Planet Terror
2-Disc Extended and Unrated Edition
Written and Directed by Robert Rodriguez
Cast: Rose McGowan, Freddy Rodriguez, Marley Shelton, Josh Brolin
The Weinstein Company
On sale: October 16, 2007

Robert Rodriguez‘s Planet Terror was originally released in theaters earlier this year along with Quentin Tarantino’s Death Proof under the title Grindhouse. The two feature-length films were accompanied by four faux action/horror trailers and were filmed in low budget style in an effort to replicate the 1970’s “grindhouse” movie-going experience.

Sadly, while Grindhouse nailed the theater experience, it failed at the box office — though not for lack of a few good stories, my favorite being Rodriguez’s zombie romp Planet Terror, released here in its own unrated and extended DVD edition.

On this one fateful night, go-go dancer Cherry Darling (Rose McGowan) packs her bags, ready to ditch her current job to pursue her dreams. On her way out of town, she unexpectedly runs into her former lover Wray (Freddy Rodriguez), a tow-truck driver with a mysterious past, but their reunion is interrupted when they are attacked on the road.

Meanwhile, at the local hospital unhappily married doctors William and Dakota Block (Josh Brolin and Marley Shelton) attempt to treat the hordes of townsfolk flooding in who are infected by a gangrene-causing virus. Other bizarre occurrences are happening all over town, like the vacant-looking speechless people gathering in front of a nearby barbecue joint and the strange green gas coming from the military base two miles away.

Before long, the area is plagued by the virus, leaving a small group of survivors to either seek the cure and save everyone, or make it the hell out of town in one piece!

Planet Terror is packed with blood, guts, and gore, along with plenty of action and quite a few laughs. There’s also a plethora of familiar faces, like Jeff Fahey (The Lawnmower Man) as restaurant owner J.T. Hague, who’d rather die than give up the recipe for his famous BBQ sauce; Michael Biehn (Terminator) as Sheriff Hague, J.T’s recipe-coveting brother and rent-raising landlord; the original special effects master Tom Savini as the bumbling Deputy Tolo; and Stacey Ferguson (she’s Fergalicious) as the ill-fated hot chick in revealing attire. Oh yeah, and some little known actor from the Die Hard movies shows up, too.

What makes Planet Terror such a top-notch zombie flick is that it makes you feel like you’re watching a low budget quickly shot b-movie, with its grainy, discolored footage complete with pops, jumps, and a “missing reel,” but the truth is, a lot of time, money, and careful planning went into making this movie. Oh, and some clever CGI, too, which we learn all about in the DVD’s bonus features.

I’m not always a big fan of DVD commentaries, because sometimes they come across as forced. Not so on this disc, probably because it’s Rodriguez — the film’s writer AND director — who provides it. The commentary is conversational and highly informative.

If you’re not one to sit through the commentary track, then you probably won’t want to sit through the “audience reaction track” (both of which are located on Disc 1, along with the international trailer and poster gallery). I, for one, love watching a great movie in a packed theater with like-minded people who react just like me, so this extra track was kind of cool, although at times, not really loud enough. Ok, it’s a mostly unnecessary feature, but still nice.

On Disc 2 is where all the yummy goodies live, my favorite being “10 Minute Film School with Robert Rodriguez.” A lot of what Rodriguez says here (and in the rest of the bonus features) was already mentioned by him in the film commentary, but now we get to see what he was talking about before. It’s here you realize what a clever bastard that Rodriguez is as he displays how he used CGI and puppetry for the creature effects. Also, it’s here that we get the scoop on how Rose McGowan pulled off her one-legged action sequences.

The next two features are character studies called “The Badass Babes Of Planet Terror” and “The Guys Of Planet Terror.” Just by watching the film it’s obvious how and why the girls are so badass (they’re sexy, smart, strong, weapon-toting madwomen!). But the guys are pretty awesome too, especially the diminutive Freddy Rodriguez, who at first glance is the least likely person in the film to be the badass. But he is, and he is amazing. After seeing him in Planet Terror, I think he has a real career as an action hero and leading man.

“Casting Robert Rodriguez’s Son Rebel” covers the parts of the film, as well as many alternate scenes, with Rodriguez’s little boy, who plays Tony, the son of Drs. William and Dakota Block. Rodriguez wrote and shot two versions of Tony’s storyline, so here we get to see what could have been. Definitely watch this, as you’ll be surprised at some of the decisions Rodriguez made with regards to his son’s storyline.

“Sickos, Bullets, And Explosions: The Stunts Of Planet Terror” is more behind-the-scenes of the action/stunt sequences of the film, while “The Friend, The Doctor, And The Real Estate Agent” details how some of the actors — who weren’t really actors — ended up in the movie.

Missing from this disc, unfortunately, are the three other fake trailers that were shown during Grindhouse, which were hilarious. I think they would have been right at home on this DVD set.

I totally dug Planet Terror when I first saw it in the theater this year, and after several viewings of the DVD (with/without commentary and audience tracks) and its accompanying bonus features, I only love it more. It’s definitely one of the best films of the year (yup) and my only complaint about it is that I wish there had been more deleted scenes included on the disc.

So, basically, I loved the movie so much I wish it was longer. Otherwise, it rules.