Hey look! I’m doing a movie review! OK, I decided to watch Fido last night after Milo went to bed, too late of course, after his exciting night of Halloween activities that spanned from our house in Tower Grove South to a kids-oriented street festival on Cherokee. This one was recommended by my good friend Matt Bug on the TIRC List recently, so I quickly added it to the top of my Netflix queue. So around 10:45 p.m., (I know, I know… must work the next day. But I couldn’t resist the temptation of watching a zombie flick on Halloweeen, so sue me.) I popped the DVD in and grabbed a fresh bottle of pumpkin ale. From the opening scenes of the neighborhood (set, it appeared, in the early ’50s) and the classroom (where the kids were getting a visit from the head of the big zombie-control corporation, Zomcon), I could tell it was going to be a winner. With some movies, you’re not quite sure. Some start off great and end up being duds, while others might look terrible from the opening scenes but actually end up being quite good. But with this one, I knew from the get-go that I was in for a treat.
It’s true there seem to be an awful lot of zombie movies coming out lately, but to me, that’s not an entirely bad thing, as long as they don’t continually try to remake Dawn of the Dead or Return of the Living Dead every time. You’ve gotta really bring something new to the mix, and that’s exactly what Fido does – it envisions a society where zombies, with the assistance of special collars and close monitoring from Zomcon act as servants or even pets after the living capture and control them after the “Zombie Wars” (presented with appropriate WWII-style newsreels). Carrie-Anne is a mom who buys a zombie – played by the great Billy Connelly – so that hers is not the only family on the block without one. Her son, Timmy, names the zombie “Fido” and the two create a unique bond, but when the zombie’s control collar goes on the fritz, things get hairy.
I honestly enjoyed every minute of this film. And the scenery – in fact the entire continuity – is perfect. The acting is great, and it’s a unique, funny story to boot! I feel pretty good about highly recommending this one. Enjoy!
