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"Grindhouse" is 65% swell

Posted by Jeffrey Wells on March 24, 2007 at 09:37 AM

Half of Grindhouse (Weinstein Co., 4.6) -- okay, 55% or 60% -- gave me a kick that I haven't gotten from a mainstream film in a long, long time, and I owe 100% of that pleasure to director-writer Quentin Tarantino, who is definitely back in the saddle with this one and going yippie- ki-yay.

Everyone knows that Grindhouse is a double-feature movie -- a pair of late-'60s style exploitation flicks intended as a jaunty tribute piece. Created by Tarantino and Robert Rodriguez, it's a film that samples and comments upon a long-dead genre without really "being" anything itself except for a showcase of hip-rich-guy attitudes. But for a film that runs just over three hours (i.e., 184 minutes) it's a live-wire, better-than-okay ride. The problem is that it starts with a semi-dud (Rod- riguez's Planet Terror) that you have to sit through in order to get to the really good one, which is Tarantino's Death Proof.

Planet Terror is a tired, gloppy and mostly groan-worthy zombie movie except for Rose McGowan's pistol-hot action scenes with her prosthetic machine-gun leg. But Death Proof , the Tarantino film starring Kurt Russell, is a sexy, sassy hot-chick flick boasting one of the most exciting car-chase sequences in cinema history...seriously.

And no fake-ass CG footage! Every last frame in Tarantino's car chase, shot on windy roads in the golden sloping hills north of Santa Barbara, is apparently 100% real and totally pedal-to-the-metal, and therefore on par with the car chases in Bullitt, the original Gone in 60 Seconds, Vanishing Point, Ronin, Dirty Mary, Crazy Larry and any other contender you can name.

My favorite Grindhouse one-sheet

But the fundamental thing is that Grindhouse is a beautifully recreated atmospheric revisiting of the world of scuzzy B movies of the '60s and '70s, complete with scratches, dirt, sound pops, cheesy trailer lead-ins, and all the low-rent touches that make you feel as if you're watching the film in some sorry-ass cave in some skanky section of Oakland or Cleveland or Elizabeth, New Jersey in 1971. It's a high-tech recreation of an analog, low-tech movie world that no longer exists.

Plus it has three (or is it four?) fake trailers for three or four other fake-scuzzy films, directed by Rob Zombie, Shawn of the Dead's Edgar Wright and I forget who else.

Planet Terror is a bloody, gutsy slime-gore piece about zombies stalking and devouring a small Texas town. It's Dawn of the Dead with gobs and gobs of yellow pus and karo syrup and animal guts, but without the class or the wit or the quiet character moments. It doesn't advance the zombie genre one iota -- it's a total cheeseball retread. In a post-millenial context I guess I'm a confirmed 28 Days Later type of guy -- I believe in muscle-bound, red-eyed zombies who run a mile in under 200 seconds, and I get no kick from the old zombie-shuffle of yore.

I'm being as nice as I can in saying that this plate of Rodriguez ghoulash is barely tolerable. For me it was mostly icky, pussy, coarse, tedious, gross, sloppy and (after 25 or 30 minutes) borderline dull. I loved the hot-chemistry attitude that McGowan and costar Freddy Rodriguez bring to their battling-ex-lover roles, but not enough to change my basic feelings.

Take away the car-chase finale and the Tarantino flick is almost all sublime, groovy-chick dialogue. This is Tarantino amblin' country, all right -- a place where very cool people (i.e., '70s "street" archetypes) talk and talk and say it just right while sipping a Corona or smoking a Red Apple cigarette or eating a Big Kahuna burger. And yet Death Proof is not, to put it mildly, concerned with notions of unity. It's a scattershot thing that's basically two short films in one. Two separate moods or tones and two separate female ensembles linked by Kurt Russell's "Stuntman Mike" character.

It starts out as a cruising-chicks-in-a-muscle-car movie, then it turns into a hanging-around-an-Austin-juke-joint, Eugene ONeil/The Iceman Cometh piece with Stuntman Mike putting the zen moves on a Hispanic hottie (Vanessa Ferlito) as her friends (Sydney Tamiia Poitier and I forget who else -- the press notes should have photos to go with the cast bios) offer snappy commentary. Then it suddenly shifts into a supernatural-psycho-killer-after-hot-girls movie ending in a major wipe-out/head-on collision sequence (with individual death-and-dismember- ment shots thrown in), and then finally a hot-chicks-get-even film ending with that balls-out country car-chase.

It's a foxy, half-crazy, smirky B-movie wallow with nary a thought or a theme of any kind, but it's a complete fuck-all pleasure to just rock and ride along with, and the car-chase finale (the star of which is New Zealand stuntwoman Zoe Bell, who stunt-dubbed for Uma Thurman in Kill Bill) is the absolute shit.

No question about it -- Tarantino really adores and understands women on a certain level, and nobody right now writes better tough-chick dialogue. Death Proof is junk, but it's a tasty, revved-up thrill -- a real fast-car, hot-chick high with back- country blacktop thrills a'plenty. Russell rules (although he's much cooler in the beginning, when he's a settled, contented barroom smoothie, than when he's called upon to turn fierce and psycho -- a shift that makes zero sense) but Zoe Bell is the break-out star.

Comments

Jeff - definitely at the top of your game when reviewing a picture - nice work on this.

Posted by: Tim at March 24, 2007 01:12 PM

Without acknowledging it, Jeff basically just retracted 15-20 posts from the last year or two. Of course, he has to qualify all his praise (to maintain an illusion of class), but he was wrong about Death Proof and he knows it. And how could he leave The Driver (clearly the best car chase movie ever) off that list.

If anyone's interested in Zoe Bell, I highly recommend Double Dare a good doc about stunt-women that primarily deals with Bell and her work on Kill Bill. It even includes her first meeting with Tarantino, as well as her audition for Kill Bill.

Posted by: JD at March 24, 2007 01:33 PM

agree with tim, what a fucking review, i can see you now in the theater squeezing the shit out of your popcorn box and splashing soda all over the place and getting a woody from the biker chicks, yeah baby!!!!

Posted by: vansmith at March 24, 2007 01:36 PM

The Weinstein Company, pre-screening:

"This is an unfinished print. No reviews from tonight."

"At all?"

"No reviews from tonight. By anyone."

Nicely played, Jeff! Fuck that embargo!

Posted by: Drew at March 24, 2007 01:40 PM

Great review Jeff! I love your reviews and really miss them. Mostly I see small reviews in the blog section but I would love more in depth reviews that deal with more than yea, nea or meh? Thanks for your great writing (and please stay away from the gossip, it is so beneath your abilities.)

Posted by: Jeffrey Easter at March 24, 2007 01:52 PM

Wells to Drew: I asked and was given a go-ahead.

Posted by: gruver1 at March 24, 2007 01:54 PM

wow...nice piece, indeed....i found myself much more appreciative of the rodriguez bit than the tarantino bit, however....and loved the intermission/trailers stuff...the thing that bothered me the most was seeing how hard they worked at transporting the viewer to another era (color palette, distressing the film) only to comtemporize the setting (girls weren't 'texting' each other back in the 60's-70's)...that might be nit-picking but it really was distracting....but it certainly is fan-bait despite the ungodly three hour running time....

Posted by: scooterzz at March 24, 2007 01:55 PM

"Without acknowledging it, Jeff basically just retracted 15-20 posts from the last year or two."

And good for him for being big enough to do it, despite the inevitable gotcha.

Posted by: Mgmax at March 24, 2007 01:58 PM

Looks like I owe you some thanks, Jeff. Because of your review, the embargo walls have fallen.

Viva la revolucion!

Posted by: Drew at March 24, 2007 02:29 PM

I'm curious, what's the 'rich guy' part of this movie?

Posted by: jeffmcm at March 24, 2007 02:33 PM

When you mention the greatest cinematic car chases, please don't leave out "The Bourne Supremacy".

I can't wait for this. Nice review.

Posted by: JB Moore at March 24, 2007 03:00 PM

Sounds what I was predicting...Rodriguez's film will be okay, Tarantino's will rock.

Posted by: dre at March 24, 2007 03:32 PM

shamelesscalculationhouse.

hamhouse.

chowderhouse.

claptraphouse.

emperorsnewclotheshouse.

baddialoguehouse.

sowhathouse.

marketingovercinematicpurposehouse.

cheesehouse.

boringhouse.

whocareshouse.

witlesshouse.

pointlesshouse.

youlleatanythingthefauxhipsterswhomakethisjunkfeedyouhouse.

ihavetorotatethecushionsonmycouchorrearrangemysockdrawerorcleanmyaquariuminsteadhouse.

we'll keep working on this one.

Posted by: dobbsy at March 24, 2007 03:39 PM

Let me join in the chorus - that was one badass review. Writing gems like this one make the case quite nicely for why Wells' site is worth daily visits.

One little quibble/exception to Wells' comment on zombie movies. They don't have to be fast to be scary. I know that I and like ten other people are the only ones who paid money to see "Land of the Dead" in the theater two years back, but that movie showed how a traditional zombie movie should be done. I love 28 days later too, and come to think of it, those two would make a pretty good double feature for a netflix night.

Also, as another poster already commented, the car chase from The Bourne Supremacy was top notch, as was, to a lesser extent, the chase from the first one.

It would be great to get a thread going just on car chases!

Posted by: OddDuck at March 24, 2007 04:05 PM

"Plus it has three (or is it four?) fake trailers for three or four other fake-scuzzy films, directed by Rob Zombie, Shawn of the Dead's Edgar Wright and I forget who else."

The other two trailers are by Eli Roth (Thanksgiving) and Rodriguez himself directed Machette (which apparently he plans to make into a full length feature).

Posted by: LOTGA at March 24, 2007 04:08 PM

That wasn't the final print? I'm not sure whether to be glad they might chop 30 minutes of the THREE HOUR running time or depressed I might have to sit through the whole thing again.

The fact is, both movies are woefully long and beyond self indulgent. Jeff, you're right, the Tarantino one is definitely better (although most people I've talked to like the Rodriguez gross fest better), but it's still a mess. It's obvious he had no idea where to take the story. Russell's performance has you thinking he doesn't understand what Tarantino wants to do with his character (written for Rourke and not him) and the best part of the movie is the car chase (best EVER? puhleeze...) and the actresses, who are pretty compelling. They make Death Proof at least watchable, although by the time you reach the third 10 minute plus rambling dialogue scene you still want to walk out. What I want to know is how on earth are they going to make their money back on the $50 million budget? And before you myopic Rodriguez/Tarantino freaks insist it's going to make $100 million (um, even "Sin City" only hit $74), remember it's THREE HOURS LONG. Is it time for Spider-Man yet?

Posted by: wholovesya at March 24, 2007 04:08 PM

Eh, as far as I'm concerned, Tarantino never left the saddle. I'm really looking forward to this! I just wanna know why they're not showing it at the New Beverly after Tarantino sponsored that B-movie fest there leading up to the Grindhouse premiere.

Posted by: DarthCorleone at March 24, 2007 04:15 PM

wholovesya, you're forgetting about foreign. Each Kill Bill film made over $150 million worldwide, Sin City made $160 million worlwide, and both Grindhouse features are being released separately outside North America. If that doesn't add up to at least $100 million worldwide, I'll be surprised.

Posted by: JD at March 24, 2007 04:17 PM

All right, whose butt is that in front of the juke box?

Posted by: nemo at March 24, 2007 04:18 PM

whoo!
however, I kinda figured about rr's movie.
he NEVER makes a fully developed movie.
it's always good for like 5 secs and then gets immature really fast.

whos with me in waiting till it hits the really cheap movie theatres so it can be seen in the right setting?

Posted by: alfred at March 24, 2007 04:22 PM

glad we're now talking about the numbers cos that's the whole story here. marketing minus inspiration + gross points x popcorn & coke - soul - any fun = the whole story aka "Planet Worldwide Gross" aka "Flop Proof."

Congratulations to all!

The American Indie Film is alive and as well as you demand it to be.

Posted by: dobbsy at March 24, 2007 04:24 PM

Darth: Grindhouse might play under the "sneak preview", but it hasn't been confirmed.

Posted by: D.Z. at March 24, 2007 04:27 PM

I've got to hand it to you, Jeff. You have a tendency to hop on a hobby horse and ride it down to sawdust, but it's clear that whatever your preconceptions, you deal with what's in front of you on the screen when the lights go down. You backtracked on THE DEPARTED, and now on Tarantino. I don't always agree with your opinions, but you're a man of honor, unafraid to reverse field when a movie calls for it.

You're also a hell of a writer. Some flavorful prose here.

Posted by: Noel Murray at March 24, 2007 04:34 PM

Great review, Jeff! I like the ones where your spellcheck has to learn a whole different language and this is one of them!

Posted by: zoey at March 24, 2007 04:47 PM

I find it funny that every outlet I talked to who caught Grindhouse has the exact opposite viewpoint from Jeff. Everyone seemed to love Planet Terror, and found Death Proof to be Tarantino's "Gilmore girls episode". Interesting. Of course, most of the folk I talked to are of the under 30 "Mouthbreathing-fanboy" crowd.

(Which reminds me, I think it's funny Jeff prefers the faster running zombies of 28 Days and Dawn of the Dead 04, directed by new whipping boy Snyder.)

That being said, it was an outstanding review, Jeff. I also enjoy these reviews, and think you're at the top of the game with them. So much more interesting than 4 barbed sentences aimed at Eddie Murphy again.

Posted by: The Winchester at March 24, 2007 05:08 PM

J-Mc,

I'm pretty sure QT and RR are the rich guys.

To everyone else:

Mad Max and the Road Warrior are the best car-chase flicks ever.

But I still don't know how Funny Games is a new movie.

Posted by: frankbooth at March 24, 2007 05:17 PM

I don't doubt that the RR section is so-so and underdeveloped, or that QT's contains too many digressionary rambles and that he's capable of so much more. I'm still looking forward to this.

But someone said it's not a period piece. Is that right? If ever a movie was begging to be set in the Seventies, it's this one.

Posted by: frankbooth at March 24, 2007 05:22 PM

No surprises here. Tarantino has always been way more talented than Rodriguez, so it should be no shock if Tarantino's movie ends up being way better.

Posted by: alynch at March 24, 2007 05:31 PM

Wells to nemo: Vanessa Ferlito's.

Posted by: gruver1 at March 24, 2007 06:39 PM

Frankbooth: no duh, but the question is: how is this movie a "a showcase of hip-rich-guy attitudes"? Wells tosses this phrase out there like we all know what it means. Is there an around-the-world balloon trip a la hip rich guy Richard Branson? Or an appeal to give to charities and stop global warming like hip rich guy Leonardo DiCaprio?

Posted by: jeffmcm at March 24, 2007 08:45 PM

How many times can one person use the word "chick" in the course of one review?

Glad to see Jeff reverse course here...it's and honest thing to do...but...

Noel, I'm sorry, one honest gut-check by Wells does not restore honor in him above, say, his rose-tattooed ankle. There's too much bad Murphy karma and recent bigotry for the word honor to stick to this guy.

Posted by: delbomber at March 24, 2007 10:54 PM

I imagine on the DVD you can just access "Death Proof" and skip the zombies altogether.

Posted by: nakedmanatee at March 25, 2007 12:16 AM

I'd imagine he means "pull the shades and crawl up your own ass in your private screening room as you endless re-watch and analyze your favorite poverty-row trashy movies from days gone by, and then try to self-consciously synthesize those elements in a digital test-tube" hip rich Hollywood guy attitudes.

While it's true that nowadays any poor guy with a DVD player and a decent video store/Greencine membership can do the same thing, rich guys have way more free time, as well as better access to rare titles.

But now I'm speaking for the man. Mr. Wells? Is this even close to what you meant?

Posted by: frankbooth at March 25, 2007 06:02 AM

Oh, like Howard Hughes.

Posted by: jeffmcm at March 25, 2007 01:37 PM

just got back from the new beverly and the wonderful un pc PRETTY MAIDS ALL IN A ROW...crowwd loved it...last time i saw it was at the qt fest 3 alamo, soon to be gone...sigh....

Posted by: christian at March 25, 2007 10:24 PM

Exactly. But only if Hughes wanted, in his heart of hearts, to be Jack Hill.

Posted by: frankbooth at March 25, 2007 11:18 PM

I think Hughes wanted to be Howard Hawks.

Posted by: jeffmcm at March 26, 2007 02:19 PM

i think hill wanted to be hawks wanting to be hughes.

Posted by: christian at March 26, 2007 03:20 PM

Whoa, am I to understand the *entire movie* is done with those stupid fake jumps, scratches and pops that are in the trailer?

I've been going to movies for a long time and I've never seen projection that bad. They aren't creating a world that "no longer exists", it's one that *never* existed.

Posted by: Ziggurat at March 26, 2007 08:58 PM

Is that not the point of going to the movies?

Posted by: jeffmcm at March 26, 2007 09:10 PM

Ziggurat,

It's obvious you've been going to the wrong kinds of theaters.

Posted by: frankbooth at March 27, 2007 09:06 AM

"They aren't creating a world that "no longer exists", it's one that *never* existed."

as opposed to the naturalistic worlds of STAR WARS or 300 or SIN CITY or...

Posted by: christian at March 27, 2007 12:51 PM

Posted by: kukuxz at June 5, 2007 10:06 PM

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