ksdilauri

Of all the flicks on all the channels in all the world.......this one should be the easiest to riff: it's the king of unintentionally bad movies. It's inspired more savage reviews than there are stars in the universe. Unfortunately, too many of the voiceover jokes in this version of "Plan 9 From Outer Space" are flaccid. The overaged Rifftrax schoolboys have, in other movies, ranged from brilliantly funny (where your eyes are watering from laughter) to just plain mean (offending entire groups of people.) Here---in the movie that most of the planet can agree is prime riffing material--they have more than a few misfires, and a lot of untaken opportunities. With "Plan 9"s legacy being what it is, this could have been Rifftrax' crowning achievement. They blew it.

So you love movies, from the silents to today. This in-depth presentation will tell you a lot of what you want to know, and more--though it comes with a caveat.

The narrator obviously knows his stuff and shares a wealth of background information. I found the clips from silent classics and coverage of Hitchcock's films particularly interesting.

But if you're put off by strong accents, be advised that the creator of this interesting and detailed presentation has a pronounced one, resulting in narration that some found off-putting.

Many of the other reviewers deemed it unlistenable; that's not the case, though I can't honestly say I wouldn't have preferred a more traditional voiceover. Still, when you give attention to what this expert is saying, rather than his accent, it allows for a uniquely detailed look at film history.

So park the snark and just pay attention. You might learn something about movies.

All right---attention, fellow fanciers of tacky, 50's/60's pseudo-monster movies--don't miss this one!

Also don't expect logic, but that doesn't matter. The lack of it only raises the enjoyment level. Many good synopses are here on IMDb, so I'll just add that "Frankenstein Meets the Space Monster" meets all the criteria for a truly classic, low-budget, awful sci-fi movie. The comedic effect generated by the two lead aliens--precisely because they're supposed to be serious--is one of the most riff-worthy elements: he is a combo of Nosferatu and Mike Myers, and his Queen appears to be an MGM chorus girl with a shower curtain on her head and an attitude.

The aliens have all the personality here, since one of the good guys really isn't really human and the rest of the earthlings consist of stodgy military types (including the plucky heroine) and teenage partygoers--some of whom are so emotionless that they barely react to being kidnapped, tossed into an alien ship, covered with bags and stuffed into a tiny space next to the titular monster. (I don't know about you guys, but I'd be shrieking my freaking head off.) Unlike many such flicks, the end credits feature a cute song that actually doesn't suck. All in all, this is one to see if you love the genre.