Flying Saucers Over Hollywood: The ‘Plan 9’ Companion (1992)
Article 5830 by Dave Sindelar
Date: 8-13-2020
Directed by Mark Patrick Carducci
Featuring Forrest J Ackerman, Carl Anthony, Stephen C. Apostolof
Country: USA
What it is: Documentary

This movie explores the making of Ed Wood’s cult classic, PLAN 9 FROM OUTER SPACE.

Technically, a documentary like this isn’t genre, but its subject is so steeped in genre material that I had no problem covering it. In fact, it’s a tribute to the movie’s immense cult appeal that this documentary got made. No, it’s not a totally serious exploration of the making of the movie, but it’s far more serious than it might have been and makes certain discoveries that were new for its day, such as the location of the soundstage where the movie was shot as well the revelation of exactly what was used to make the flying saucers. For lovers of the movie and members of science fiction fandom, there are a lot of familiar faces here to add to the fun. No, it’s not as fun as the movie itself, but it makes a fine companion piece to it.