George Romero used zombies in Dawn of the Dead to represent mindless American consumerism while Danny Boyle used them in 28 Days Later to represent the ruthless, animalistic rage that lies dormant in every human. Queer punk icon Bruce LaBruce has now thrown his hat into the undead ring with his latest film, Otto; or Up With Dead People, in which the main character is a gay zombie. Zombies in this decidedly indie black comedy represent post-gay homosexuals who are disaffected by the politicization and ghettoizing of gay male romance. There are some fake-looking but satisfyingly gross gore and quite a bit of graphic sex (often in the same scenes), but the film isn’t quite as biting (heh) as it could be, and the sentimentality, even though tongue-in-cheek, still comes across as a bit saccharine. Still, it’s an amusing movie worth a watch, and the soundtrack is pretty decent.

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