Plan 9

Plan 9 (2015)

** (out of 4)

A UFO is seen coming into a small town and later that night there is some sort of strange light that causes the dead to come back to life. A group of survivors try to fight off the zombies and make it until morning.

As the title and opening scenes clearly suggest, this here is a remake of Edward D. Wood, Jr.'s 1959 film PLAN 9 FROM OUTER SPACE but it actually could have been another remake of NIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD. Those looking for a director remake of the Wood might feel cheated as there are some obvious nods to that film but once all the zombie action starts it's your typical George Romero type setting with people trying to stay in doors while zombies are on the outside.

With that said, director John Johnson has actually made a good looking movie that at least looks professional unlike so many other low-budget movies out there. I was a little worried that we were going to be getting some poorly made film but that wasn't the case at all. Visually the film was quite good and at least you could tell that there was talent behind the camera in many jobs. I thought the editing was quite good and several of the performances were better than you'd expect.

The film also had some nice gore shots. I'm not going to say the work is on the same level of Tom Savini but it's much better than you typically see in these types of movies. There was even some nudity thrown in, which as all horror fans know is pretty hard to find these days. PLAN 9 certainly isn't a masterpiece but it's mildly entertaining. The biggest problem I had with the film is that at 106 minutes it's way too long. The film really could have lost fifteen to twenty minutes.

Cult films, just like music, are made by people that have no clue what they're doing, but have a strong vision and giving it 100%. Trying to do something badly, unfortunately doesn't yield the same result. And that's where Plan 9 comes in. It's not nerdy bad, which obviously works sometimes - it's just plain boring bad. Scenes are too long, lit badly (not bad enough to be funny mind you) and although the viewer is introduced to a few quirky characters, there's just no substance to hang on to. There's a lot of over acting mixed with under acting and all things considered, the movie just come across as a "fun" art school project. And not in a good way I might add. A+ for trying tho.

I'm not sure what possessed anyone to do a remake of Plan 9, and this version is hardly watchable at all. The attempt to take the base story and take it seriously was simply a mistake. If you want entertainment, watch the original movie, which is so awful, it's one of the funniest things I've ever seen.

You can tell if a movie comes from the heart or from wanting to cash in on a quick buck. This remake is a good example of what fans of the original film can make as a love letter to Ed Wood.

There are some changes between the original and this remake but it was done with a loving and caring hand.

If you enjoy B movies this is one to catch.

I, like many of you, heard about this for years. The idea was to make the movie that Ed Wood, Jr would have made if he had had a decent budget. So, you now had a group of people with a decent budget, a plan to re-make the worst movie of all time & turn it into the vision Wood wanted. And, instead, tried to re-make every zombie movie around, but with new improved zombies - they move fast.

Big problem. This is not a "remake" of a beloved horrible movie, but a totally new movie with some elements of the original. Too many people, way too long (103 min compared to 79 min original) too many sub plots, too many zombies, & not enough space aliens. A re-make would have fixed the time travel in the original - day turning into night & vice versa all during (& in the middle of) the same scene. Maybe a less flimsy crypt for The Old Man, one that doesn't look like it can barely hold 2 people, much less a coffin & one person. And what's up with Plan 9? It was Plan #9 on the alien's list of how to conquer the world - raise the recently dead & attack the living. Let's just say that Plan 9 had nothing to do with aliens conquering the earth.

There was, for me at least, one bright spot. Mister Lobo, who played Criswell. Over the top, not too good, but he does provide the relief the movie needs.

If you're like me & enjoy some original PLAN 9 (watching it now), but would like to see what may have happened if Ed Wood, Jr had had a bigger budget, watch this movie. Believe me, some of the material in this movie may have been in a high(er) budget movie.