That is the thing I like about the Dawn of the Dead remake, it can happily co-exist with the original. It is more of a homage to Romero's classic than a retelling of it. The stories are extremely different, and feature completely different characters. There are very few similarities beyond the title, the zombies, and the iconic setting of the shopping mall, which I think it is a good thing.

I love the original, IMHO the best of Romero's films, with the exception of the original Night of the Living Dead of course. And I also love Snyder's Dawn of the Dead. I feel like it is one of the best made, if not the best made, modern zombie movie out there.

Oh yeah, and freaking Sarah Polley! I've had a sort of thing for that girl since the first time I saw The Adventures of Baron Von Munchhausen (before you find that icky, I should say that the actress is older than me, and I was about eight years old the first time I saw that film, which is about the age she was when it was made).

If I were to list five essential zombie films, it would be Night of the Living Dead, Dawn of the Dead, Day of the Dead, 28 Days Later, and Snyder's Dawn of the Dead remake/homage.