Fido (2006), with it’s genre-blending plot of campy horror, 1950s nostalgia, and alternate historical timeline, is not your typical Frock Flicks film. I first saw it when it came out, being a fan of camp and zombie movies in general, and it’s been kicking around in the back of my brain (mmm brains) for a while now, because the costumes by Mary E. McLeod are easily one of my favorite things about it. Well, the costumes and the fact that it is an excellent dark comedy.
Set in an alternative 1950s timeline, after deadly space radiation turns half the human population of Earth into flesh-eating zombies (who then go forth and make more zombies in the usual way), a company called ZomCon invents a collar that makes zombies docile and curbs their flesh cravings. This, in turn, makes them kind of trendy to own as a combination of a servant and house pet. The Robinsons acquire a zombie, which their son Timmy names “Fido” (the eternally fantastic Billy Connolly). A weird sort of love triangle develops between the collared Fido and Mrs. Robinson (Carrie-Anne Moss), with her husband, an executive at ZomCon with a phobia of zombies, increasingly feeling pushed out of his marriage by the undead addition to their family.
At 91 minutes, this film is short and sweet (as well as gory, because, well, it’s a zombie flick). It’s definitely worth watching if you’re into weirdly feel-good heartwarming stories about flesh-eating reanimated corpses.
Have you seen Fido? Share your thoughts with us in the comments!
The kitsch was glorious.
Also, if you’re interested in non frock flick zombie movies, I can’t recommend “Stacy” enough.
I thoroughly enjoyed it. Billy Connolly is always good, Tim Blake Nelson is amusingly off-kilter in whatever he’s doing, and Carrie Ann Moss is an underrated comedienne.
This is soooooooooooooooo totally not my thing, despite the presence of Billy Connelly, but I cannot deny that Carrie Ann Moss looks ravishing.
I’m wicked picky about horror comedy, but I remember seeing this in high school and really enjoying. It’s very aware of how silly it is and plays it up in the best way. Love that the costumes are good to boot.
I remember enjoying this more than I thought I would. Entertaining, commits to its premise, and doesn’t overstay its welcome. I feel the underrated Dylan Baker lends himself to these types of roles perfectly. Carrie-Anne Moss fit her role well and is just stunning here. Well worth checking out.
NEVER heard of it before, but now it’s on my must-see list!
This film is great fun. Tim Blake Nelson steals every scene that he is in. The interviews with the directors are great: they were thrilled to get Billy Connolly, and then cut off his long hair and gave him a non-speaking role! Carrie Anne Moss was pregnant during filming, so they wrote that into the script – which I thought just enhanced to the 1950s wholesome family vibe that they then cleverly deconstructed.