There's something about the zombie genre that's catnip to filmmakers, and it's not hard to see what: when your movie monster is an uncommunicative blank, any theme can be projected on to him, whether it's conformity, disease, or apathy. Bruce LaBruce didn't select just one of these themes for his film Otto; Or, Up with Dead People -- he selected them all, and then some. From scene to scene, titular zombie Otto (Jey Crisfar) represents something different and provocative; LaBruce is less concerned with establishing a consistent thematic throughline than making a cheeky point to ponder and then moving on. Well, that, and showcasing really cute boys in varying states of undress. A man's got to have priorities, after all.
Case in point: is young Otto truly undead, or is he simply dead to the world, indifferent to what it has to offer? He shuffles around Berlin with the posture (and hoodie) of an indie-rock slacker, barely even speaking until he's discovered by experimental filmmaker Medea Yarn (Katharina Klewinghaus, a hoot). Medea is completing work on her longtime pet project Up with Dead People -- a call to arms for gay zombies to receive equal rights -- and while she's cast human actors in the lead roles, Otto represents a tantalizing real thing. Meanwhile, Otto himself is periodically shaken by flashbacks to a human relationship he once had, as well as the dawning realization that his undead status might be the result of something most unexpected.
While LaBruce is noted for blurring the lines between independent film and pornography -- and there are definitely a few explicit scenes in Otto -- it's also a much more tender film than his fans might expect. What Otto wants principally is not just flesh but feeling, and for any gay man (zombie or not), the latter is always the hardest to come by. LaBruce is typically witty and playful (Medea's girlfriend -- the wonderfully named Hella Bent -- is shot like a silent film heroine, complete with title cards) but the ideas are richer and more resonant than ever before. For a zombie who rejects brains for ropy viscera, Otto's got a lot on his mind.
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