Francine (Lauren Grego) is a girl living a fairly typical life in Australia. Her father (Anthony Taufa) is a cop and her mother (Karina Bracken) is a nurse. Oh yeah, and her brother, Teddie (Cooper Flynn) is a zombie. He came home sick one day and, not knowing what to do, Ma and Pa kept chugging on as if all is normal. There are a few changes, however: Teddie doesn’t go to school anymore, he only speaks in growls, and he consumes what someone would typically consider an unhealthy amount of raw meat. Francine is obviously concerned by her parent’s (or anyone’s) complete lack of concern that more and more zombies keep popping up in the community.
She takes it upon herself to protect her family from her zombie brother as his undeadification intensifies and he tries to bite everyone. On top of the zombie issues with Teddie, she is heading towards puberty and all the changes and uncertainty that brings—leading her to ask, "Do my parents really care about me?"
Zombie Bro is an excellent addition to the zombie-comedy subgenre. If Shaun of the Dead is among your favorites and your teens enjoy Fido, you should grab Zombie Bro to add a family-friendly zombie feature to your public library collection. There is no gore to speak of unless you count cherry-red fake blood and makeup bruises. This child-friendly movie was obviously low budget, but everything is done in such a thoughtful and professional way that many viewers will not notice.
There were moments of belly-laugh-worthy all-ages comedy and just enough subtle adult humor to give mom and dad a chuckle or two. I can imagine anyone age 7+ enjoying Zombie Bro immensely. Francine’s story is one of a sister of a prized brother, something many young girls experience and may identify with. This excellent and family-friendly dark comedy is a must-have for any public or personal film collection. Highly Recommended.
What kind of film series would this title fit in?
Zombie Bro would be an excellent addition to any Halloween film series for children.
What ages would this children’s film be suitable for?
Ages seven and up would enjoy this film. While not as scary as Goosebumps, children who enjoy such media will enjoy Zombie Bro.