Shaun of the Dead Narrative Resolution

 In the opening scene of Shaun of the Dead, it is revealed that Liz has not met Shaun's mother, to the shock of David. Dianne asks Shaun if he doesn't get along with his mother, to which Shaun avoids her question. This leads the audience to speculate that Shaun does have a poor relationshíp with his mum, which is furthered by the scene in which he is approached by his stepfather, Philip, while he is at work, who reminds Shaun that he forgot to buy he flowers on mother's day. However, after we meet Barbara (Shaun's mum), it is made apparent that she and Shaun has a strong relationship with Barbara, but not with Philip, and their disagreements about Philip sometimes get in the way of their relationship. For example, Shaun refuses to refer to Philip as his Dad, despite him playing a paternal role in his life since he was 12. When Shaun and Ed worry about Barbara being bitten, it comes as a relief to both of them that it is only Philip, seeming completely unsympathetic towards him, and unfazed by the fact they may have to kill him. When Shaun arrives at his parents' house, he realises that he can not bring himself to kill Philip, and tries to convince Barbara to leave Phil behind, in ways ranging from telling her to wait for the doctor to making false allegations about him. Barbara's reaction to this is one that is fed up, suggesting that this is a common thing for Shaun, however, the fact that Shaun is unable to kill Philip shows us that he is not as unsympathetic to him as he, or we as the audience, initially thought. Eventually, he brings Philip with them, to the confusion and annoyance of Ed; whether this was for Barbara's sake or out of genuine love for Philip is made unclear. As Philip realises that he is dying, he gives an emotional talk to Shaun, telling him that he loves him and that being a father to him was not easy, and that he just wanted to be someone Shaun could look up to. Shaun begins to cry at this, showing maturity for the first time in the film. When Philip turns into a zombie, everyone else evacuates the car, locking Philip inside. This angers Barbara, who refers to Philip as Shaun's dad, which Shaun denies, but then he admits that he was his dad, but not anymore. Making peace with parental figures and forgiveness are seen by society as important aspects of maturity; so this scene is pivotal in Shaun's emotional journey. Shaun's inadequacy as a son to Barbara is resolved as they enter the Winchester, she finds the flowers he meant to give to her by pure chance, and finally meets Liz properly. However, shortly after this, it is revealed that she was bitten by a zombie, and she dies in Shaun's arms, thanking him for the flowers. David tries to shoot her immediately after this, causing Shaun and Ed to hold broken glass bottles to his throat, and Dianne to hold one to Shaun's throat, causing a classic standoff. Liz calms everyone down, and talks sense into them all. Shaun accepts that he has to shoot her to prevent her from killing them after she becomes a zombie.

In the first half of Shaun of the Dead, it is apparent that, while not intending to do so,  Ed is holding Shaun back in life. Due to Ed's natural immaturity in his personality and sense of humour, he often makes situations awkward and embarrassing for Shaun, with a prime example of this being in the opening scene; his interrupting conversations and vulgarity proves Liz and especially David right about him, though we see this as unintentional and endearing, as we can tell that this is not intentional due to the framing of the scene, unlike David's interruptions. In Shaun and Ed's life of living together, it is quite clear that despite being 29, they are still living the typical "student life", due to the mess of the house. The character of Pete in the first act is a mirror image of Shaun, and what he could be if Ed was not in his life; successful, and with his "life together" according to society's standards, but also very unsympathetic, as he has lost touch with the fun in life that Ed still embraces. Ed comforts Shaun after Shaun breaks up with Liz by taking him to the Winchester and getting drunk with him, which is of course a very unhealthy way of coping, and a very irresponsible way of helping someone cope, but it's the only way Ed knows how. This scene makes it clear that while Ed cares deeply about Shaun, he is holding him back in life, due to no fault of his own.  In the second act, as the characters make their way to the Winchester for safety, Shaun begins to realise this, as he becomes increasingly annoyed at him for making mistakes that put himself and the others in danger, and in general does not take the situation as seriously as he should. Every other characters criticisms of Ed in the first act becomes apparent to Shaun in the second act, and he can no longer defend him unconditionally. However, in the third act in the Winchester, we see Ed finally become helpful, and he does not do this by forcing himself to change, but instead by being himself unapologetically. For example, he remembers the rumour that he heard about the gun on the wall of the Winchester being real is confirmed as true, his seemingly absurd idea to make Molotov cocktails to use as weapons becomes useful, and he points out the cellar as a place to hide when he, Shaun and Liz are surrounded. He is also the only one in the group who is able when using the gun and directing Shaun as he uses the gun. By doing this, he proves himself to the group, but especially Shaun, who I believe this is a wake up call to, as he realises that he does not need to change completely, and can still embrace immaturity. In the cellar, as Shaun and Liz realise that there is an escape for them, Ed asks for Shaun to leave him behind, as he thinks Shaun and Liz can "make a go of it". This heroic self sacrifice is pivotal in their relationship, as Shaun does not leave Ed behind on his own accord, and instead it is Ed who tells him to do so. This shows an exponential amount of growth in both characters, as while Shaun realises how important that side of himself is, Ed also realises what Shaun could be without him. In the final scene of the film, it is revealed that while Shaun and Liz live in the house together, which is now much cleaner and typically mature, Ed still lives in the shed as a zombie, and Shaun still goes in there to play games with him, as he used to in the first act, showing that he is still in touch with that side of himself.