Plan 9 (2015) Reviews

• Back off. I'm a scientist.

  nogodnomasters2018-01-13

  Plan 9 is a tribute film to the original. It is NOT a remake, nor is it about them filming a remake...which happens to be how the film starts. In the anachronistic town of Nilbog, Virginia (Goblin spelled backwards) a meteor strikes creating reanimation of the recently dead. The film includes characters that look like they were in the original film. The "zombies" become smarter as the town's scientist Lucy Grimm (Sara Eshleman) must figure out how to deal with them. She was my favorite character with the best lines. They needed more of her. Most of the film was entertaining. There was an odd grocery store scene that was awkward which ended up with a major nude scene, and to be honest I had no idea what that was about. I think a better tribute would have included two different people playing the Bela character as well as indifference to day and night shots. Guide: F-Words, sex, nudity

• A Strange Remake Homage; Which Is Neither Bad Enough Nor Good Enough.

  stephenabell2017-06-16

  To be honest, I cannot believe that somebody had the balls to remake Plan 9 From Out Of Space since this was voted the worst film ever made and boasted the worst dialogue and scenes ever put on celluloid. Even though it flopped it later gained a classic status for its wrongness. I have to say I have a warm place in my heart for it. So when I caught the trailer for Plan 9 I knew I had to give it at least one viewing. The major trouble with the movie is the writer and director John Johnson. When you take on a project such as this one you have to decide what to keep, what to change, what to eradicate, and what to add and it's here where all his problems arise. The original is loved because it is so bad on so many fronts so you have to keep some of these bad issues in the movie as well as add some, though you have to make it humorous to keep your audience. In some of the other reviews, it's been noted about all the fourth wall shout-outs to other films. I believe this to be intentional and in the "bad" mode, though he may have taken it too far. Also, there are lots of similarities to Romero's Night Of The Living Dead and other Zombie films. I believe Johnson took Plan 9 down the zombie road to pay homage to the movie and send up the sub-genre (it's also not a bad thing as there's a lot of Z-lovers out there, so it gives him a ready-made audience - which is what Edward D Wood Jr did). Though he does keep enough science fiction elements to keep it in this genre. For me the Z's took second place, it wasn't about them it was about the annihilation of mankind so we could all be used as cheap fuel. As for the acting, most of it is average, though on Mr Lobo's part I believe this was intentional, and he does gloriously over-act at times. Whereas, Brian Krause is back on form as the male lead role Jeff Trent. Though it's James Rolfe as the policeman that gets some of the better, and funnier, lines and scenes. I found Sara Eshleman as Lucy Grimm a little wooden though again this could have been intentional in homage to the original. If this is the case then she's a good actress as she does wooden well. However, it does make for enjoying the movie a little difficult as it's a great excuse for anything which didn't work too well... it was a homage! It would have been nice for Johnson not to pay homage to the film by trying to add elements to his remake but to make a straight forward sci- fi flick based on the original story. He proved he can add tension and an atmosphere of dread as is shown with the arrival of the aliens themselves. They were a nice twist as they came to the town members as human, they clearly weren't. Johnson even did an okay job with the action when the heroes go after the aliens. If the same mood and quality had been used throughout we might have had a decent film and not this strange homage. On the whole, the movie works and is nicely filmed. I would gladly recommend it as it is a decent "leave your brain at the door" waste of time. It definitely isn't the worst movie out there... that's the original... Though this is at least worth one viewing on a cold and wet night when there's nothing better to do. However, I do believe this film to be of the "Marmite" Syndrome - you'll either like it or loathe it. It made me smile and laugh more than grimace and frown, so I love it.

• Not a Masterpiece But It's Entertaining

  Michael_Elliott2016-04-30

  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.

• It Sounded Like A Good Idea At The Time

  Scott_Mercer2016-06-24

  An update of Plan Nine From Outer Space for the post-modern age. It was a good idea. An idea that even I had considered at one point. Add in modern effects, Romero style zombies, extra low budget gore, a few boobs, military that attack and murder the citizens instead of swooping in to save the day. So why is it so...meh? As far as the actors, Brian Krause and Sara Eshleman were fine. I like Mister Lobo even if he was a bit obnoxious. Hell, I probably like him because he's obnoxious. But the wink-wink meta commentary is a bit played out by now. You name the town Nilbog? A guy's wearing a Stephen King t-shirt? Mr. Lobo is acting in a remake of Plan 9, playing Criswell, but he's not really Criswell? It's a bit too meta. You have characters commenting on the action, other movies, and what point in the screenplay we're at. There are, of course, call backs to various other movies including Night of the Living Dead, The Mist/The Slime People and Night of the Creeps. But the one that really stuck in my mind was Robert Rodriguez' Planet Terror, which was itself already a commentary on various zombie films. The feel is really close, similar lighting effects, you have the element of the military attacking people, and you even have the female lead, Sarah Eshleman, a petite blond scientist in a white lab coat, a dead ringer for Marley Shelton in Planet Terror, a petite blond doctor in a white lab coat. In spite of all this, the movie is neither good enough to be excellent nor bad enough to be laughably enjoyable. It just sits somewhere in the middle. If you want a really well-written film that's a fun commentary on zombies and zombie flicks, Sean of the Dead or Zombieland are there for you. The remake of Plan 9 is a must-see only for Ed Wood completists.

• Disjointed attempt to be nerdy-funny

  nyrn2016-02-29

  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.