Shaun of the Dead background

I have been given some notes from a University Lecturer about Shaun of the Dead and where the idea of the film came from.

The directors of the film pitched the idea as "Richard Curtis Shot in the Head by George Romero".

Richard Curtis was a Rom Com film and TV director of Blackadder, Four Weddings and a Funeral, Notting Hill, Love Actually and The Boat That Rocked.

George Romeo was American Horror film director famous for his Zombie movies such as Night of the Living Dead, Dawn of the Dead, Day of the Dead, Land of the Dead and Diary of the Dead.

This shows how the Rom Zom Com genre came about by combining the inspirations of these two directors.

This also suggests the film's influences are a mix of Britsh and American film. However the film itself has a very British feel to it with the actors in cult british TV series, such as Spaced, and the London setting.

According to Simon Pegg:

"If the zombies are a metaphor for anything, it’s London living. It’s about being swallowed up by city life. London is a great city, but we as citizens are quite closed and will not notice anything around us. We will literally step over people with their hands in the air asking for money. In the film, Shaun mistakes a zombie for a homeless drunk."