn and in Day just about everyone was zombified .

[Scully1888]

It's better than the Day Of The Dead ending, that's for sure.

Now THAT felt tacked on.

[Jon Lyrik]

Originally posted by Scully1888
Now THAT felt tacked on.

Yeah, Tell me about it.

[HalloweenShape31]

Actually I met George Romero and Tom Savini at the Fangoria Weekend of Horrors in August and they both said that they don't know if they actually filmed it. They believe that they had at least filmed some of it but are unable to locate it. I dont know. Tom Savini said that he gave Anchor Bay six hours of his home movies from the production. Maybe there'll be something there about it. He also gave Anchor Bay four hours of footage for Day of the Dead which Anchor Bay is also rereleasing on DVD. I wish they would hurry up! I'm dying for these two greats on DVD!

[Jim H]

I like the happier ending better.. I've seen some unhappy endings that work great (I'm a big fan of heroic bloodshed, so that isn't suprising) but I think the original is better.

I don't remember the book that I read it, but I've seen it quoted a couple times that Savini claims the original ending was filmed. He also says that Romero forgot about it somehow.

[pyscho dude]

I agree HalloweenShape31. Why can't Anchor Bay just release Day already? Oh well It's only like four more months of waiting.

[HalloweenShape31]

ONLY FOUR MONTHS!?!?!? THATS A LONG ASS TIME. I wouldnt mind spending my summer vacation watchin those gory lovable ditties, but I'm not gonna be able to! Oh well. Just as long as they get here!

[pyscho dude]

Yeah that's a shame. My birthday's in July and I hope that they push foward the release date to July or June. But oh well still only four months and counting.

[TheDeadWalk]

Hey guys.

I just found this site on the net, it has picture of the "test run" that was to be used for Frannie's suicide.

http://www.savini.com/update1.htm

The proof is in the pudding baby!

[EVILxxx]

Originally posted by PackBacker
I would have preferred a darker ending as seen in the other two films in the trilogy.

Dark ending in Day? All the likable selfless characters take a helicopter to a deserted Island where they live the rest of their days under they sun sipping on coconuts.

[EVILxxx]

Originally posted by TheDeadWalk
Hey guys.

I just found this site on the net, it has picture of the "test run" that was to be used for Frannie's suicide.

http://www.savini.com/update1.htm

The proof is in the pudding baby!

I'll be damned.

[IamNoOne666]

I heard about this ending along time ago, the fact that DOTD is one of my all time favorites I was torn. I could understand going with the darker ending like Night did, cause lets face it Night is one of the darkest endings ever. I would understand killing them off in the end just to deliver more a emotional punch, cause I can say I was very connected to all the charecters in the movie. But I think that killing Rodger and Steve was enough to do that. That and I don't feel like Peter would be the type to commit suicide. He seemed like to strong of a charcter to go out like that. If he was going to die in the movie I would have liked to have seen him dying while holding off the zombies while Frannie escaped. I love the movie either way, and one thing I have to say is I don't think it is a happy ending. I mean zombie have taken over the world and 2 of thier best friend just died, I think where ever they ended up they sure the hell weren't happy.