Barbra (Judith O'Dea) and her brother Johnny visit their father's grave when a strange man attacks them. Barbra escapes to an empty farmhouse, where she is joined by Ben (Duane Jones), a calm, resourceful stranger who boards up the house. They soon discover others hiding in the cellar, and as the dead surround the house, the living start fighting each other.
Made on a tiny budget with local actors, the film looks rough, but that only adds to its power. The grainy black-and-white photography makes it feel like a news report, and the radio and TV bulletins add a sense of national panic.
Duane Jones is excellent as Ben, a strong, intelligent hero who clashes with the cowardly Harry Cooper. The ghouls are slow, but there are so many of them, and the real horror is how quickly the humans turn on each other.
Some acting is stiff, and Barbra spends much of the film in shock. But nearly 60 years later, Night of the Living Dead remains a gripping, frightening and bleak classic, and the start of the whole zombie genre.
