'Zombie Bro' VOD/DVD: Welcome to the Slaughterhouse

An upcoming DVD release from aptly named Indican Pictures shows that two films that are awesome in their own right can form a righteous unlikely friendship. "Zombie Bro," which is available on streaming platforms and that has a January 26, 2021 DVD release, successfully unites two very different worlds.

Non-musical "Bro" combines the best of the all-singing all-dancing Disney "Zombies" franchise that reflects "ARGH v. Board of Education" and (personal fave) 1995 dark-comedy "Welcome to the Dollhouse."

"Dollhouse" centers on the trials and tribulations of hysterically awkward (aptly named) seventh-grader Dawn Wiener. Dawn having to contend with a "little princess" younger sister is one of several common elements as to "Bro."

The fantastic four festival wins for "Bro" include a Best Feature Film award at the 2019 Indie Gathering International Film Festival and "Best Young Actors" honors at the 2019 Shart International Comedy Film Festival. 

The following "Bro" trailer PERFECTLY conveys the dark humor as to the dysfunctional nuclear family dynamics that are at the center of arthouse Blumhouse film. 

The opening scenes show that writer/director May Grehan strikes the ideal balance between exposition and getting down to business. Tween Francine (aka Frankenstein) provides voice-over narration to accompany crayon drawings of her family that clearly is not the Cleavers. 

The action shifting to a family dinner at which Francine is considered the problem child despite comically gory evidence that titular sibling Teddie is not like other boys. The blissful ignorance that is characteristic regarding the golden child in a family includes that Teddie merely has a form of virus. This pretense extends to having to throw a dog chew toy to lure him into the garage where he must be locked when he is home alone. An apt aside is that dogs love chew toys because the squeak sounds like the crushing of the bones of prey. 

Another piece of this puzzle is that Francine is a loner/loser at school, where she is the regular victim of scene-stealing bullies. These boys being blatantly selective as to their offensive remarks is a film highlight.

A series of seemingly fortunate events lead to Francine and a fellow outcast attending a school dance; The 'rents granting the wish of Teddie to tag along fully sets things in motion. The "dancing" of Teddy is another memorable scene in this never-a-dull-minute movie.

The inevitable climax as to Teddie fully showing that he is an excitable boy further proves that the low kid on the family totem pole don't get no respect. Learning whether this extends to Teddie hating Francine's guts requires watching the film.

The appeal of this well-told tale extends beyond the aforementioned blending of genres. Most of us with siblings either are the Teddie or the Francine in the family. Grehan, who presumably is the Francine of her clan, shows that this directly reflects how the 'rents treat each kid. The "King Lear" element at the end of "Bro" is the icing on the cake.