Ah, the film that was dubbed “The Citizen Kane of bad movies”. A scifi/horror B-movie classic by the peculiar Mr. Ed Wood.
Now, I am a huge fan of the show Mystery Science Theater 3000. If you’re unfamiliar with it, it was a show that ran from the mid/late 80s until 2000 about a man kidnapped by mad scientists and sent to space. There, he is forced to watch bad movies as part of a sadistic experiment. The only way he manages to get through the movies is with the help of his two robot friends, making fun of or “riffing” the film (usually scifi and horror flicks from the 50s and 60s). The result was hilarious TV genius.
After the cancellation of the show, the 3 stars went on to form Rifftrax, where the heart of MST3K is still intact. You basically view these terrible movies while the guys riff over it, lulz ensuing.
Last night was a special live showing of Plan 9 From Outerspace in theaters by Rifftax. I, along with my equally geeky brother, had the opportunity to go.
I have never actually seen Plan 9 before, and I’m amazed I haven’t. I have seen a few of his other films, along with some that he wrote that were equally bad.
Ed Wood was an eccentric director who, despite his many technical errors, bad dialogue and confusing plots, had a unmatched passion for what he did. The man genuinely loved movies and making movies, even though he was terrible at it.
His films were also notable for featuring an aging Bela Lugosi, who was a good friend of Wood’s.
Now, to get to the movie. I had completely forgotten what the plot and purpose of the film was about 10 minutes into it. Something about aliens coming to earth to summon the dead to battle the “stupid, stupid humans!” because they’ve built some sort of thingamajig machine.
The UFO’s seem to be pieces of silver plastic on strings, the tombstones in the graveyard Styrofoam which get knocked over by the actors quite a bit. The scenes constantly jump back and forth between day and night, and scenes that are supposed to be linked together seemed to have been shot not only at completely different times, but in completely different places. Then, it was all roughly edited together.
It should also be noted that Bela Lugosi died before he could complete this film. Instead of…I don’t know…shelving the film or working around the already shot footage, Ed decided to replace Lugosi. Not with another actor, mind you, but with his wife’s chiropractor. There are quite a few scenes in which it is painfully obvious that it is not Bela Lugosi, masking himself with his cape.
There is also the character Vampira, a woman zombie with long red nails who just walks around and looks evil. I’m pretty sure she does nothing other than that.
Rifftrax picked the perfect film for their special, since the thing is utterly hilarious even without their input. There were even some parts where the guys themselves just stopped and laughed at whatever was going on, causing everyone in the theater to laugh along.
Yet, I could actually understand why Ed Wood has gathered the cult following he has. I mean, the movie is bad, we know that. However, I think there is some sort of zany charm involved in his films and especially Plan 9. It is just so out there with its horrible special effects and hilarious dialogue that you actually genuinely enjoy the experience of seeing it.
Sometimes I wonder if Ed Wood was just a genius in disguise, caricaturing himself and everything he loved, playing some massive joke on all of us. I don’t think anyone could capture the pure absurdity and campiness that he did, even if they tried. And believe me, people still do.
So I tip my hat to Ed Wood, for giving us geeks something as bizarre and delightful as Plan 9. If you’re looking for a serious science drama, you’re definitely not going to get it. But, if you don’t take yourself too seriously, I think you could find something to love about it.
Also, I’m pretty sure I just found my Halloween costume this year:
Bygone Films 