Grindhouse
Bulldog Reviews
“Grindhouse”
By: Michael Pickowicz
What do you get when you cram as much sex, blood, and gore in two movies for a three hour period? A “Grindhouse”, of course! Directors Robert Rodriguez and Quentin Tarantino have each made a movie and are willing to prove that this dead tradition from the 1970’s can survive in today’s society.
The first movie shown was Rodriguez’s zombie movie, “Planet Terror”. The basic premise of the movie is about a former go-go dancer/wanna-be stand up comedian, named Cherry, and her ex-boyfriend, who was also a serial killer at one point in his life, named El Wray, as they battle a zombie virus that has taken a town in Texas by storm. The second movie shown is Tarantino’s “Death Proof”. This movie revolves around a has-been stuntman, simply called Stuntman Mike, as he uses his daredevil skills in his car to get into car crashes and kill women.
While these movies may seem plain ridiculous, that is exactly what the directors were going for. “Planet Terror” is definitely they crazier of the two films. This movie is just plan fun. All the thrills, laughs and pure gore that you would expect from a zombie movie are here and taken to the extreme. The movie is so over the top, that the absurd plot twists really don’t matter that much. It’s hard not to enjoy a movie that has a heroine with a grenade launcher/machine gun for a leg, and a hero who takes two switch blades and kills numerous amounts of zombies without a second thought. Another cool aspect of this movie is the real feeling that you are watching a movie that has been cheaply made. There is over exposed parts, random color changes, grain effects and shaky film, which give the film an authentic feel to it.
“Death Proof”, on the other hand, is a mix bag. One of the big problems with the movie is the sheer amount of talking. While I understand Tarantino’s desire to try to create a detailed cast of characters that the audience should care for, I didn’t feel that it added to the movie. The multiple female characters that you get to personally know aren’t really all that interesting. That being said, not all the long conversations were bad. Stuntman Mike, the main villain, is actually an interesting character to listen to as he makes conversation with the girls. You really do get to know and feel his pain as a stuntman that the world has forgotten and ignored. The best part about this movie is the last 30 minutes, which features one of the best, most suspenseful car chase scenes that I have seen in a while. Also, the ending is excellent.
While both movies are great in their own way, the overall presentation of “Grindhouse” is fantastic. Before and in between the movie, there are trailers for fake movies shown. These segments are truly inspired, offering outrageous concepts that are insanely funny. I almost wish some of these movies were real. My personal favorites were “Don’t” and “Thanksgiving”. Also, along with trailers are cool segments that add to the overall feel of watching a movie at an old drive-in theater.
The best way to describe “Grindhouse” is a movie going experience. The movie presents itself in such a unique way, it’s an absolute must see for any one that is into fun, scary, horror movies. “Planet Terror” is a fantastic movie which hits all the right marks when it comes to a cheesy zombie flick. It gets a 4½ out of 5. For “Death Proof”, while Tarantino asks a lot from the audience by making us listen to endless amounts of “girl talk”, Stuntman Mike and the last half of the movie make it all worth it. It gets a 3½ out of 5. “Grindhouse” as an overall movie experience (including fake trailers) earns 4½ Bulldogs out of 5.
“Grindhouse”
By: Michael Pickowicz
What do you get when you cram as much sex, blood, and gore in two movies for a three hour period? A “Grindhouse”, of course! Directors Robert Rodriguez and Quentin Tarantino have each made a movie and are willing to prove that this dead tradition from the 1970’s can survive in today’s society.
The first movie shown was Rodriguez’s zombie movie, “Planet Terror”. The basic premise of the movie is about a former go-go dancer/wanna-be stand up comedian, named Cherry, and her ex-boyfriend, who was also a serial killer at one point in his life, named El Wray, as they battle a zombie virus that has taken a town in Texas by storm. The second movie shown is Tarantino’s “Death Proof”. This movie revolves around a has-been stuntman, simply called Stuntman Mike, as he uses his daredevil skills in his car to get into car crashes and kill women.
While these movies may seem plain ridiculous, that is exactly what the directors were going for. “Planet Terror” is definitely they crazier of the two films. This movie is just plan fun. All the thrills, laughs and pure gore that you would expect from a zombie movie are here and taken to the extreme. The movie is so over the top, that the absurd plot twists really don’t matter that much. It’s hard not to enjoy a movie that has a heroine with a grenade launcher/machine gun for a leg, and a hero who takes two switch blades and kills numerous amounts of zombies without a second thought. Another cool aspect of this movie is the real feeling that you are watching a movie that has been cheaply made. There is over exposed parts, random color changes, grain effects and shaky film, which give the film an authentic feel to it.
“Death Proof”, on the other hand, is a mix bag. One of the big problems with the movie is the sheer amount of talking. While I understand Tarantino’s desire to try to create a detailed cast of characters that the audience should care for, I didn’t feel that it added to the movie. The multiple female characters that you get to personally know aren’t really all that interesting. That being said, not all the long conversations were bad. Stuntman Mike, the main villain, is actually an interesting character to listen to as he makes conversation with the girls. You really do get to know and feel his pain as a stuntman that the world has forgotten and ignored. The best part about this movie is the last 30 minutes, which features one of the best, most suspenseful car chase scenes that I have seen in a while. Also, the ending is excellent.
While both movies are great in their own way, the overall presentation of “Grindhouse” is fantastic. Before and in between the movie, there are trailers for fake movies shown. These segments are truly inspired, offering outrageous concepts that are insanely funny. I almost wish some of these movies were real. My personal favorites were “Don’t” and “Thanksgiving”. Also, along with trailers are cool segments that add to the overall feel of watching a movie at an old drive-in theater.
The best way to describe “Grindhouse” is a movie going experience. The movie presents itself in such a unique way, it’s an absolute must see for any one that is into fun, scary, horror movies. “Planet Terror” is a fantastic movie which hits all the right marks when it comes to a cheesy zombie flick. It gets a 4½ out of 5. For “Death Proof”, while Tarantino asks a lot from the audience by making us listen to endless amounts of “girl talk”, Stuntman Mike and the last half of the movie make it all worth it. It gets a 3½ out of 5. “Grindhouse” as an overall movie experience (including fake trailers) earns 4½ Bulldogs out of 5.
posted by Mikepicko at 11:51 AM
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