aka Code Name: Trixie

• Written and directed by George A. Romero
• Starring
  • Lane Carroll
  • Will MacMillan
  • Harold Wayne Jones
  • Lloyd Hollar

A small Pennsylvania town is accidentally exposed to “Trixie,” an experimental bio-weapon which causes insanity and eventual death. The army is sent in to quarantine the town and round up the populace – to which, of course, the populace objects.

Being so close after Romero’s Night of the Living Dead, there is no way it could help inviting comparison, and in that light The Crazies doesn’t measure up. The first twenty minutes are taken up with “dramatic” bureaucratic bickering – between the army major and the doctor, the sheriff and the firemen, the mayor and the major, the various military Grand Poo-Bahs amongst themselves, the virologist and the military – but instead of creating the necessary tension, it just muddies the water and delays the firm introduction of our protagonists, locals who refuse to be rounded up.

It is only after the failed first act that Romero heads into what he has repeatedly demonstrated to be his strong suit: a group of disparate and desperate people together in a pressure cooker. And, of course, no happy endings (in fact, Romero arguably does a better job of offering and snatching back that carrot in this movie than in NOTLD).

All the way through, I asked myself, “How would this movie be changed if remade in the current atmosphere of anti-government paranoia?” The answer is “Not much.” The army is shown in such a despicable, blundering, fascist light that there’s nothing that a Chris Carter-wanna-be could add (aside from sex, but that’s a different deficiency). Observe:

“Despicable”: Even before civilians start dying, the army personnel are shown stealing from their homes (fishing poles, etc.) as they round them up for quarantine in the high school.

“Blundering”: 1) Brandishing an automatic weapon at the citizenry is not the way to ensure good civilian/military relations. 2) Hey, why don’t we herd all the people, infected and not, into a confined space so they can all be sure to contract the disease?

“Fascist”: Hey, it’s martial law here. “Shoot on sight,” “Round up all private firearms” and all that.

Interesting to note: From the beginning, the military brass discussed the nuclear option as a last resort. Apparently John Russo (co-writer on NOTLD) thought it was such a good idea that he included it in his own Return of the Living Dead.

Some Notable Totables:

• body count: 55 (give or take)
• breasts: 2 (don’t blink or you’ll miss ‘em)
• explosions: 1
• dream sequences: 0
• ominous thunderstorms: 0
• actors who’ve appeared on Star Trek: 0