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Planet Terror
Directed by: Robert Rodriguez
Starring: Rose McGowan
Genre:
Action/Horror/
Science Fiction
Run Time: 95
min.
Release Date:
June 2007
On The Web:
Official
Site
Teaser:
Movie Trailer
Reviewed by
Byron Merritt |
You’ve gotta love blood,
gore, sex, lesbianism, and impossible human feats to enjoy something
like PLANET TERROR. It is, in essence, a hardboiled 70s slasher/zombie
film with all of its nonsensical sexual under (and over) tones
surrounded by reel-to-reel style filming with its scratchy and skipping
that those who’ve spent time at the drive-ins of ol’ will no doubt enjoy
as it harkens them back to days gone by (gotta love that run-on
sentence, eh?)
Rose McGowan (DEATH
PROOF) plays Cherry Darling (no, it’s not a p0rn name
...although it could be), a strip dancer who’s suddenly thrust into the
middle of a pending apocalypse. The military has unleashed a zombifying
chemical and it threatens Cherry’s nearby one-horse town.
She is quickly reunited with El Wray (Freddy Rodriguez,
LADY IN THE
WATER), a lost love turned truck driver who’s never forgotten her. The
two zip this way and that in an attempt to avoid the newly walking dead
but Cherry meets up with a hungry bunch and has a lower leg gnawed off.
She’s taken to a local hospital where it rapidly becomes apparent that
the zombies are taking over.
Meanwhile, El Wray is taken into custody by Sheriff Hague (Michael Biehn)
and there’s an unmentioned tension between the two that escalates as the
Sheriff’s town begins falling apart. But the Sheriff knows how good El
Wray is with a gun (“I never miss.”) and eventually hands over his
pistols to him. The ensuing head shots are gruesomely wonderful (I
believe the handgun was a .45).
Also amongst this chaos is the strained marriage of two physicians, Dr.
William Block (Josh Brolin,
THE DEAD GIRL) and Dr. Dakota Block (Marley
Shelton, DON’T COME KNOCKING) who work at this hospital where zombies
begin increasing in numbers. William suspects his wife is having an
affair and it is later confirmed; but it was with another woman,
something that incenses him. Dakota is excellent at anesthetizing
patients and her skills with her sexy syringe-stuffed garters comes in
handy.
The running gag throughout the film is a take on a barbeque restaurant
which is besieged by the undead. It is run by Sheriff Hague’s brother
and the two are at odds over a secret sauce recipe. The brothers
eventually come together in a very destructive way, but come together
they must.
In the end it is El Wray and Cherry who save the day. El Wray with his
dead aim and Cherry with her newfound leggy weapon (gotta love the
handicapped!)
This will be a film of contention for many. For those who want a serious
telling of a great zombie flick, they won’t find it here. For those
wanting a laugh-out-loud comedy in-line with such things as
SHAUN OF THE
DEAD, they won’t find it either. But it is nicely wedged in-between
those two, with some rousingly good gore and a few chuckles thrown in
for good measure.
A decent film for those that might enjoy a stroll down memory-film lane.
(Note: This is part 2 of 2 in the Grindhouse Film duet. The first movie,
Death Proof, was directed by Quentin Tarantino and the two were broken
up upon DVD release. The two films come with an intermission that shows
a few hilarious “coming soon” featurettes.)
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Image from Planet Terror
DVD cost: $23.99
Purchase:
BestPrices.com
Film Review Stew
Favorite? No.
Stew Poo-Poo? No.
Newsworthy:
Director Robert Rodriguez
found the scene where Dr. Dakota Block leaves son Tony in the car with
gun to be so chilling to film he didn't want to use anyone else's
children to play Tony so he used his own son, Rebel Rodriguez, so he
wouldn't feel as bad "killing a child".
Movie Quote: "I
never miss."
Other Actors/Actresses
from Planet Terror
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