There’s a little-known but well-worth-it movie from 2006 that might very well be a ‘true,’ if cock-eyed, sequel to George A. Romero’s Night of the Living Dead, the father of all zombie movies. But if you didn’t know, you just might miss it.Fido came and went with barely a whisper back in the day, maybe because of its Canadian origins and poor distribution; maybe because nobody knew what to make of it. Is it a comedy? A satire? A skewed love story? That’s still a good question, but there’s no doubt this is one of the least expected and most watchable of the “dark comedies” to come out of the genre. And given the look and behavior of the zombies in the story, as well as the historical backstory that’s referenced throughout, this really could be an unauthorized sequel/side story to NotLD.
It’s also cram-full of top-quality talent. Comedian and satirist Billy Connolly is virtually unrecognizable as Fido, the domesticated zombie “contracted” to Carrie-Anne Moss‘s family. (Yes, Carrie-Nnne Moss from The Matrix.) They’re part of a bizarre alternative America in which radiation brought about the rising of the dead and led to a long-ago set of “zombie wars.” Now the world, or at least as much as we see of it, is a weirdly static perfect 1950’s world, not far from Pleasantville, that kept that way by the ubiquitous ZomCom Corporation (you have to love that name!) that created electronic collars that allow the calming and control of your classic Romero slow zombies with the touch of a button. And that’s what Fido is – just one of the undead slaves in this odd world – until the family he’s working for develops an equally odd affection for him. Then the collar malfunctions and Fido kills a neighbor (who deserved it, but still …
From the beginning, Fido is not what you expect, and the entire presentation – from the off-puttingly realistic Fifties paradise to the performances of Moss, Connolly, Dylan Baker (currently in Hunters) and the rest, are flawless and devoid of any wink-wink nudge-nudge to the audience. And yes, the timeline is a little questionable, since NotLD didn’t ‘happen’ until 1968 … but who’s to say the actual event didn’t happen a few years earlier? So it would sync up perfectly with Fido’s world?
It’s a shame Fido’s been nearly forgotten since its appearance fifteen years ago, but that can change with a click… and it should. We’re willing to bet you’ll like this hidden gem.