Planet Terror (2007)

Written and Directed by Robert Rodriguez (ghost directed by Quentin Tarantino)

Really, I won't go too far into the plot of Planet Terror, as there is really no need. Sure, there is a plot, but that's not the reason people will go see this movie, or rent the DVD. I caught this in theaters on April 6th, and I just recently watched the Unrated and Extended version of both Grindhouse films.

This half of the double feature opus is a zombie (RR calls them Sickos) style exploitation film, where a noxious gas has turned a town into gloop-dripping, brain eating monsters. That's all you really need to know as this is a pretty paint by numbers zombie film, what sets it apart from everything else in the genre is that it was made specifically to be a revisionist 70's grindhouse style double feature billed shocker. Rodriguez manages to pack his film with an exciting cast (Rose McGowan, Freddy Rodriguez, Bruce Willis, Naveen Andrews, Michael Biehn, Tom Savini, Jeff Fahey, Nicky Katt, Marley Shelton, Stacey "Fergie" Ferguson, and Josh Brolin) and enough action to make your head spin.

The film was shot with Rodriguez's personal High Definition cameras, and then in post, burned, popped, distorted, scratched, and everything imaginable that you could do to damage a film. All digitally of course, and all done on purpose, to give the film that real 70's feel. It is even complete with a missing reel, skipping over the final moments of the 2nd act, and exploding into the 3rd.

KNB FX did the gore in this film, and yet again they have outdone themselves. They always do the best work out there, but in this film, they've outdone even themselves. How they made these constantly dripping, bloody, soft organed zombies is beyond me, but if I saw one of these things walk up to me, I'd definitely run, they don't look like people in make up, but rather real bio hazard victims. I've heard that's where they got their inspiration, and it's scary how well they've captured this disgustingly horrible look on film.

The performances are enjoyable, not great, but harkening back to what 70's horror cinema was all about, the direction is like an exploitation king getting a $30 million budget, the set design fits the genre it is supposed to be a part of, and the movie is just plain well made and enjoyable. There wasn't a part I didn't like, it's a fun ride all around, and you could show a time traveler from 1875 this movie along with Switchblade Sisters, Raiders of Atlantis, and Deep Red, and they would believe that all three films were indeed shot in the same era based on look alone. That, to me, is a job well done. Sure, there is no great art involved here, nor is there intended to be. It's just a fun, messy ride the entire way.

As for the differences between the theatrical version vs this one, I didn't really notice a lot of them, but one thing that really stood out to me was the incorporation of a lot more blood. A lot of it looked CGI, but at the same time, I bought it. I think the gore was upped for the Unrated version, but other than that, and a few minuscule added scenes, I didn't really notice a large difference, despite the 10 minute difference in runtime.
 
8.7/10