Grindhouse (2007) User Reviews

Good, bloody fun!

[ZMannon · 9/10 · 25 March 2007]

I went into this film with expectations for an extreme amount of campy senseless gore and violence - and it was delivered as promised! A WARNING: Know what to expect when you go see this movie, or you might be surprised/disappointed. There is no moral, no good sense or life lesson to be taken from the story lines or characters. Sometimes things don't make sense and this is all done on purpose in homage to original exploitation films Warnings aside, Grindhouse is a lot of fun, there were as many "ooh" and "ahh" moments as there were "oh my god why did they show that?" moments. All of the actors' performances were right on and the action directing was excellent. My only negative comment is that Tarintino's film dragged a bit in the middle, but he more than made up for it. I couldn't help but raise my fist in the air and shout out "yeah!" at the end of his flick.

You will be surprise, you will be disgusted and you'll enjoy the hell out of it.

A unique cinema experience indeed.

As uproariously funny, perversely disgusting and outrageously awesome as everyone hoped it would be

[DonFishies · 9/10 · 4 April 2007]

When I first heard about Grindhouse, I was pretty excited. I have enjoyed practically everything Quentin Tarantino and Robert Rodriguez have ever done, so the idea of such a nostalgic homage as Grindhouse really peaked my interest. I was really hyped for the movie, and managed to snag free passes to an advanced screening, and was it ever worth it.

Grindhouse consists of two very different films. The first, Planet Terror, is directed by Rodriguez and is a horror movie about zombies. The second, Death Proof, is directed by Tarantino and is a thriller about a crazed killer who murders women with his car.

Just knowing these two simple plot lines is enough. They are two stand alone films, and they are just as awesome as I thought they would be. This is the closest to a true homage that either director has ever done, and it works amazingly on screen. I was never a big on watching real grindhouse-style films, but these two films are exactly what I would expect them to be like. Just watching the films together was an experience that is simply unmatchable.

I was not expecting anything more than an obscene amount of violence, but the films were a lot more than that. Despite some missing reels, both films have just enough story to actually make them work as conventional films. As said previously, they could easily stand alone away from each other, and still be just as good (but probably not as awesome as they are back-to-back). Having part of the films missing really does not even matter, they work that well without them, and have all the trademark carvings of a Rodriguez or Tarantino film. Planet Terror drags on a bit near the finale, but that seems only because Rodriguez tried to pack in a lot more story to offset the action than the premise really set out for it too. Death Proof is loaded with dialogue, but it comes off brisk and so much faster paced. But all the same, both stay very much in tone with their particular genre.

The missing reels are only a complement to the fact that both of the film's actual picture quality is intentionally absolutely terrible. The films (more so Planet Terror) are scratched up and tarnished to the point where some scenes are practically unwatchable. You just stop seeing the action on screen, and only notice how beat up the print is. It looks old and worn out. And it works wonderfully, and makes the experience all the more authentic. The DVDs will not look anywhere near as stylistically worn as the films do here. Watching these films in perfect quality would just ruin the true homage-style the pair were going for.

The violence in both is another key element to the true impact of both films. Both are quite obscenely violent, and just become downright disgusting in a lot of sequences. They set out to push the limits of conventional 2007 era violence, and they more than do that. People are decapitated, ripped limb from limb, and just shot left, right and center. These people are destroyed beyond all comprehension, and just when you think they have done enough, it just keeps coming. Gorehounds will be in heaven, and those who have trouble looking at more than the slightest hint of blood may need to sit this one out. It gets to the point of being sick and twisted, but it works beautifully in the films, and they just would not be the same without it. The makeup artists put in a lot of work here, and it shows in how graphically violent the films are.

But by pushing it to the limits, the films also become darkly hilarious. It is not just the dialogue that will give you a chuckle, it is the effects and the action happening on screen. In some places, it just becomes so downright ridiculous that you cannot do anything but laugh. A lot of what happens is downright vile and inhumane, but it is done with such style and wit, that it just cannot be anything but hilarious. Every obscene and violent action done in previous Rodriguez and Tarantino movies is more than topped here, and fans will be hard set on not wanting some more by the time Death Proof concludes.

The faux trailers are also a nice touch, and in a way, push the boundaries of violence and hilarity even more so. I do not want to ruin any of them, but I just could not stop laughing. They are absolutely perfect, and they connect the films even more than they are already (not to mention the old-school ratings and preview reels). Rodriguez's Machete trailer that opens Grindhouse is amazing, and sets the tone for everything that follows. They only further how dedicated the filmmakers were to their original visions, and make the film all the more authentic.

The acting is campy, cheesy and right on the mark. Everyone is at their best, no matter how small their role, and no one feels like they are wrong for their part. Rose McGowan is a particular stand-out in both films, delivering every line and action to the highest degree possible. Kurt Russell is another stand-out, playing a character that is so evil that he exhales cool with every breath. And Freddy Rodriguez more than proves that he has what it takes to be a leading man. I did not like one particular character's sudden change half way through their film, but it works for the most part anyway.

There is nothing more I can say but that you need to see this film. It may be imperfect and a bit longish, but it is the closest thing to a brilliant homage that any filmmaker or audience has ever seen. It is everything that anyone could have hoped for and more.

9.5/10.

Go see it in the theater.

[thegreenyeti · 8/10 · 29 March 2007]

I went to the premier in Austin last night. Wow, what an awesome event. Here are a few brief thoughts: One of the previews, that is being made into a movie, looks absolutely absurd and I am sure that it will be a joy to watch.

Planet Terror kept you laughing, groaning, and cringing the entire time. Enough action to keep you into it, enough campy gore to laugh at, and plenty of build up to have you cheering for the good guys. Rodriguez put together an A-rated, B-movie.

Death Proof was also enjoyable. I may have been antsy due to the cramped seating, but it seemed like there was a little lull in the middle. I didn't want to get up at intermission as I didn't want to miss the trailers. As Tarantino has done before, there is some great dialogue flying around the core group of actors.

I will definitely go see it again in the theater. I missed some of the dialogue due to the roar of the audience. However, I think having an interactive audience really adds to the experience.

Enjoy.

First movie which I felt deserved my $12

[somewhatdyslexic · 10/10 · 5 April 2007]

My friend and I got some passes to the sneak peak of this movie last night, both being fans of T & R couldn't pass up a chance to see this film.

It was a total knockout blow. Starting with Planet Terror, which was a terrible amount of fun with all of my favorite heroes and archetypes on screen. And of course a go-go dancer full of useless talents... and a machine gun for a leg. Most likely the best formula for a pulp movie. I laughed until I was out of breath, and then threw my shoes across the theater in a fit of ecstasy.

Next with Deathproof, Tarantino scores the real points. Not as action packed as Planet Terror, it certainly was structured better. Thinking at first that maybe the reels HAD in fact been replaced (the 'absence' of certain reels in both movies providing many laughs) with reels from a road trip film; I soon realized that Tarantino was just drawing his line in. He had our attention, he was just taking his time letting us know why he had it, taking his time very stylishly of course. With the introduction of Stuntman Mike and the sudden realization (well not realization... one just knows) that Mike ain't quite the night in the Chevy Nova we thought he was... things get intense. 30-ish minute car chase scene intense.

This movie was actually, flat-out the most entertaining film I have ever seen in theaters. Certainly worth sitting three hours for, and this was a clearcut case of filmmakers EARNING your money.

Best "experience" in years

[jay_hovah703 · 10/10 · 28 March 2007]

I won tickets to the world premiere of Grindhouse in LA this past week and it was the best 3 hours of my life in recent history. The stories of the two movies combined with the detail and inventiveness of Quentin Tarantino and Robert Rodriguez brought together 3 hours of action packed fun. The two directors updated the sleazy grindhouse movie experience from the 70's and commercialized it so that we can all enjoy it. You won't find some greasy guy with his pants around his ankles sitting next to you, but you are probably going to be able to sit through all 3 hours of these movies.

I want to compliment the directors for having a unique cinematic vision (and the Weinsteins for funding that vision). I don't always agree with the choices made with either of the filmmakers, but I think they are two of the hardest working most innovative people in Hollywood today. I add this because most film studies students love to hate both of these people and in most conversations suggest that they would be able to do a much better job than either. I disagree.

Planet terror is a gross out flick that has appropriate amounts of gore and guts. If you like Rodriguez, then this movie fits in with all of his previous works. No real surprises here, but fun fun fun!

Tarantino surprised me. I liked the first movies from Tarantino because his movies were set in realities not far from our own. I doubt that it would happen in a weekend, but Pulp Fiction is a semi-believable good story in Los Angeles with unbelievable dialog. Same with Reservoir Dogs. (Jackie Brown is too believable and therefore, uninteresting) As he has progressed, his movies became fantasy, e.g., From Dusk til Dawn and Kill Bill 1 & 2 and WAY too over the top for a "Tarantino" flick.

Death Proof brings it all home! I don't want to spoil any of the movie, so just go see it! It's a simple plot with unbelievable suspense and decent dialog. I have never been so nervous in a film in as long as I can remember. Its no secret that the movie involves a car -- but Tarantino has taken a "classic" car scenario using a classic car and updated it for the new millennium. One only has suspend belief "just enough" for this mix of reality and fantasy to suck them in. It was Tarantino at his best.

Both movies were well executed, well scored, well written, and well played. The extra's and cameos are icing on the cake. No Oscars for either director, but that isn't why you went to see these movies in the first place, now is it?

The Return of the Grindhouse...kinda.

[QuickStopVA · 6/10 · 8 April 2007]

Before you begin, this review contains minor spoilers. No strong plot points are revealed, but you may be able to venture a few correct guesses about the film after reading this.

I saw "Grindhouse" the day it came out. First off, let's start with the overall review: the fake trailers were superb, "Planet Terror" was phenomenal, and "Death Proof" could not have been more out of place. I wish I had left after the second set of fake trailers. I would have been happier. Continuing on.

Let's start with "Machete". Brilliant trailer! The "X" rating was the perfect touch.

Let's get more thorough. As I said before, "Planet Terror" was phenomenal. Absolutely perfect. It had all the necessary touches of what the classic grindhouse has been described to contain. The film is aged, almost-integral footage is missing from the film, and it was so unbelievably campy. Every single cast member put forth their best efforts to produce this raw reinventing of the zombie film. Everything about it was perfect, including the absolute bombshell that is Rose McGowan. The driving force behind PT is it's insatiable appetite for gore, and it has officially taken the position of the goriest film ever made. No matter how hard I try, I can't think of a single flaw in PT. I would have changed the ending to suit my own preference, but Rodriguez made the right decision. I'll say it again: Planet Terror was PERFECT! The fake trailers. Following PT is a set of fake trailers to three films: "Werewolf Women of the SS", "DON'T", and "Thanksgiving". My personal favorite was "Thanksgiving", directed by Eli Roth. As far as I know, there has never been a horror film centered around Thanksgiving. Many other holidays have been blessed with their own nauseatingly campy horror films, and Thanksgiving is now no exception, as long as you ignore the fact that we'll never actually get to see it. "WWOTSS", by Rob Zombie, was enjoyable. Not much more to say about it. "DON'T", by Edgar Wright, was equally enjoyable. But hands down, the best part of the fake trailers: Nicholas Cage as Fu Manchu. Priceless. Absolutely gold.

At this point of the movie, I should have left. Ten minutes in, I should have just gone with my gut and got the hell out of the theater, because the fun was over.

Yes, ladies and gentlemen, I'm talking about "Death Proof". It has been my understanding that grindhouse films were supposed to be exploitations of violence, sex, and all that other naughty stuff. GH had it all until DP began. Death Proof is, by far, the most self-indulgent and mundane piece of film I've ever seen. I love the idea of using a car as a weapon, but Quentin Tarantino, who has never failed to impress me, completely lost touch of what the film should have been. DP was riddled with soul-sucking dialog and, in a near 90-minute film, had a total of less than one minute of violence, and about twenty minutes of action. Do the math; that's about an hour of nothing but dialog. I love Tarantino's dialog in his other films. It's interesting, thought-provoking, and never fails to entertain, whereas DP was plastered with conversations of "who has the weed", "who had sex with who", and "who's gonna get a lap dance". Honestly, if QT had double-dipped into the Royale with Cheese lesson from "Pulp Fiction", I would have been hooked, but the worthless drivel of DP simply does not pass as entertaining dialog. Yes, there was a car chase near the end, but it takes so painfully long to happen, and it seems to last longer. I'll also add that DP looked aged for maybe 5 minutes and then it took on the look of a modern, brand new film. Tarantino should have left GH alone and focused his work on the still-in-production-after-three-years "Inglorious Bastards". I enjoyed less than three minutes of "Death Proof", and I'm wishing that QT will come out and say "Hey, just joking, here's the real film." There you have it. Excellent film if you don't count Death Proof. This is all my opinion. Some people, including famous film critics, are calling DP infinitely better than PT, but I can't defend their argument. I simply did not like DP at all, and I consider it Tarantino's only bad movie. It will be the black sheep of my DVD collection, only because I won't have a choice but to buy it if I want PT. I suggest you see GH from start to the bitter finish and form your own opinion. You may like it. I'll be returning to theaters to see PT again, but after the final fake trailer, I'll be coming home and watching Kill Bill.

I'm giving "Grindhouse" a 6 out of 10 because, regardless of all it's many strong points, I still felt ripped off when it was over, not only for the money I paid, but for the weak pay-off after the massive amount of anticipation, not to mention a completely misleading trailer for the film.

Thanks for reading, folks. I really hope you like the movie.

Quentin Tarantino and Robert Rodriguez... got to love them!

[Dragoneyed363 · 10/10 · 9 February 2008]

What is there to say about Tarantino and Rodriguez except that they make some of the best dang movies ever! Grindhouse is a double feature made of Planet Terror and Death Proof, two of the best movies ever made, in my opinion.

With nothing but blasts of good gory fun and catchy lines, and talk scenes, Grindhouse is a force to be reckoned with. These movies are spectacular examples of what "bloody horror", "intense thriller" and "tongue-in-cheek comedy" really are. Along with an excellent cast, these movies have amazing qualities that only true horror lovers would admire. Whether it's a machine gun-legged go go dancer, to a tricky plotting stuntman, you just have to absolutely love Grindhouse.

As soon as I started watching Deathproof on DVD, I have to admit I thought it was boring and overrated. I watched it a few more times and I loved it more and more. You really get to appreciate all the girls and their great personalities, and find the movie more enticing and fun with every second.

Now when I first watched Planet Terror... I fell head over heels for it IMMEDIATELY. Planet Terror was just so fantastically entertaining. You get great hilarity with both films, and Planet Terror gives cheesy action like never before. No matter if Grindhouse did bad at the box office just 'cause lazy people wouldn't get there sorry butts in there to see a marvelous four hour film and they wanted to see other stupid excuses for movies that were in theatres at the same time, Grindhouse is another astonishing piece of work from the masters Tarantino and Rodriguez.

So remember, that you can only catch these stunning movies at, the Grindhouse.

Planet Terror - 10/10, Death Proof - 10/10

Puerile

[stevetseitz · 6/10 · 19 April 2007]

The first half of "Grindhouse" is an over-the-top, senselessly violent and gore-filled cliché of a zombie movie. Rose McGowan isn't "all-that" and the only reason any of the acting can be applauded is because the actors manage to keep straight faces while spewing some of the all-time stupidest dialog ever written. I love George Romero. I love zombie movies. You, Mr. Tarantino and Mr. Rodriguez are certainly NOT George Romero.

The second half of "Grindhouse" is a suspenseful chase thriller with an excellent performance by Kurt Russell who is deliciously menacing in his role as a psychopath. The car scenes are excellent, although "Bullitt", "The French Connection", and "Ronin" still have the best car chases. The problem with the second film is the same as the first: Tarantino (and perhaps Rodriguez) are grown men with the mentality of 14 year old boys. Their fascination with (and knowledge of) sex and violence is that of someone who has experienced neither. It's like listening to a couple of virgins brag about sex or a couple of boys who have never fought talk about fighting.

Tarantino's idea of feminism is to make his female heroins as inane, obnoxious, reprehensible and vulgar as their male counterparts. Some equality...

Cleverness is not intelligence. Kitsch is not art. Moxie is not courage. Damning them with faint praise, I can say that these films are, without a doubt, clever, kitschy, and produced, written and directed with a lot of moxie. Tarantino has an ear for dialog (even if he overindulges himself in this respect) and a thorough knowledge of pop culture and film history. I can admire his homage to films of the past, but wish he would find his own, worthy, voice as he did in "Pulp Fiction".

With his performances in these films, I think we can all agree that regardless of his directorial gifts and writing talents, Tarantino must never, repeat, NEVER be allowed to act again. His appearance on screen is distracting and nearly stops each movie in it's tracks.

Even with all this, the funky, 70's style drive-in intros and trailers are a hoot. The trailer for the slasher-horror movie "Thanksgiving" is worth the price of admission.

Everything I Could Ever Want And More In A Film.

[Matt_Layden · 10/10 · 4 April 2007]

If you are reading this review then I'm assuming you have some vague idea of what a grindhouse film is, if not, look it up then get back to me. For those familiar with the cheesy B movie genre, you will know exactly what to expect, for those who've never seen a grindhouse film, well, let's just say you're in for a surprise. "Grindhouse" is a full blown, in your face orgasm that never ends; and when it does you don't want it to. Tarantino and Rodriguez pulled off exactly what they promised; delivering a film that is not only a fun experience, but a hilarious, grotesque, thrilling, chilling and maybe even vomit inducing experience. It's hard to say which film I liked better; they both have their own unique style and cheese factor.

Right from the beginning we get a small taste of what the rest of the film has in store. The film starts with the "Machete" trailer, it's over-the-top in every sense of the word and if you get the joke, you'll love every minute of it. The entire film is full of nods to the genre, whether it be random posters in the background and a character wearing a shirt with the cover of "faster pussy cat, kill kill" on it. I'm not the biggest fan of grindhouse films, as I've only seen a few, but "Grindhouse" has definitely opened my eyes and has ignited my thirst for more. While I have seen a few grindhouse films, I can safely say that "Death Proof" has a more grindhouse vibe out of the two. Its look and feel was more gritty, while "Planet Terror" was simply carnage on the screen.

"Planet Terror" has more humour and gore out of the two, which would be expected from the trailers. It has zombies and a woman with a machine gun for a leg. If you can't laugh at a guy who takes people's testicles who double cross him, or a sex scene in which a wooden leg makes an appearance and then the reel suddenly goes missing, then why the hell are you watching this movie? "Death Proof" was more intense out of the two, one particular scene has one character hanging onto the hood of a car for her life and Stuntman Mike tries to run them off the road; it's exciting and scary at the same time.Kurt Russell stands out in the whole cast, from both features. His homicidal and caring take on the psycho is chilling and funny, he's a psychotic mess and loves every minute of it. Rose McGowan, Tarantino, Marley Shelton and Michael Parks all make appearances in both films, with Michael Biehn making a small appearance in one of the fake trailers. Rounding out the rest of the cast is Freddy Rodriguez, Josh Brolin, Rosario Dawson, Naveen Andrews and Tom Savini, to just name a few on a list that goes on and on. There are a few more cameo spots that I won't ruin for you, but they are quite comical.

The fake trailers themselves are worthy enough for stand alone films. In some cases the trailers themselves are more gruesome then the feature films. Leave it to Eli Roth to do something like that, his "Thanksgiving" trailer is where people will either laugh their heads off or vomit into a bag. Zombie's outing is "Werewolf Women of the SS", which showcases Nazis, werewolves, and naked women. Edgar Wright supplies us with the third trailer, in which it tells you "Don't see it alone".

The gore factor is high and in full drive here. Without a doubt this film will have you either cheering for more, or well, cheering for more. Is there ever such a thing as too much gore? Not in this homage to exploitation flicks of the 70's. If you honestly think there is too much gore, then why are you watching this film? It tells you up front that is about horrific violence, sexuality, and drugs. This film has a checklist and knocks everything down as it runs it course. If you're sitting in the theatre rolling your eyes at the ridiculousness of what is being shown on the screen, again I ask why are you here? Nothing in this film can be taken seriously, nor should it. Things aren't suppose to make sense, that was the beauty of those films from back then and the directors know this and capture it perfectly. Both films do have a missing reels segment, both happen at parts where something sexual is about to take place.

Being a horror movie buff makes me appreciate the film on a whole new level. Both Tarantino and Rodriguez show that they can handle the genre and this time they've raised the bar. If you thought SAW III was gory, just wait till you see this flick. Everything, from gun shots, to stab wounds in "Planet Terror" has blood gushing left right and centre. Bodies are torn apart, faces fall off, testicles are cut off and fall off, people explode fingers are bitten off, people are shot, so on and so fourth. In "Death Proof" the deaths, which are few all happen within the vehicles. Dane Cook will be happy to see there is a scene in which a female character takes a tire to the face. Along with that, another gets thrown out of a car, someone loses a leg and another gets their face smashed in.

Everything works for "Grindhouse, the scratches on the film reels do not distract at all, instead it adds to the overall experience, an experience that I haven't had at a theatre in a long time. "Grindhouse" brings back the feelings that were once lost from the movies and beats out "300" as the most fun you'll have at the movies this year, and probably for awhile.

What a train wreck..

[tlc8804 · 7/10 · 8 April 2007]

I've been looking forward to seeing Grindhouse since I first heard about it. From Dusk Til Dawn is my all time favorite movie, and that was the earliest and still best collaboration between directors Tarantino and Rodriguez. I was expecting something mind blowing, something so original that it would knock me flat on my ass, but overall, Grindhouse didn't do that for me.

I will say, the fake trailers are brilliant, and I am completely going to buy Machete the day it hits DVD, and the others were hiliarious and dead on satires of their respective genres. What was killing me throughout this whole experience, however, was the nearly ruined picture quality, and the completely ruined sound quality. Now before everyone jumps down my throat, I know this is all an homage to the good old days back in the 70's where people sat through 3 hours of cheesy popcorn flicks, put up with sticky seats, damaged prints, and unsavory management. I don't really feel the need to relive that. We've evolved beyond it, I suggest we all enjoy that fact. What I did want to see, was two great, cheesy action movies with the trademark brilliant dialog and spot on casting that I've come to expect from my two favorite directors. If I can't understand half the words, what's the fun in that? Given the fact that Planet Terror was relatively dialog and story intensive, the indecipherable sound didn't help much. I enjoyed that movie as a whole, but once again, the missing reel... Sure it sounds like a good idea as a whole, but people really must be mindless idiots to say that made the movie better. I'll tell you what, if I paid to go see puss spewing zombies get blown away by a stripper with an M16 for a leg, I expect a little bit of a pay off in the way of a storyline. They just discarded all of that, and I'm left with one still in the chamber. On a positive note, all the casting was great including El Wray, Cherry, and Michael Biehn's re emergence after 23 years fighting Terminators in the shadows. I also love the references to previous films, which is just a fun little addition that makes the movies better.

As for Death Proof, it makes me really sad to say that I was very disappointed. I've seen every movie Tarantino has made at least 3 times, and I loved each one, being just different enough from the last to make them completely unique and re watchable. Death Proof is still a great concept, but the delivery was just 3 feet off the mark, in my opinion. It may just be me, but watching 4 girls engage in frivolous conversation is about as entertaining as being constipated on a public toilet. The first sequence with Kurt Russel was just awesome, and there's no denying that. However, lag time in the middle with more jabber by Tarantino's trademark sassy black woman dragged down my buzz big time. The climax, while at time's thrilling, just completely lost it for me, and for the sake of argument, I'll chalk that up to my inability to look past reallllly big plot holes, raise my fist high in the air and say "girl power!" I'm sure more than a few people liked the ending, so I'll leave it alone. What made me really sad was that the sound quality in this movie was just absolutely perfect, when I would soooo very much preferred to not hear the dialog, whereas in Planet Terror I want those precious words to be loud and clear. AND again with the missing reel. Now I'm fully loaded with no where to shoot. Where are those hot Greek babysitters when you need them? Overall, this thing is worth seeing. Especially if someone else pays. The hilarious trailers, the above average action scenes, and at times downright disturbing scenes of gore will do well to placate the lowest among us. However, those of us looking for a real MOVIE experience, rather than a movie-going experience complete with artificial and IMO detrimental ambiance, might feel hindered and ultimately disappointed.

P.S. Nicolas Cage has totally redeemed himself for Ghost Rider. Putz.

Most entertaining film I've seen in years.

[Ludypro1 · 10/10 · 6 April 2007]

There was no doubt in my mind that Grindhouse would be awesome. Two great directors making back to back movies. All films paying homage to the old grindhouse films the two filmmakers grew up on. I have just returned from the advanced showing of the picture and will have to say I am completely satisfied with this great film, or should I say films. The audience was cracking up and cheering and it made the entire experience more memorable. This is the kind of film where I will always remember the first time I saw it. Rodriguez seems to have the most fun with his film Planet Terror. The film is Rodriguez's dream project that he has wanted to make since he was a teenager. Quintin seems to take his a little more serious, but delivers an original story with one of the most satisfying endings. 10/10 is the rating I give this film. I recommend this movies to anyone who is a lover of films.

Rodriguez still has it, but Tarantino...oh god

[mmthbfan · 6/10 · 8 April 2007]

I'm giving this movie a little more than half, because I only liked about half. I walked into this expecting to see a big, over-hyped, piece of celluloid garbage, but I was pleasantly surprised. I'll start with "Planet Terror". OK, so right off the back I wasn't expecting much out of this one. I mean the trailers of a chick with a gun leg, I thought "how can they make this good", but somehow they pulled it off. The fact that they treated the movie as sort of a joke, was what made it great. You can't really deal with a subject like Zombie hunting go-go dancers, and good ol' southern BBQ, and take it seriously, and thankfully Rodriquez realized that. This one was also full of action, which kept you entertained, and focused on the movie...how I with I could say the same for "Death Proof".

At least in my opinion, "Death Proof" is one of the worst movies which I have laid my eyes upon in a while. How could Quentin Tarantino, the mane who brought up action filed movies such as "Kill Bill", "Pulp Fiction", and "Reservoir Dogs", give us such a boring excuse for a movie. You come into this expecting something that rivals "Planet Terror", and what do you get...? Well, you get a giant slap in the face, as Tarantino gives you a nice long hour and a half piece of dialogue to sit through. Besides from a single car crash, and a car chase at the movies end, the entire thing is boring and unnecessary dialogue. Unlike any of Tarantino's other movies, there is no composition to the dialogue no meaning, either stated straight forward, or alluded too...it's all pointless talking. So yes, I didn't like it.

Now to talk about the "trailers" that they threw into the movie...those were classic. Machete...which I hear is going to be a made into a real movie...was a classic overly violent action movie, which was pretty funny. Then you had "Women Werewolves of the SS" (or something like that), and my personal favorite "Thanksgiving". They were all pretty funny, yet sadly occurred prior to "Death Proof" and didn't give you relief from that piece of nonsense.

an honest review

[column262000 · 5/10 · 8 April 2007]

i have been reading a lot of these reviews and i couldn't help but ask myself if the studio(dimension films)is paying people to write some of these comments on this site.I'm seeing reviews like this movie is brilliant,and masterpiece,or the world famous this is the best time i've had in years.well let me tell you this,that is far from the truth.grind house as a whole had a great concept but fell short off the glory thanks in part to the usually surefire Tarentino.the movie starts out just as you anticipate is would,with a hilarious trailer(machete)and planet terror which i have to admit was guilty fun.Rodriguez stayed true to form with this zombie flick all the way down to the zombies moving slower than molasses.it had all the clichés that you would see in old school horror flicks and was incredibly entertaining.when his film ended i was satisfied.then in between the two movies were the trailers which were die hard funny.thanksgiving was just an uproar of laughter in which i found myself crying with laughter.after the trailers i was definitely satisfied.and then comes death proof.the satisfaction stops right here.i thought for sure that this would be the better of the two mainly because of Kurt Russell portrayal of a bad ass but i was in for quite a shock.the first thing i found wrong with this film was the hard to follow dialog between the girls in this film.i found myself in the audience just not giving a damn about what they had to say.let's take a look at the first set of girls.they go on about how they're going to score weed,lap dances,and all they seem to do in the movie was drink,smoke weed,and talk about crap that i wouldn't wanna hear chicks talk about in real life.the dialog was so boring that i found myself playing a game on my cell phone during the first part of this film.by the time they died i was cheering basically due to the fact that they couldn't talk anymore,but just when i thought we were getting somewhere,Tarentino screws us again by pulling the same crap with the second set of girls who not only are more irritating than the first set,but are more talkative.my complaint about the dialog is truly justified in this film because it does nothing to advance the film.oh and then there's Kurt Russell who was a perfect fit for a bad guy but guess what,Tarentino screws us there too.Kurt kills a total of five girls in the first half of the film(he kills four in one sequence)which i thought was bad ass because he's a killer right,but why in the hell does he only play bump the car with the 2nd set of girls?and why didn't the girls just stop the damn car?these were two questions i found astounding while watching the second half of this film.Kurt Russell starts off as a bad ass in the movie but by the end he turns into a cowering bitch running away from the girls he was trying to kill.and then the ending was just a total ripoff in this film to the point where when i saw the end hit the screen i yelled out you got to be kidding me!!there were many other deficiencies in Tarentino's flick but i'd be writing all day.all in all grind house had a good concept with a good first film packed with hilarious trailers but Tarentino's pitiful effort just sucks the life out of the whole experience.

The first classic of the new century

[canada_rules_74 · 8/10 · 5 April 2007]

Grindhouse is all about excess. Excess blood, gore, puss, explosions, near non-stop laughter and violence. The only thing you will find little of in it is nudity. It's typical Tarantino-paranoid-about-nudity and what we get are two distinct halves to one great film.

If you loved Tarantino's "Jackie Brown", then you'll love "Death Proof". D.P. is basically Jackie Brown on wheels. He rambles on and on and on about completely un-funny and pointless things for nearly 50 minutes with little else happening. I am quite disappointed with QT, as he is my favourite director/writer but I think he is stretching his limit a bit too far. He has fallen into a self-indulgent groove of non-stop banter or over-the-top violence. The end is capped off with probably one THE BEST car chases in history that lasts for about 20 amazing minutes that will undoubtedly give you a heart attack it's so well made. Also, Kurt Russell is NOT the main star of it as many people believe and I'll leave it at that.

Rodriguez's "Planet Terror" on the other hand is a completely off the wall, no holds barred shmorgassboard of absolute cinematic enjoyment. People blow up when shot with revolvers, gore is splattered at least every couple minutes once it gets past the first two minutes and it will have you laughing harder than any Tarantino film ever has. It is so freakin' good that I think my eyes fell out and had an orga*m due to the cinematic bliss that is "Planet Terror".

Rose McGowan will undoubtedly become the new pin-up girl and sex symbol due to her role of Cherry Darling; a Go-Go dancer (unfortunately not a stripper) that eventually gets an assault rifle for a leg. Who knew that an assault rifle for a leg could ever be THAT hot?

There are no words in the history of mankind that can help me explain to anyone the awesomeness that is displayed in "Grindhouse". "Death Proof" may drag it down a bit, but is nonetheless essential for the film as a whole. This is exactly the movie that Hollywood needed to have kicked up it's butt. Hopefully this will pave the way for more "extreme" films or higher rated films in general; although I'm still unsure if it would be a good idea to go to the extremes that French cinema is experiencing at the moment, but would nonetheless be welcome.

IMO, "Grindhouse" is THE BEST FILM since "The Good, the Bad and the Ugly" in 1966 for pure filmic enjoyment. Sit back, relax, and prepare to have your head explode! Go see it now or you'll regret it!

2 and several fractions for the price of 1

[nixskits · 9/10 · 30 November 2009]

I feel the need to think and write about "Grindhouse" as one complete entity, because splitting up the distinct parts is like separating a head from the torso, arms and legs that let it rise up and chase whatever it feels threatened by. This wacko love letter to the less than elegant cinema experience is disgusting, exciting, uproarious and about a thousand other words I could type. I saw it twice in the spring of 2007 and would have went a few more times if it hadn't disappeared as quickly as it did. The tickets were worth every penny.

The packed houses were rocking for three hours each time and I'm still annoyed more people didn't support the full "Grindhouse" package, as they could have done much worse in choosing a flick to go see that year. The only remedy I can propose is keep the budgets down and make two more features (this time from different directors), create some new trailers (including one each from Robert Rodriguez and Quentin Tarantino) and market the heck out of this package deal, hoping there is a larger audience who are hipper to this trip the second time around. The flaw wasn't in the concept, it was with the youth crowd who should have been out there supporting a more bang for your buck venture.

Rodriguez drops a great bomb of a tale (confirming my theory that a zombie movie always kicks the ass of a vampire movie!). His wild and wonderful "Planet Terror" is the great blending of several b-movie staples into one funny and vital alloy. Quentin gets his finest hour as an actor, revelling in the scum passing for human he plays for all it's worth. Rose McGowan, Freddy Rodriguez and Josh Brolin each have meaty material to devour and the supporting cast (especially the crazy babysitter twins) all have the time of their lives.

Complaining about Tarantino's dialogue or anything else that was a pet peeve of the "Death Proof" critics is missing the point. These characters hang out and shoot the breeze until it's time to shoot the enemy! Here, Kurt Russell gets a character just as rich (if not richer) than Snake Plissken and he makes the most of it. His one brick shy of a load stuntman is the kind of fringe player most people in film have met at some point and he gives the best performance of his career. And Zoe Bell gets my award for most insane physical performance by an actual stunt woman (how did they ever get insurance for her on this f$$king project?...didn't anyone read the script?!).

My only complaint is Mary Winstead didn't get to belt out a few more numbers (hint, hint, Quentin...bring back Mary as Lee Montgomery in another project!). Maybe her character should have been a pop star who isn't a total studio gimmick, as her voice is far superior to most of the young ladies making a living as so called singers. Baby, it's her that deserved more screen time!

A Tale of Two Movies

[CrassActionHero · 7/10 · 7 April 2007]

Grindhouse(2007)

Review 1: Planet Terror(2007) Welcome to the Grindhouse. We start off with an excellent and extremely funny "trailer". This is brilliant stuff. "Machete." You will laugh, you will enjoy the B-movie magic. This is filled to the top with cheese and including the silly voice-over to go. It's a hoot.

Planet Terror is on. We see retro movie intros with the misspelled words and low budget sound. It's all so well done. Anyway, Planet Terror is the next wave of zombie horror. This movie delivers all the goods and then some. We get all kinds of extreme violence and B-movie humor. This movie takes it all the way with the violence! We also have a terrific cast. The story is actually pretty good.

Michael Biehn is great as the Sheriff Hague. We also get Rose McGowan as a former stripper. The scenes at the hospital are incredible. When Quentin Tarantino shows up, this can be the most original zombie scene ever! It's grotesque, but you will be in total shock! The movie has an age feel to it and is treated well. We have the old looking film reel to the burnouts and missing scenes too.

Planet Terror is an amazing tribute. This is one of the BEST zombie movies I have ever seen! Now for a treat. We get a few more rather hilarious and twisted movie trailers. Let me just say is that Eli Roth is twisted. These trailers are a hoot. Damn they are funny. Shlock value guaranteed. Be sure to look out for a surprise appearance that NOBODY will see coming! Now for the Tarantino.

Death Proof(2007)

Review 2: After an amazing first half we get a rather lackluster second. Hear me out, Kurt Russel is Stuntman Mike. He is homicidal and bad to the core. I found him to be one of the most likable villains ever. That's a plus. Also Death Proof has some unique kill sequences by Stuntman Mike that are well done and are satisfying. Russel is fantastic as the devil behind the wheel.

However, Death Proof has many weaknesses. First is the inane and annoying girl-chat that goes on for what seems like an eternity. Worse yet, this has almost NOTHING to do with the movie! Second, the film does not have the old feel of the previous movie. Third, the heroines of the movie are just plain annoying. I, for the life of me got bored and frustrated with the girl chat and could not root for these girls. The second batch of girls were incredibly annoying.

This is too bad as Death Proof has some really well done stunt work and a nice car chase scene. The revenge chase was lame though, due to the driver constantly cursing trying to be a bad ass at every conceivable moment to the point of hideous. Tarantino should have given Russel A lot more screen time as Stuntman Mike and less to the ladies. I found myself rooting for Stuntman Mike. I felt the ending was well.....unsatisfying is an overstatement. I felt ripped off.

So, we got a tale of two movies. One a success and the other a massive letdown, despite a few cool scenes. This is a fitting tribute to the days long past, but Tarantino just did not deliver.

The Last Word: Stay for Planet Terror and the trailers. Death Proof start off right, but hits a crash landing. Watching Death Proof is for the VERY patient. Trust me.

Brilliant Filmaking!

[pinknole05 · 10/10 · 5 April 2007]

I absolutely love Tarantino and Rodriguez so needless to say this might be a bit bias but here it is: this film was amazing! I loved it from top to bottom. The characters were perfect and the plots were extremely interesting and visually impressive. This movie fully encompassed the true spirit of the Grindhouse genre and if these types of movies are your thing you will not be disappointed. Not to mention the trailers. They were hilarious and ridiculous all at the same time. Although the movie was a long one, you will have no problem sitting through over three hours of nonstop gore, violence some of the best car chase scenes I have ever seen and an all-star cast (including a few surprises I won't ruin for you) that just adds to the fun. GO SEE THIS MOVIE IMMEDIATELY!!!!!!!!

Masterpiece Throwback

[Michael_Elliott · 26 February 2008]

Grindhouse (2007)

**** (out of 4)

Sure, these movies are far from a real grindhouse but you're not going to have a better time inside a theater. With the fake trailers, messed up prints and bloody action, this movie is unlike any other ever made and that can only mean fun.

Planet Terror Robert Rodriguez's horror film about a chemical outbreak, which turns the citizens of a small Texas town into zombies. The only thing standing in the way of the zombies going worldwide is a one-legged stripper (Rose McGowan) and her sharpshooting boyfriend (Freddy Rodriquez). This throwback to the low budget shockers of the 1970's hits all the right marks and also turns out to be the goriest film I've ever seen. How in the world this got away with an R-rating is a mystery to me because this thing is non-stop gore from start to finish and we're not talking about little spots of the red stuff here and there. Each single death (out of hundreds) has tons of the red stuff through heads being ripped off to zombies munching on some flesh. McGowan is the perfect "B" actress to make her role very memorable and goddamn was it nice seeing Jeff Fahey once again. Tom Savini, Bruce Willis, Josh Brolin and various others fill out the cast. The "grindhouse" effect of a cut up print with scratches and missing reels are used perfectly here. There's some humor throughout but the politically incorrect joke of a kid playing with a gun was a real hoot. Rodriquez fills the film with countless "bad" moments in great homage to the films this is trying to be like. If you're a fan of this type of thing then you'll love it. Others beware.

Death Proof Quentin Tarantino's homage to those car chase movies features Kurt Russell as Stuntman Mike, a psychopath who loves to stalk women in his death proof car. The girls, including Rosario Dawson, Vanessa Ferlito, Jordan Ladd, Tracie Thomas, Mary Elizabeth Winstead, stunt woman Zoe Bell and Rose McGowan (again) are all perfectly cast and really nail Tarantino's dialogue but the real star here is the terrific return to form of Russell. Russell wasn't the first choice by the director but damn was he a great one. Russell just has that perfect smile and twisted laugh to make this psychopath so charming that you'd like to have a beer with him even though you know he'd probably kill you afterwards. Russell nails all the right marks making Stuntman Mike live right up there with Snake Plissken. This film is certainly a lot different than the first. This film takes its time in getting to know the female characters and I think this pays off in the end. Tarantino does a great job referencing other pictures so this will add some charm to die hard fans of the genre. Then there's the incredible chase at the end, which has to go down as one of the greatest ever. The chase is incredibly thrilling but it's also just a lot of fun. Seeing the girls being tortured by the "always having fun" Stuntman Mike was just a terrific time at the movies. I won't spoil anything but when the girl's seek revenge it's something that will make you want to cheer in laughter. Once again, if you're a fan then you'll love it but others beware.

Hilarious exploitation nostalgia

[calspers · 7/10 · 2 September 2022]

Grindhouse (2007) directed by Robert Rodriguez and Quentin Tarantino is simply a very unapologetic exploitation homage.

Grindhouse exemplifies its homage to exploitation B-movie thrillers, combining two feature-length segments into one double-bill designed to replicate the grind house theatergoing experience of the 70s and 80s. In "Death Proof," a psycho named Stuntman Mike stalks and kills beautiful women with his car. In "Planet Terror," a small-town sheriffs' department has to deal with an outbreak of murderous, infected people called "sickos." A gun-legged woman named Cherry and her martial arts-wielding partner take on the zombie army. Best of all, the two films were hilariouly fused together by fake movie trailers.

Particularly, Rodriguez's Planet Terror is a fun and well thought out premise, delivering both humour, splatter, and lots of action. Contrarily, Tarantino's Death Proof does not reach the heights but is still a worthy B-side to Grindhouse.

Recommended for its humour and homage to its nostalgic roots, but not for its originality or artistic integrity or nuance.

Great trashy&campy fun

[perica-43151 · 8/10 · 11 September 2019]

The idea of the movie is to make a homage/parody of B movies and recreate a distilled grind-house experience, with an oversized budget, A-list star cast and by two top directors, resources that none of the trashy genre movies had. It is a work of love and a guilty pleasure to watch, though the first part, Planet Terror, is much more successful and would rate 9+, while the Tarantino entry is somewhat of a miss. The fake trailers, the first of which resulted in an eventual feature - Machete, are great.

Planet Terror is the very definition of camp, and its only (slight) flaw is how obvious and in-your-face that campiness actually is. This part is action filled, and works perfectly as great, over-the-top, always hilariously fun, gory cheesecake. The second part is slower and somewhat different in tone, and is perhaps better viewed separately, it has its moments but Planet Terror is the superior part.

Surprisingly disappointing

[jmorales22 · 6/10 · 15 April 2007]

I've been awaiting Grindhouse since I saw the trailers. I must admit, I think it's a great idea. I went into the thing thinking there was no way I wouldn't like it, but unfortunately it somehow couldn't deliver on the hype you get from the trailers.

Planet terror was so-so. I love zombie movies anyway, and appreciated seeing Michael Biehn, so I'll give credit there. Overall it was 1.5 hours of entertainment, probably worth the price of a rental.

The other half, Dealth Proof, was Tarantino's brainchild and after the so-so feeling I got from Planet Terror I really put my eggs into that basket. I'd forgotten that Tarantino loves his dialog and his girl power so much, I guess because previously his dialog had been entertaining (see Pulp fiction... maybe he should go back and re-watch that a few times himself) and I had been able to overlook the girl power stuff as long as it wasn't outrageous and the rest of the movie fit together. But Dealth Proof fails to accomplish some basic things I need as a movie watcher: I have to like the protagonists and dislike the villains, and I have to continue to be engaged in the film by SOMETHING (that can be humor as in the reel jokes, or dialog as long as it's good: see conversations about giving another man's wife a foot massage.) This film does neither. Kurt Russel's character does a complete 180 from cool guy to total wimp in the blink of an eye (nay, it was slower than that... the dialog made it seem like several hours later before Russel's character re-appeared.) For the record, most girls can't deliver punches that hard (especially not ones their size), Kurt Russel's character knew what pain felt like already and wouldn't have wimped out over being shot in the arm (didn't he break his nose and finger, etc in the first accident?), and nobody likes an overly in-your-face girl like the one driving the car making all her shrewd insults. If anything it made me want to see her put in her place. I'm not a chauvinist, just be realistic about things, somewhat? Please? That's all I ask.

I think I'm turning on Tarantino, a man whose directing and writing skills I never questioned before. Seeing this reminds me that I only really liked Kill bill vol 2 because of the Pei Mei scene.

The jokes with the reels, fake trailers, etc are generally funny (my favorite thing was the fake restaurant ad, with those crappy disposable camera shots of their cheap, not that good looking entrées which I've definitely noticed before), but I would say the directors took it too far even for my taste on a few gross things (the trampoline knife, Kurt Russel eating nachos.) He's had his shot at paying homage to the old kung fu movies, now the grind-house ones... next up I guess is old Westerns. I'll give each movie a 6/10, which on my scale is an acceptable way to pass the time. But for Tarantino's standards, that's a disappointment.

Outrageous, Offensive, and Hilarious!

[stevecauley · 9/10 · 29 March 2007]

I had the privilege of viewing "Grindhouse" twice at the Austin premiere and I must say, it's one of the funniest, most repulsive, irreverent, and off-the-wall movies I've ever seen! It's actually two movies: Rodriguez's bizarre zombie movie homage "Planet Terror," and Tarantino's crazy high-speed chase flick, "Death Proof." Being 42, I can remember going to movies as a kid and seeing crazy trailers, usually screenings at drive-ins for movies like "Grizzly", "I Spit On Your Grave", "Zardoz," or other B- movies... much like the Rodriguez/Tarantino double feature. Only "Grindhouse" is both a salute to these ridiculous movies as well as a parody. One of the best and funniest scenes is at the climax of a sex scene in "Planet Terror." Suddenly the film begins to mess up in the projector, then it begins to burn... followed by an apology from the theater management. When the movie resumes, it's clear that a whole section is missing and the audience is left wondering what else happened... Rodriguez's "Planet Terror" is a non-stop adrenalin rush of the grotesque, absurd, and everything in between while Tarantino's "Death Proof" is more 'Tarantino' with long scenes of ridiculous dialog and less of the grotesque elements of the typical "Grindhouse" genre. In the final moments of the segment, however, it transforms into an adrenalin rushing revenge flick, replete with crazy, high-speed chase scenes. Kurt Russell's performance as a psychotic, stunt-car driver is classic! Not for the faint of heart, "Grindhouse" makes "Sin City" look like "The Sound of Music," but it's so funny (complete with movie trailers that echo back to that unique time of cheesy, exploitive, cinematic history) that the violence (and there is A LOT of it!) is absolutely cartoon-like. If you are too young to have any knowledge of this genre of movies, you might be a bit confused (or appalled), but otherwise it's an entertaining roller coaster ride through a film-making period that's been all but forgotten.

Slightly disappointed, though expectations we're admittedly very high

[oneloveall · 7/10 · 4 April 2007]

Well kids, the Grindhouse has finally arrived, in all of it's blood-soaked, cuss-filled, vulgar glory. Does this duo of grimy flicks deliver on it's promise at offering a different type of entertainment for the modern day mainstream? Absolutely. Do the combined films form an entirely new experience, the likes a younger generation have never felt before..Not really. Though none shall come as close to bringing one back to the glory days of cheap, exploitative drive-thru style fare as the indomitable pairing of Robert Rodriguez and Quentin Tarantino continues to show, the ambitious throwback to trash cinema is not without it's share of setbacks, chiefly residing with the overall creative indulgences both director's take while attempting to emulate each of their esteemed homage's to underground forms.

Starting off appropriately enough (including the first of much touted fake-though not for long- trailers, which work with rousing success), Rodriguez's convoluted but fun zombie disaster piece seems to take it's inspirations a little more literally then it's successor. Planet Terror manages to squeeze in so many Grindhouse features that eventually one gets the feeling that Tarantino will be trying an altogether different approach. Packed with more titillating gore and slimy action then anything he has done since From Dusk Til Dawn, Rodriguez perhaps borrows a little too closely from his cult hit of over ten years ago to portray the gruesome but never grim battle a dwindling number of residents must put up against an increasing number of poisoned undead. Showcasing some of the fantastic make-up effects that made Dusk such a guilty pleasure, Tom Savini's extended cameo surely factors into all the gore this half of the feature provides. An excellently dated score, composed by one-man-creative-team Rodriguez himself, lends perfectly to the older feel of the film and cannot be credited enough in finding a memorably familiar voice for the inhabitants of Planet Terror to dwell about. In the end, this first half of a double feature provides all the traditionalistic toppings one would come into Grindhouse expecting. Highlighted by some explosively sexy action sequencing (of course prominently advertised with Rose McGowan's leg-shooting antics), Planet Terror cuts out just as it is about to overstay it's welcome with a wild if predictable conclusion.

Following with three more artificial movie trailers, guest director's Eli Roth, Edgar Wright and Rob Zombie wisely use the few minutes they are given to provide some explosive comedic relief while indulging their b-movie fetishes. Complete with phony advertisements for Mexican cuisine, this five minute wannabe intermission serves as an interesting divider and fun way to help the audience take a breather but ultimately does not escape the pompous construct that it is. It seems a loyal dedication to the audio and visual characteristics that made these 1970 style film's such pleasant memories for these warped film-makers ends up feeling like it's chief pretentiousness. While it remains cool throughout to see Rodriguez and Tarantino emulate the old days by adding dirt, dust, missing frames, poor edits, and an overall muddied production to the two tales, often these indulgences seem to be less about the style of the film and more about hiding a distinct lack of storytelling or personality these writer's should be articulating instead of shunning.

This becomes no more apparent then after a few minutes into Tarantino's Death Proof, which from the very beginning employs too many cheaply edited pot-shots that do nothing but gently condescend the viewer with it's misleading mystique. I'm all for the style they are striving for and the cool conceptual gambles they took here, so long as they are not purposely, and repeatedly taunting their audience with the clunky editing, which by and large it feels like. Thankfully it seems Tarantino got most of these unnecessary quirks out quickly into his movie so he can concentrate on what he does best...or not. Largely the Yang to Planet Terror's Yin, Death Proof is a highly indulgent, dialog driven moody revenge piece. A far cry from the fun, fast pace of movie number 1, Tarantino's extended conversations centering around a group of (not so) bad-ass females may leave many of the director's fans expecting more. Though largely redeemed by a powerful climax and ridiculously entertaining final shot, the majority of this bloated short finds the once profoundly relevant screenwriter at his mediocre best, spending an inordinate amount of time concentrating on the weak exchanges between a group of women Tarantino obviously thought were cooler then the final product dictated. As we watch a pseudo-edgy female cast talk through an unnecessary amount of Pulp Fiction-like banter that refuses to engage the crowd, most non-visceral tension is largely squandered by the writer's inability to further Stuntman Mike's (a refreshed and rockin' Kurt Russell) characterization which leads to a spectacularly filmed, though psychologically unfulfilled car chase finale. Though the fragmented Death Proof feels underdeveloped and even lazy at times, Tarantino will never have a lack of tricks up his sleeve to completely sink the piece into boredom. Alas, when the ego-maniacal director is not busy indulging some irrelevant fetish of his, Death Proof is a taut, eerie film that makes good on it's deal to shoot some of the most harrowing car sequences of the past few decades.

Anyone not directly investing multiple sleepless nights of fanboy devotion in anticipation to the B-movie double feature spectacle should not feel shortchanged despite all the problems I have noted above. An overabundance of hype in two of our generation's more conceptually ambitious auteurs has somehow wounded this overwhelmingly fearless piece of work, and though it may fall short of some expectations, Grindhouse chiefly delivers all the hell-raising, flesh-chopping, chick-watching, tire-screeching goodies it had promised. Viewers are treated to plenty of "I can't believe they are showing that on screen" moments, but the cumulative effect unfortunately does not add up to the transcendent crowd-bonding experience I was led to believe should happen.

Another Tarantino ego trip

[baumer · 3/10 · 21 April 2007]

Films like Pulp Fiction are one of a kind, literally. No one can duplicate the success of Pulp Fiction. Many have tried, none have succeeded. The problem with this is that Quentin Taratnino made such an auspiciously brilliant debut with Reservoir Dogs and then Pulp Fiction, that he would have a very difficult time matching the brilliance of those two films. But who would have thought he would drop so far down on the directing evolutionary chain? Jackie Brown was just okay, but Kill Bill and now his Death Proof segment of Grindhouse is so embarrassingly bad that I think Tarantino has officially lost what made him such an ingénue. This is a sad statement as no one, with the exception of maybe Spielberg, exploded onto the scene the way Taratino did. But I'm not sure if anyone has burned out the way he has either. His films are gimmicks now. They are not really true movies, but rather they rely on cheap ideas that try to show us what a genius Tarantino is. He perpetually tries to show us how much of a film geek he is and while making films that only he could love, he forgets that most of us don't give a you-know-what about how much he knows about film. All we want is a movie that we can embrace. A movie that has a story, not just a bunch of uninteresting characters sitting around calling each other bitches and then spouting off more inside Hollywood stuff that Tarantino must of had a ball with writing and then chuckling to himself as he writes things in his scripts that only he would understand. This isn't a film for Quentin, it should be made for all of us. And it's not. And this is where he has failed. I know many many people adored Kill Bill. I'm not one of the loonies that did. It was more of an ego fest from Quentin. A subliminal flipping of the bird to all of us. Quentin makes movies for himself, not for us. And if this continues, he won't be working for much longer. He got away with it in Kill Bill because the movie was split in two. If it was one film, people would have walked out of it also.

Grindhouse, as everyone knows now, is two films made in the tradition of old 70's films that apparently had little quality to them. They were just violent films with little or no film expertise exhibited by the director. In this homage to those crappy films, you have Tarantino and Robert Rodriguez making two films in the same vein. Robert's film is pretty decent as we are treated to zombies coming to kill people and then you have the gorgeous Rose McGowan getting a machine gun for a leg. This episode is at least blatantly tongue in cheek. It has a likable cast that includes Michael Biehn and Jeff Fahey. This zombie flick is action packed and humorous. And as much as I'd like to go on praising this portion of the film, it's hard to remember the good things after you watch Deathproof. The film has two great scenes. Both of them involve Kurt Russell trying to kill people with his car. But once you get past that, what you are left with is a rip off of Reservoir Dogs and more inept dialogue that goes on for 20 minutes at a time and the conversation adds up to a big fat nothing. I could really care less about Pete Townsend leaving the Who to join some silly sounding band. Or how Daryl Hannah's stand in screwed one of the girls love interest. None of the dialogue fits in this movie the way it did in Reservoir Dogs or Pulp Fiction. It's sound for the sake of sound.

I get the feeling watching Quentin's recent films that he really doesn't give a damn about what his fans want. He makes films to amuse himself. And good for him I guess. If you can get paid insane amounts of money to basically go to a playground and play tag on the jungle jim all day long, then you have the perfect life. But if you are here to make movies that people want you to make, and you end up disappointing them because of your ego, then every criticism bestowed upon you is deserved. And don't be surprised if he starts to lose some of the support he has in Hollywood right now? You think two crappy films in a row can't do you in? Check out M. Night Shyamalan who also stopped making movies for an audience but more for himself. Check to see what his next movie has for a budget and how short of a leash he is on. QT could be heading down the same path to nowhere.

Grindhouse is a massive failure because Quentin's ego is about the size of Texas now. And as the cook says in Planet Terror, "best damn one in Texas," you can apply that same idiom for Quentin, but with a slight variation.

"Biggest ego in Hollywood!" One of the biggest disappointments of the year, maybe of all time.

3/10 Planet Terror- 6/10 Death Proof- 2/10

HARDCORE SEX!!! Now that I've got your attention...

[luke_hardeman · 9/10 · 27 March 2007]

Anyone wary of straying from this title, either due to hype, or disappointment of Quentin Tarantino attaching his name to any recent foreign flick with flair, will genuinely be sorry if they miss this tandem outing from the qwerky director and his partner in crime (movies), The father of El Mariachi himself, Robert Rodriguez.

GrindHouse, from the very beginning, has Tarantino's 70s fetish fingerprints all over it. From the intro before the film, to the title credits and music selection, the viewer is transported into a world that is surreal, and yet overlaps with a new-age filmaking style that captivates you until the end scenes.

The first movie in the double feature, Planet Terror, is directed by Rodriguez, set in a dark town in Texas. The story involves the leak of a deadly bio-chemical weapon, that turns the ordinary townsfolk into flesh-eating zombies, and only a brave Go-Go Dancer (not a stripper she clearly exclaimed) named Cherry and her group of vigilante survivors can stop them.

The second feature, Death Proof, is a story filled to the brim with dark humour, with the triumphant and sadistically-charged return of famed actor Kurt Russel in the role of a voyeuristic mystery-man, Stuntman Mike. Directed by Tarantino, the avid viewer will see many stylistic similarities to his most recent adventure, Kill Bill, with even more in-your-face, no-holds barred (and sure to be controversial) action.

The trailers that precede each film are brilliantly presented, and well worth the campy-ness, a surefire hit with any cult fan of the respective directors, as well as the average moviegoer. With cameos abound, including the filmmakers, comfortably laughable blood and gore, memorable characters, and the occasional "just-cause-we-can" skin flashes, GRINDHOUSE is a sure to be box-office darling, and a must see for any action fan.