Night of the living dead
(aka Monster Flick )
(aka Night of the Flesh Eaters)
(aka Night of Anubis)

George Romero (1968, USA)

Cast: Duane Jones, Judith O'Dea, Karl Hardman, Marylin Eastman, Keith Wayne, Judith Ridley

Plot:
A group of people hide from bloodthirsty zombies in a farmhouse. They all get killed as they're trying to know what's going on and trying to find a way to escape.

Appreciation: 10/10
The grand-daddy of zombie movies. A cult classic amongst the classics of horror, made by the highly acclaimed zombie-filmmaker Romero, this is a must see for any zombie movies fan, as it's probably the first movie to ever use gore. Think back in the 60s, amongst a horde of cheezy movies, how this must have been a shock for the movie industry. It invented a whole new genre. And it's the first of an important trilogy (w/ Dawn of the dead & Day of the dead).
The use of black & white gives it a scary and claustrophobic look, while the plot and acting gives a thrilling and truly funny experience by moments (intentionally or not). It has more atmosphere than most horror movies made 30 years later. That should tell you alot..
It all starts out quietly, but once the zombies appear things get rapidly quite hysterical. Everybody except for Ben (Duane Jones) seem to grow as mindless as the zombies chasing them, and this is where it gets funny. Some character get hilariously stupid (but that's ok cause they've never seen zombies), and we assist a power struggle that leads to people killing each other. Jones gives an outstanding performance, and the rest of the cast is solid as well in it's cheesiness. The child stabbing her mother was shittingly scary though. The directing is amazing for such a low-budget movie and the short & sweet ending is so clever it'll make your jaw drop.
Overall, it's black & white, packed with gore, zombies and mindless people, what else could you possibly want from a 60s movie?

Other suggestions: Dawn of the dead, Day of the dead, The Beyond, Gates of Hell, Zombie