‘Fido’ or “I don’t really like the way my wife is looking at our zombie” (Retro-review)
The other night I had the pleasure of finally watching ‘Fido’. It’s a rare treat when a movie with a quasi-bizarre and brilliant premise actually is able to succeed on every single level and even gives you just a little bit more on top all that too. In short, ‘Fido’ is zombie comedy and you can never have too many zombie-comedies. I love zombies. I love comedy. In ‘Fido’ I get a combination of those in the most perfect ways. The world ‘Fido’ is set in is a world analogous to 1950’s America, but with one substantial exception. Instead of World War II there was “The Great Zombie War.” This is the cliché version of the 1950’s suburban America; something reminiscent of the suburban America featured in the older “Nick at Night” TV shows…but with zombies intertwined into it.
From the start of the film it’s known that the zombie war has been won. Cities are now fenced off, and beyond the fences the rest of the world is still a zombie hot-zone. After the war, ZOMCOM has emerged as the largest corporation and designed a way a way to restrain zombies with collars that halt their urge to feast on the living. It also conveniently turns them into un-dead, obedient members of society. They now work as paperboys, milkmen, custodians, etc. Now instead of causing chaos they make life easier for everyone else. The elderly are seen as ticking zombie time bombs because once someone dies, they come back having a taste for human flesh. The creators of this movie did a wonderful job in building this fictional world and ensure that it is not just a one-joke vehicle.
As if all of that wasn’t incentive enough, this film has a perfect cast. Carrie-Anne Moss, Billy Connolly, and Dylan Baker are the main headliners. Carrie-Anne Moss is the most recognizable star and looks gorgeous while playing the 1950’s suburban housewife who wants some much needed change in her life tedious life. Most would not distinguish Connolly or Baker until they see the film. They are both well-known character actors who are always good in their roles. Dylan Baker is an actor who is the living embodiment of a ‘50s buttoned-down family man. Billy Connolly is the exception here. Having his roots in comedy, it’s great to see him here almost unrecognizable as the title character. He is in full grotesque zombie makeup for the whole film.
The pitch meeting for ‘Fido’ is something I would have loved to witness. By all logic this movie seems like it would have never got the green light because it’s truly nothing more than an episode of ‘Lassie’ but instead Lassie is a zombie and there are zombies in this timeline. And, yes, there is the “Where is Timmy?” scene and it’s just so perfect. ‘Fido’ is a lighthearted zombie horror comedy that plays upon the paranoia of the 50’s but displaces of nuclear death and inserts zombies into the fold. It’s clear Robert Chomiak and Andrew Currie the writers of ‘Fido’ have a deep love for two things: zombies and a deeply glamorized view of the 1950s. This film manages to beautifully capture each of those.
Dan Hacker
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