Grindhouse
For a while now, the major studios have known that they can exploit the average young male's love for gore and stupidity for easy money. Quentin Tarantino and (especially) Robert Rodriguez have played a large part in the success of that kind of entertainment, but they haven't forgotten its origins. Back in the 1970s, "grindhouse" cinema offered a more organic sort of B-movie: homegrown junk that was embraced by young viewers as a fun-filled alternative to the sophisticated films Hollywood was producing during that decade.
Grindhouse is a three-hour plus celebration of those days, featuring two full movies by the directors and a few bonus treats. Robert Rodriguez may not have a career as revered as that of his collaborator, but as a homage to excessive zombie films of the 70s, Planet Terror is just about perfect. Freddy Rodriguez, Rose McGowan, Marley Shelton, Michael Biehn and Bruce Willis are among a large cast of Texans who find themselves face to face with disgusting mutants transformed by a strange green gas.
The action is a ton of fun, but the genius is in the details. Planet Terror is full of classic "mistakes" from that era: grainy film stock, awkward editing, color mistakes, exaggerated spurts of blood that is way too brightly colored, continuity errors, even "missing reels." That's right, the film abruptly jumps ahead at one point to a climactic sequence in a burning building. New characters are suddenly there and events have happened in the meantime, but it still feels like nothing really was lost. It's the classic "Who cares about the story?" attitude that has always been championed in films like this.
The second feature, Death Proof, is less like a classic 70s B-movie and more like Tarantino just being Tarantino. All of his usual elements are in place. At least half of the movie is composed of young women (including Rosario Dawson, Zoe Bell, Traci Thomas, Vanessa Ferlito and Rose McGowan..again) sitting around carrying on long conversations, and of course, not wearing any shoes. The director made a name for himself with scenes of characters discussing the mundane in exquisitely funny and well-written prose, but none of these girls are exactly Steve Buscemi, Pam Grier or Samuel L. Jackson. The style won't work for every performer, and these drawn out discussions are more tedious than fun.
Kurt Russell goes some way towards salvaging this half with his work as Stuntman Mike, a former Hollywood stunt driver who terrorizes the girls and incites some wild automobile mayhem. It's hard not to enjoy the climactic car showdown, but the movie has very few of the grindhouse details of Planet Terror. It's almost as if Tarantino got so enveloped in the long-winded ruminations on cars, dating and radio shows that he forgot why he was writing the thing in the first place.
I would have preferred a full-length version of Eli Roth's "Thanksgiving," just one of the several faux trailers that show up in Grindhouse. These promos are hysterical in their dead-on accuracy (we think movie trailers spoil too much now, but it was much worse back then), and are invaluable in establishing the overall sleazy feeling. If you have the time, Grindhouse is a uniquely entertaining way to spend it...but if you don't, leaving during the beginning of Death Proof is always an option.
Planet Terror:A
Death Proof:C+
Final Grade: (average of the two films plus some points for those trailers) B+
Grindhouse is a three-hour plus celebration of those days, featuring two full movies by the directors and a few bonus treats. Robert Rodriguez may not have a career as revered as that of his collaborator, but as a homage to excessive zombie films of the 70s, Planet Terror is just about perfect. Freddy Rodriguez, Rose McGowan, Marley Shelton, Michael Biehn and Bruce Willis are among a large cast of Texans who find themselves face to face with disgusting mutants transformed by a strange green gas.
The action is a ton of fun, but the genius is in the details. Planet Terror is full of classic "mistakes" from that era: grainy film stock, awkward editing, color mistakes, exaggerated spurts of blood that is way too brightly colored, continuity errors, even "missing reels." That's right, the film abruptly jumps ahead at one point to a climactic sequence in a burning building. New characters are suddenly there and events have happened in the meantime, but it still feels like nothing really was lost. It's the classic "Who cares about the story?" attitude that has always been championed in films like this.
The second feature, Death Proof, is less like a classic 70s B-movie and more like Tarantino just being Tarantino. All of his usual elements are in place. At least half of the movie is composed of young women (including Rosario Dawson, Zoe Bell, Traci Thomas, Vanessa Ferlito and Rose McGowan..again) sitting around carrying on long conversations, and of course, not wearing any shoes. The director made a name for himself with scenes of characters discussing the mundane in exquisitely funny and well-written prose, but none of these girls are exactly Steve Buscemi, Pam Grier or Samuel L. Jackson. The style won't work for every performer, and these drawn out discussions are more tedious than fun.
Kurt Russell goes some way towards salvaging this half with his work as Stuntman Mike, a former Hollywood stunt driver who terrorizes the girls and incites some wild automobile mayhem. It's hard not to enjoy the climactic car showdown, but the movie has very few of the grindhouse details of Planet Terror. It's almost as if Tarantino got so enveloped in the long-winded ruminations on cars, dating and radio shows that he forgot why he was writing the thing in the first place.
I would have preferred a full-length version of Eli Roth's "Thanksgiving," just one of the several faux trailers that show up in Grindhouse. These promos are hysterical in their dead-on accuracy (we think movie trailers spoil too much now, but it was much worse back then), and are invaluable in establishing the overall sleazy feeling. If you have the time, Grindhouse is a uniquely entertaining way to spend it...but if you don't, leaving during the beginning of Death Proof is always an option.
Planet Terror:A
Death Proof:C+
Final Grade: (average of the two films plus some points for those trailers) B+