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Sauer Reviews

Grindhouse

I've never sat in a theater and watched a "grindhouse" flick, but I have seen my share of awful B movies. The kind of films that are so bad the're good. Tarantino and Rodriguez tried to tackle the genre with their first double-feature (if you discount Dusk till Dawn.) How did they do?

The film opens with Rodriguez's Planet Terror, A action-packed Zombie flick with tons of blood splatters and bad lines.  Rodriguez knocks this one out of the park. Not only is it one of the most exciting zomibe films ever shot, it's filled with tons of great moments and pays tribute to some of the best zombie films from the 70s. The Zombies themselves are some of the grossest ever put on screen. The heroes are also some of the funniest. From Rose McGowan as the stripper who wants to be a "stand-up" comic until her leg gets torn off, to Freddy Rodriguez's surprise bad ass Wray. All the characters come together to make this one of most memorable and gory Zombie films in recent history, and is easily worth the price of admission alone.

Don't get up for the bathroom just yet. In between Planet Terror and Death Proof is one of Grindhouse's best parts. The fake trailers shown in between these films are all hilarious and should not be missed. Eli Roth's trailer in particular is a work of horror genius, with plenty of blood and bad taste to go around. Depending on the kind of person you are, you'll either be laughing hysterically or cringing in horror. Either way you'll be having fun.  I could easily watch an entire movie filled with these trailers, kind of like a Kentucky Fried Movie for horror geeks.

So after the explosive fun of Planet Terror and the quick pleasure of a few fake trailers, Tarantino comes in with Death Proof. Death Proof is a bit hard to review, because it will easily be a love it or hate it type of film. For one, it's very slow compared to the previous film. Which comes as a shock to the system after being through so much action. It's also filled with tons of vapid dialogue. Tarantino seems hellbent on actually making a bad movie, not an overly entertaining one. While this may be a bit disappointing, it's also very true to the genre. If you've seen these old films, you would know most of them were filled with tepid scenes with very little going on. The films had their moments which made them classic, it just took a little patience to reach that climax. The death scenes in Death Proof are all great (despite being very few and far between) , the car chase pretty amazing, the real question is was the payoff worth it? I'm not so sure. There were a few scenes where a fast forward button would have been really useful. At times Tarantino's film seems more of a tribute to himself then to the bad movies he watched growing up. His geek-ego is in full force.

So despite being a little disappointed in Tarantino's half, the overall package is still great, and can easily be recommended to fans of blood, boobs, and bad lines. Grindhouse is a film event that is filled with plenty of guilty pleasures, and that's what makes it such a success.

Planet Terror - 9/10

Trailers - 9/10

Death Proof - 6/10

Overall - 8/10

 

 

 

 

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Published Apr 07 2007, 03:02 PM by sauer
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Comments

 

Raul Duke said:

Great review, but I'm not so sure I'll see this in theaters. Or maybe i'll wait till it hits the Dolla Theata.

300 was pretty brilliant. Just don't expect much of a story and you'll be floored.

April 9, 2007 2:04 PM
 

sauer said:

Seeing it at the $ theater would be pretty fitting. I think a little of the film's overall experience would be lost on DVD. It was well worth the $10.

April 9, 2007 2:29 PM
 

Seth Linkerlogs said:

Hear hear Sir Sauer! I totally agree. All in all, I loved it. These guys just make movies that are so fun to go to. The rest of Hollywood should catch on to that.

And by the way...."DON'T!"

:)

April 9, 2007 3:23 PM
 

sauer said:

I doubt Hollywood wants to catch on to a less then stellar opening. Word is the films may be seperated and re-released. Money over Art always wins. :(

April 9, 2007 4:12 PM
 

Raul Duke said:

Yeah, it's gotta be worth $3 at the cheap theater up the road. They sell Kool-Aid and don't have arm rests on most seats, just wooden planks! And the seats are stained with all sorts of disgusting things. I'll be there in a few weeks when it hits.

April 9, 2007 4:30 PM
 

sauer said:

I saw Blade in the $ theater in Tallahassee. I think we were the only white people in the entire theater, and it was packed. At one point i saw a 40oz roll down the aisle. What great fun. I miss that theater so much, seeing Titanic there was also classic. Sadly, the cheap theaters are no more in S.Florida.

April 9, 2007 4:51 PM
 

corndog said:

Seeing Clerks at the Moore building in Tallahassee, and catching a random screening of The Shining at a tiny basement theater in NY are my favorite crusty theater memories.

April 10, 2007 9:10 AM
 

Afrocut said:

Its in. because this movie didnt destroy at openning and people arent seeing the entire thing....not to mention bad word of mouth from the stupid masses who just dont get it but will run to 'Blades..' . Wienstien says their going to re-release it split up . now ...why would any one pay to see them apart when they coulda seen both for the price of one? this also comes to light around the same time as the announcement that the dvds will be apart...it ruins the experience ...and kills the fans...damn DIRTY APES!!!!!

April 14, 2007 7:19 PM
 

Johnny Linn said:

You guys are forgetting that most people don't want to see movies the way "they used to see them" in double features and in drive ins. Shit, do you ever go to the drive in anymore? There's like one in all of South Florida, and I love going, but damn I don't do it very often. Anyway, I think it flopped because people just didn't know what to make of it. And after seeing the films I don't think Quentin had a very clear idea of what he wanted to do with the film either.

April 30, 2007 3:03 PM

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