Review of Planet Terror (2007) by Philip J — 25 Feb 2012

In a small town in rural Texas, a mysterious biochemical agent known as DC2 -- the result of an aborted government-sponsored experiment code named "Project Terror" -- has been unleashed on the unsuspecting public, turning ordinary citizens into bloodthirsty, flesh-craving psycho zombies. These psycho zombies, aptly known as "sickos", are not your run-of-the-mill slow-moving creatures; these are intelligent predators who deliberately target their prey...

The hospitals are overwhelmed by people infected by the agent and are dying mysteriously. But little do the doctors and staff realize that death is not the end -- it is only the beginning.

Only a small group of survivors can stop DC2 from infecting the world and turning everybody into sickos. Among the group is Cherry (Rose McGowan), a versatile stripper who has a lot of useless talents. These talents however may come in handy, especially when she loses her leg and has it replaced by a machine gun that can also shoot rockets. There's Dakota (Marley Shelton), a beautiful doctor whose assortment of syringe needles can cause just as much pain as they can heal. "El Wray" (Freddie Rodriguez) is a loner with a mysterious past who must team up with Hague (Michael Biehn), the local sheriff despite being on opposite sides of the law. There's also Abby (Naveen Andrews), a brilliant scientist who may know more about the origins of this deadly plague than he's letting on...

A crazed maniacal army lieutenant named Muldoon (Bruce Willis) wants to exploit DC2 for his own sinister purposes. In a shocking plot twist, we learn why Muldoon must possess this agent?

Planet Terror was a major disappointment at the box office and for good reason. This film simply is not tailored for mainstream audiences. Planet Terror is essentially a homage to the over-the-top violent action/horror movies of the 70s and 80s. This is the type of movie that shamelessly permeated drive-in and grindhouse theaters. But I don't find this movie to be a guilty pleasure. I genuinely enjoyed it and thought that it was well-made with a solid cast, exciting pacing, and slick production values (for what is essentially a big-budget B-movie).

When I first saw Planet Terror back in theaters in 2007, I remember hearing some complaints from audiences about the film's scratchy look. To which I would say that they totally missed the point. What director Robert Rodriguez did was clever. He captured the gritty look and atmosphere of a typical grindhouse exploitation film back in the day. The film scratches and other technical imperfections add to the feel that you are watching a rough-and-tumble film with its own renegade charm.

The film's eclectic cast also helps. All the actors in this movie take their roles seriously, yet they are also in on the joke. What I enjoy about this movie is that everybody appears to be having fun and enjoying themselves. They know they are not making an Oscar worthy masterpiece, but as far as grindhouse films goes, this is about as high art as it gets. I was particularly happy to see Michael Biehn (of The Terminator, Aliens, and The Rock fame) have a significant role in this movie and thought he was impressive as the heroic sheriff. Fergie's (of The Black Eyed Peas) cameo role however was a no-brainer.

There are no pretenses here in terms of deep messages; for those with a high tolerance for bloodletting, they will find themselves having a good time enjoying this gloriously gory film that knows when to wink at audiences.

Ultimately, Planet Terror will not appeal to everybody and will probably not appeal to the vast majority of people. However, for those who can stomach extreme gore, this is an enjoyable schlock film that is an appropriate tribute to the drive-in movies of yesteryear. While Quentin Tarentino's attempts at reviving the grindhouse culture were a noble failure, both he and Robert Rodriguez have done a great job of creating a film that will be appreciated by cult classic enthusiasts down the road.