Movie Review

Grindhouse

Grindhouse has a lot of good ideas but makes the critical mistake of showcasing them in little bits. The first fifteen to thirty minutes of this feature drew Borat-like reactions from the pumped up crowd; the offensive ?fake? trailer lineup is classic, which sets the tone ideally. But Grindhouse is kind of hit and miss as a double feature. Robert Rodriguez pulls ahead on this one, delivering a zombie bloodbath that?ll please many in ?Planet Terror.? But once Tarantino?s ?Death Proof? comes along, you may be ready to call it a night. Even for fans, his talk-fest here can get old and boring very quickly.

The best parts of Grindhouse leave you wanting more, which is good and bad; they leave you with a tease of what might come next, but the best moments of shock value come early on. Some of the fake trailers are so good that you may want to see those films instead. Tarantino and Rodriguez have a crude but very funny take on certain actors and clich?s in film. But the biggest problem with Grindhouse is that their own flicks don?t quite add up sufficiently.

Rodriguez has a blast with ?Planet Terror,? allowing his actors to be overtly serious and dorky while piling on as much silly blood and gore as he can; and he makes it fun by not taking himself seriously. He takes music and sound cues from old cheesy horror flicks and exaggerates them for comic relief. And his actors do a good job of not overdoing the material; the shlockfest is executed just right to produce the appropriate reaction.

It?s in ?Death Proof? that Tarantino takes a different direction; and that will probably be a big debate. Some will favor ?Planet Terror? over ?Death Proof,? while others will be the opposite; and there will be some who think they're two of the worst films ever made. The problem with ?Death Proof? is that the dialogue plays too much like Reservoir Dogs and Pulp Fiction. The conversations are too similar just with different characters. That?s what makes the second half of Grindhouse disappointing; the pace slows down, but Tarantino?s dialogue just isn?t that original ? and the action pieces are also a bit of a letdown. Bringing back Kurt Russell as an action star also delivers minimal results; his role is not that great as a comeback to the genre. Tarantino shoves the camera into the actors? faces to show that he loves them all dearly, but that?s all that really comes across; the material itself is lacking.

Grindhouse is an ?audience? movie, which is what can make it work. If seen in an empty theater or with casual moviegoers, some of the moments might not have quite the same sting as with an audience who have a deep understanding of the in-jokes; part of the pleasure of the movie. Coming out, I knew I wouldn?t be able to watch it again in one sitting; it was just too much. Grindhouse runs at three hours and fifteen minutes; so for those who don?t like one film or the other so much, frustration and restlessness will be common reactions.

Rodriguez and Tarantino might receive heat for this, but Tarantino possibly more so; some will complain that the running time was just unnecessary. Especially with the Kill Bills having been broken up into two volumes, some will say that Tarantino needs to calm his ego; with ?Death Proof? as an example of being able to do anything he wants. As an entire feature, Grindhouse has some really good moments but it also treads a fine line; you may want to like it for what it?s trying to do, but it doesn?t do everything it seems it wants to. Certain bits seem inspired by the random and crude humor found in Kentucky Fried Movie from 1977, but the filmmakers don?t take full advantage of what they could?ve done with lampooning genres. Grindhouse is a long piece that has its charms and surprises, but it does outstay its welcome.

Lee's Grade: B-
Ranked #24 of 150 between Rescue Dawn (#23) and Dan in Real Life (#25) for 2007 movies.

A	0.4%
B	30.0%
C	61.7%
D	8.0%
F	0.0%