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Mar 27, 2018
It has never been difficult to see the late George Romero’s masterpiece Night of the Living Dead. A must for any horror film fan, it is also a staple in college film courses, and young fans of The Walking Dead know where they need to start when looking for the genesis of the modern zombie genre.
Because of a legal oversight, Night of the Living Dead has been in the public domain since its release, meaning that it has been available to the public in virtually every format—16mm, VHS, DVD, etc.—from a host of distributors, typically with poor image and sound. Some companies have tried to give it a quick digital scrub, stripping the film of its vitality and even diminishing the ghostly residue of its no-frills production.
Because of this history, the new Museum of Modern Art-supervised 4K restoration, and release by Janus Films, of Night of the Living Dead is one of the most anticipated film events in recent years. The MoMA restoration is from the original camera negative, the gold standard when trying to resurrect a film and make it look as it did when originally released. We’re very excited to be able to share this classic with our audience like you have never seen it before January 11-12. MoMA’s Katie Trainor, who supervised the project, will join us on the 12th to discuss the restoration.
In anticipation of her visit, Katie spoke with me about her involvement in Night of the Living Dead’s restoration.
What was the condition of the elements when you received them?
Pretty good. There was no smell of vinegar or anything like that. They had been stored in John’s cool, dry basement which is a great storage environment. Some material—outtakes, sound elements—has been lost over the years, but the negative was complete and in good shape.
How closely was George Romero involved in the restoration project?
How did MOMA get involved in the project and why did it take all these years for the pieces to come together for a restoration?
