6Teen: Dude of the Living Dead
Tepid animated parody of teens and zombies has stereotypes.
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A Lot or a Little?
The parents' guide to what's in this movie.
What Parents Need to Know
Parents need to know that 6Teen: Dude of the Living Dead is a tepid animated satire of teen life that wallows in obvious stereotypes. There is, among others, the surfer dude, the popular blondes, and the overzealous mall cop. Expect cartoon violence as mall shoppers turn into zombies; a teenage girl's boyfriend turns into a zombie and she keeps his severed arm as a remembrance of their love. There is also some sexual content as a teen boy spies on woman changing out of their clothes at his lingerie store job; he also tells his friends that he lied about being gay so he could get the job.
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What's the Story?
After watching too many B-movies the night before, Jude (Christian Potenza) shows up to his mall job late for work and tired. But things seem amiss at the mall today. Many of the customers seem angrier and slower than normal. As it turns out, these customers have turned into zombies. It is up to Jude and the other "6Teens" to figure out a way to fight and defeat the zombies and escape from the mall. They must work together and rescue their friends before they too get bitten and transformed into the undead.
Is It Any Good?
For all its hip animated style, the movie suffers from the age-old mistake of favoring stereotyped teenage characters for comedy's sake over characters who are actually more than their clique. You don't have to go very far to see characters like these in other TV shows or movies: the nerdy kid who likes Star Wars a bit too much, the yelling alpha-dog football coach, the drama queen girl who obsessed over her boyfriend, and so forth. Furthermore, the young Keanu Reeves voice of surfer bro Jude gets old within five minutes.
Some of the teen characters are relatable, but it's hard to tell if those who created this feature wanted to make a comedy about what it's like to be a teenager, or if they wanted to create yet another teen story mining humor out of parodying what teenagers are supposed to be like. Not even zombies wreaking havoc in a mall does enough to create enough interest to ultimately care which option they're trying for here.
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Families can talk about how teenagers are depicted in media. Is this a funny parody of how teenagers live and behave? Why or why not? Are there any realistic characters in this feature?
Is the idea of a teen boy spying on undressing women funny? What are the possible consequences for doing that?
Movie Details
- On DVD or streaming: January 1, 2005
- Cast: Brooke D'Orsay, Kaley Cuoco, Megan Fahlenbock
- Director: Tom Mc. Gillis
- Studio: Cartoon Network
- Genre: Comedy
- Topics: High School
- Run time: 45 minutes
- MPAA rating: NR
- Last updated: September 20, 2019
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