Special features more interesting than film

It was nearly 40 years ago that director George A. Romero changed the face of cinematic horror with his film "Night of the Living Dead." That film, seen as a milestone in zombie-film history, spawned two sequels, a remake and numerous imitators. The latest sequel, "Land of the Dead," shambled its way into theaters this summer. Was it a return to form for an old director or a sign that a long dead franchise should have stayed dead?\nIt's the latter.\nIn "Land of the Dead," the few remaining civilians have fortified the few remaining cities from zombie infestation. In one city, evil businessman Kaufman (Dennis Hopper) rules the city with an iron fist. He gives the teeming masses plenty of booze and sex to make them forget about the savagery going on outside the city's walls. Two of his soldiers, the bland yet handsome hero Riley (Simon Baker) and scheming megalomaniac Cholo (John Leguizamo) differ about the way the city should be run. Cholo wants power, while Riley just wants to be a nice guy. This eventually leads to Cholo holding the city hostage via a super-powered zombie killing tank "Dead Reckoning" and Kaufman forcing Riley to stop him.\nIf you're like me, you like your zombies slow and menacing. Instead, Romero apes films like "28 Days Later" by making his walking dead faster, more intelligent, able to use basic tools (and automatic weapons!) and competent in military strategy. Eventually, they siege the city after following the rallying cry of one particularly charismatic zombie. These alternations make the zombies less frightening and more stupid. \nThat sums up the primary problem with "Land of the Dead." All of Romero's films have some sort of satirical message to them, but "Land" just beats you over the head with it. We get it, George: modern capitalists steal resources from everyday people in order to roll in their wealth. It's so obvious, I'm surprised one of the zombies didn't give a big speech about it.\nOn the DVD side, "Land" offers enough behind-the-scenes information to almost make it a worthwhile rental. The featurettes on zombie make-up are more interesting than the film. Also, there are two video diaries: one from John Leguizamo detailing a day's worth of work and one from "Shaun of the Dead" writers Simon Pegg and Edgar Wright as they prepare their cameo.\n"Land of the Dead" is worth a rental. But for Romero fans, expect more of the mediocre "Day of the Dead" rather than the chilling "Night of the Living Dead"