Celebrate 14 years of Shaun of the Dead with top 5 best moments
By Devin Shea
After 14 years in the hearts, minds and souls of horror fans everywhere, we’re paying respect to Edgar Wright’s debut film, Shaun of the Dead.
It is safe to say that most of the people anywhere have seen Shaun of the Dead.
The 2004 movie was a revolution in horror comedy that breathed new life into the zombie genre and it was released on THIS day in the UK 14 years ago. While horror comedy had already existed for decades, Shaun of the Dead was unlike anything we had ever seen. It had that biting British humor and later that year it was introduced to the rest of the world. It starred Simon Pegg and Nick Frost and was directed by Edgar Wright, with scripting by Pegg and Wright.
Not only was the movie funny and wildly entertaining, it had its serious and sad moments too. It was an entire package, which is why it has held up for this long and will continue to do so. It touched on the fact that we are already zombies in our daily lives and how little would change once we all were actual zombies. So, let’s grab a pint, head to The Winchester and check out the top 5 moments of Shaun of the Dead.
Drunk Zombie Song
After Liz (Kate Ashfield) breaks up with Shaun (Simon Pegg), he and Ed (Nick Frost) go (where else?) to The Winchester to get drunk and forget. On the way home, they see someone down the road and hear them moan. Way too drunk to be suspicious and singing electro, they use the zombie’s moans in the song. The moment was brief but memorable.
Oblivious to Zombies
Shaun does the same thing nearly every day. He runs to the convenient store and goes about his day oblivious to what is around him. He doesn’t notice that the world has changed. There are zombies, blood everywhere, people running and he heads to the store for a soda and a cornetto.
“She’s so drunk!”
The next morning, hungover and realizing he needs to “sort his life out,” Shaun walked to the store and back, not realizing the world had already falling apart. When he gets home, Ed tells him there’s a girl in their backyard. When Shaun goes to investigate, she attacks him, thinking it’s because “she’s so drunk.” Instead of helping, Ed runs to get a camera. One thing leads to another and Mary the zombie ends up with a pole through the middle. It’s then they realize something is wrong.
The Record Scene
Mary is back with a one-eyed friend. After a one-armed zombie sneaks into the house and the zombies outside bust through the windows, they realize they are going to need to fight these things off and a box of records seem to be the best option to Shaun and Ed.
But not just any records, they have to sort through the collection, as not to throw and break the wrong ones. When they realize it won’t work, Shaun jumps through the shed door and grabs his signature cricket back and a shovel. After they beat the brakes off the zombies, they settle in for some tea and a Cornetto. The reactions are amazing and one of the best scenes.
Pretending to be Zombies
After they’ve picked up Liz, David (Dylan Moran), Diana (Lucy Davis) and Shaun’s mom, they are trying to make it to The Winchester but there is a massive horde blocking it. They realize they are going to have to pretend to be zombies to make it through. The best part about this is the zombie practice and Barbara (Penelope Wilton) does the best job when she’s not even trying.
“Don’t Stop Me Now”
After the group has made it to The Winchester, they are surrounded. When the undead owners of the bar attack, the group fights back. But the jukebox goes off and starts playing on random. Thankfully the song that starts is Queen’s “Don’t Stop Me Now” prompting one of the funniest fight scenes in horror movie history.
The entire movie deserves to be on this list. It was an instant classic and something that can be watched dozens of times and never get old. What are your favorite moments from Shaun of the Dead. Let us know in the comments!
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