Night of the Living Dead: It's Not Like Just a Wind That's Passing Through

In his article "Night of the Living Dead: It's Not like Just a Wind that's Passing Through" R.H.W. Dillard talks about the film Night of the Living Dead as "undercutting most of the cherished values of our whole civilization." He writes that the film "ridicules government, casts the whole rule of law into doubt, shows family ties becoming dangerous and shows acts of courage resulting only in death." This idea of the characters in the film losing their grip on civilization is very evident in the climactic scene of the film.

As the scene begins, the zombies are gradually breaking into the house. As Ben tries to fight them off, Cooper seizes the opportunity to take Ben's gun and order everyone into the basement. The levels in the house are one of the main sources of conflict between the characters in the film, Ben and Cooper in particular. Cooper feels as though the basement is the safest place because it's hardest to get in. Ben feels the main floor as safer as the TV, Radio, food and tools are all accessible, plus it allows for more than one exit. Dillard writes that "the movie seriously casts the whole rule of law with territorial disputes inside the house that lead to violence." As the film reaches this climactic moment, instead of uniting to fight against the zombies, Cooper tries to win the territorial struggle against a fellow human by stealing his gun.

This ultimately leads to Cooper's demise however as Ben wins the struggle, regains control of the gun and shoots Cooper who gradually stumbles back down into the basement where he insisted everyone stay throughout the whole film. The entire Cooper family becomes tragic. Cooper ends up in the basement not to stay safe, but because he is shot by another man. As Cooper goes down the stairs into the basement, the camera is at a low angle, looking up at him coming down. As he descends the stairs he gets closer and closer to the camera giving dramatic tension to each step that he takes. Once he reaches the basement, the camera goes to a Point of View shot as he stumbles wounded and incoherent towards the body of his daughter as one last means of comfort and safety. This POV shot is later echoed from the perspective of the daughter.

Cooper's wife eventually escapes to the basement but is ultimately killed by their own daughter who becomes a zombie and eats the flesh of her parents. As she walks down the stairs she sees her daughter feasting on the limb of her dead husband. As the daughter walks towards her mother it cuts to a POV shot from the perspective of the daughter and her awkward, stumbling movement as she closes in to kill her mom reflects the same movement her father was making earlier. The deaths of Mr. and Mrs. Cooper are similar in that they both go to the basement to seek solace in the daughter they both love but are eventually killed by her. The final union of the family involves all three in dismembered states, their union completely broken and their dysfunctional nature reaching its apex. Once the Mr. and Mrs. Cooper awaken and become zombies, they are both quickly destroyed by Ben, furthering the feudal nature between all of the characters.

Dillard states that "courage is shown throughout the film as to lead only to death" and as the action in this climactic sequence takes place there are several acts of courage which result only in tragedy for the characters. As the zombies are breaking down and entering the house, they are about to capture Mrs. Cooper but before they can succeed Barbara, the other remaining female character in the film comes to her aid and frees her from the grasp of the zombies. It's a fairly extreme act for Barbara who had been catatonic with fear for most of the film. But as she saves this woman, her own life is instantly endangered as the zombie of her brother Johnny breaks into the house and drags her towards the hoard of zombies to be killed and eaten. The fact that it was her brother that ultimately led to her downfall furthers Dillard's idea of "family ties becoming dangerous."

Just as Cooper's final descent into the basement was both ironic and tragic, Ben's descent into the basement and later ascent back into the living room takes on a similar tone. Ben spends the entire movie trying to reinforce the house, boarding up the boards and the windows so that the zombies can't enter and the people around him can remain safe. But just as the foundation of respect between humans crumbles inside the house the boards on the windows are gradually broken apart by the zombies. Everything that Ben has worked for throughout the film, survival and safety in particular deteriorates around him and eventually, without any other options he must descend into the basement, where he had spent the majority of the film telling Cooper he wouldn't go.

The basement itself is a crucial element of the scene. Since the film was shot in the actual basement of a house and not on a studio there is a realistic sense of closed in space and once Ben is in the basement the space seems to consume him. He flails about trying to think about something to do but eventually rests and settles in a corner as though being consumed by the room he is in is just as bad as being consumed by the zombies who were trying to get to him upstairs. The lighting in the basement is sporadic. There are spaces where thick amounts of light come through and others where everything is covered in darkness. When Ben shoots Mr. and Mrs. Cooper after they become zombies, his face is always covered in darkness, not allowing for any kind of expression as he pulls the trigger. When he finally takes rest in the corner, it is once again in a very dark section of the basement. The darkness and the entry into the basement in general are related as Ben's descent into the basement leaves him shrouded in darkness and confusion.

Not only is Ben descending into the basement an ironic twist, but the irony is even furthered when the basement legitimately protects him from the zombies and allows him to survive the evening. As Ben wakes up in the morning to the sound of dogs barking, he ascends back into the living room, his safe haven for the film only to be gunned down by another human who thinks he is a zombie. Tragedy befalls every character as they act out of courage, love, commitment to their families and maintaining their values but in each circumstance they are killed.

The entire final sequence of the film helps illustrate one of its main points; that as civilization begins to deteriorate human nature also begins to deteriorate and humans lose control. Dillard writes that "the real horror of Night of the Living Dead nothing the people in the film can do makes a difference at all." The idea of people not being in control of situations as their basic values are undermined exists in the entire film and is particularly evident in the actions and fates of the characters during the film's climax.

Sources:
Dillard, R.H.W. "Night of the Living Dead: It's Not like Just a Wind that's Passing Through"
"The Film Journal: The Art of the Horror Film." Pg. 28