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.