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NOTLD3D Hollywood Premiere @ the 3D World Expo, held at the Egyptian Theatre, Hollywood Blvd. -  Press coverage by the Diamond Diva Princess of CapitalisticBlonde.com and Photographer Michael Orlando © All Rights Reserved

The legendary Egyptian Theatre in Hollywood is a silver screen institution, a gem of Hollywood history. Located on Hollywood boulevard, it was developed by Charles E. Toberman and Sid Grauman in 1922. Toberman is responsible for many Hollywood landmarks including the El Capitan, Grauman’s Chinese Theatre and the Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel. The very first gala premiere in Hollywood was held at the Egyptian in 1922 for the film ‘Robin Hood’, starring Douglas Fairbanks. Essentially it is the Egyptian that is responsible for what we now associate in our minds when we imagine the term “Hollywood Premiere” - all the excitement of Hollywood and the silver screen, the bright lights, movie stars, glamour, and palpable energy.

Closing for six years beginning in 1992, the Egyptian was reopened in 1998, after being restored to its original 1920’s elegance and glamour by American Cinematheque, at a cost of 15 million dollars, followed soon after by premieres of popular Hollywood movies including The Aristocrats, Requiem for a Dream, David Cronenberg’s - A History of Violence, Kids in America, and Lord of the Rings. The stars and directors are most generally present for such galas, creating an adrenaline surged mix of fan energy and star appeal. This is the stuff that Hollywood Dreams are made of.

This was the location of the premiere for NOTLD3D, directed by Jeff Broadstreet, at the 3D World Expo. Outside the Egyptian, in the hubbub of the build-up to the premiere, it came as no surprise to overhear a woman behind me say, "when a movie premieres at the Egyptian, my dear, it is guaranteed to be a success". To be the director or star of a film and see it premiere at the Egyptian is definitely cause for celebration! By the length of the line waiting to get in to see NOTLD3D, which extended down the 150 foot long courtyard to the street, I do not doubt this forecast at all. The energy from the crowd chattering excitedly before the premiere was really amazing. By the time I first stopped by the Egyptian, at 8 pm, to pick up my press tickets before continuing onto my dinner reservations, there were already many people milling about, hanging out, and the feeling of something big going on was already in the air.

This feeling grew as the evening went on, keep in mind the premiere wasn’t starting until 12 midnight. At about 11:00 I returned to the gorgeous courtyard of the Egyptian to prepare for the NOTLD3D panel and photo op before the premiere itself. Outside the entrance to the Egyptian there was a varied assortment of stars, 3D world expo, costume designers and press.

Some of the cast and crew outside of the entrance to the Egyptian Theatre, before the Premiere.

Sid Haig showed up at about 11:30 pm, and this was my first time meeting Sid in person. I went over right away to introduce myself, and passed him the zombie fans tee that zombie sent to me to give to Sid. We captured a great shot of Sid with the tee, all around us people were milling about, talking and enjoying the feeling of Hollywood magic in the air. He was totally cool, and very friendly, I always enjoy talking with him, he is so well-spoken and expressive - and he has a lot of interesting stories to tell!

Sid Haig with the official ZombieFans.com tee @ the premiere

The crowd grew restless as the time drew closer to the doors opening! The cast, crew, and press were called in first, and it was a real rush walking through the doors, knowing that I was about to experience a slice of cinematic history !

The panel was lined up on the stage, composed of the director, cast, and crew, after which they detailed the event about to take place. Special screens and equipment were installed in the Egyptian prior to the 3D World Expo, and the premiere of NOTLD3D, for a special polarized screening, which quite possibly may not take place again with this film, as most theaters are not equipped to project movies in this format. The nationwide release will be in classic anaglyph format (red/blue) 3D. Sid Haig was introduced as the ICONIC SID HAIG, and the cheering and hand-clapping were enormous at his appearance on the stage. Ever laid-back and apparently completely comfortable in whatever surrounding he is in, Sid seemed entirely relaxed amidst the applause and praise. He sat on the panel like you could imagine he might sit on his sofa at home, completely at ease and accustomed to all of the fanfare.

NOTLD3D Panel w/ director Jeff Broadstreet and actor Sid Haig.

I had the chance to sit next to Sid during the screening, which was completely so cool! The film starts out with a bit of an homage to the original Night of the Living Dead, and the crowd went crazy over it. From there it takes off on a spin you do not see coming! The 3D effects were amazing, this was my first time viewing a 3D film, and it was a blast! The depth was so well-shot, it often looked like you were right there in the room where it was being filmed. The images were so realistic, that at times I forgot for a second that it wasn’t real! During one particular scene when glass shatters I quite literally screamed and jumped out of my seat, which was so funny I couldn't help but start laughing. Though I'm sure it didn’t bother Sid, because I bet its fun to see the reaction of the crowd to scenes in the film they are seeing for the first time.

Zombies in 3D were SO cool! No running zombies in this movie, they stuck with the classic depiction of a zombie, as the living dead, re-animated and disjointed in motor skills, and the special effects make-up was top-notch. Nothing too overdone or too simplistic. It was completely believable, which as Sid says, is what makes a movie effective. Something you can believe, a credible storyline.

Everyone has been curious about the gore level in this film, which you'll have to gauge for yourself. As a hint, it is similar to the gore in the original NOTLD, only with a creative spin on the subject. By now everyone has seen the promotional film still of the shovel through the zombies head, there's a great seat jumper scene - one of my favourites! I don't scare easy, and I jumped a couple of times, so there are some nice creepy shots in the film. It's not a sort of "brains, brains" type of creepy, but a new take on a classic masterpiece - I would suggest going to the film not expecting something in particular, but being ready for something new, yet based on a classic. Put it this way, having already seen this movie the night of the premiere, I will still be there the day it opens nationwide waiting to see it in anaglyph format. Not to mention, I couldn't take my eyes off the screen - even when it hit me halfway through the movie, OMG I'm sitting next to Captain Spaulding and Spider Baby Ralphie! I'm already impatient to see it again. There was a lot of screaming and laughing going on during the screening, parts of it were very amusing, and Sid delivers some classic lines in his style of shooting from the hip, in such a way that you could take the line seriously or see the underlying humour beneath it. These are some of the best dialogue scenes in the film. I couldn’t help thinking during and after the premiere that this definitely seems to be another defining role for Sid. No doubt the character of Gerald Tovar, Jr. is going to be remembered in ZOMBIE film history.

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