Planet Terror (2007) is a brilliant film; it shamelessly takes all the things we love from cheesy 80's action, zombie and horror films and crushes it all to one solid package that is both funny and thrilling. Bad "one-liners", lots of shooting, gore related jokes, cheesy "ominous soundtrack" and all the other bits and pieces that make you smile are there to be found in this film. This is Robert Rodriguez at his best.
A bio-weapon gets released and turns people into zombies – a mixed bunch of small town survivors have to make their way to more safer grounds. Among the survivors are Wray (Freddy Rodríguez), go-go dancer Cherry (Rose McGowan) and Sheriff Hague (Michael Biehn) who all fit perfectly into the bizarre setting as the stereotypes they are, the casting throughoutly is just right.
The film looks good and is fun to watch; the deliberate improper cuts, sound distortions and visual filters all add up to the unorthodox movie experience. The jokes are plentiful, the action is well shot, the story takes some unexpected turns and the ensemble cast is good – the film's really entertaining. It's not perfect though: the pacing is off at times and Robert has taken the "easy way" a bit too often with the script (there was room for more subtle jokes among the more obvious ones) but still the film's fun to sit through. The Machete -trailer that starts the presentation is the icing on the cake. 3/4
A bio-weapon gets released and turns people into zombies – a mixed bunch of small town survivors have to make their way to more safer grounds. Among the survivors are Wray (Freddy Rodríguez), go-go dancer Cherry (Rose McGowan) and Sheriff Hague (Michael Biehn) who all fit perfectly into the bizarre setting as the stereotypes they are, the casting throughoutly is just right.
The film looks good and is fun to watch; the deliberate improper cuts, sound distortions and visual filters all add up to the unorthodox movie experience. The jokes are plentiful, the action is well shot, the story takes some unexpected turns and the ensemble cast is good – the film's really entertaining. It's not perfect though: the pacing is off at times and Robert has taken the "easy way" a bit too often with the script (there was room for more subtle jokes among the more obvious ones) but still the film's fun to sit through. The Machete -trailer that starts the presentation is the icing on the cake. 3/4