Grindhouse - New Tarantino/Rodriguez film announced.. (1 Viewer)

[Jonathan_Clarke]

FINALLY saw it. Reviewed it here:

http://notinmybook.blogspot.com/2007/05/grindhouse.html

 

[Jose Martinez]

Just finished watching the extended cut of Death Proof and while still a good movie, it just seemed a little more talky. Sure the missing lap dance scene was sexy but nothing really to go crazy over. Also, the beginning of the second half was changed with an added scene. I was almost on the floor when Stuntman Mike groped Abernathy's foot. I also didn't notice when I watched the original version at the theater how the second half was less Grindhouse than the first half.

 

[Jonathan_Clarke]

The second half of Death Proof or Death Proof compared to Planet Terror?

 

[Don Solosan]

Shouldn't this be in the software section, in the extended Death Proof thread? That's what you're talking about, not the theatrical Grindhouse experience.

 

[Jose Martinez]

Sorry, since it's about Death Proof the movie not the disc I thought I could discuss it here. If the admins want to move or remove it, fine by me.

Anyway to answer Jonathan: I guess it could apply to both since Death Proof was less Grindhouse than Planet Terror and the second half of DP was obviously less Grindhouse than the first half.

 

[Kirk Tsai]

Death Proof was a theatrical experience for me today, in the UK. It's been released in theaters this week; the reviews in the Times and Guardian were not very kind, but it's criticism we've heard of the film before: too much talking, not interesting enough talking, and two good sequences.

I had seen Grindhouse when it was released in the US, and enjoyed Death Proof quite a bit. So I went again to see the longer cut. Just comparing the two versions of Death Proof, I like the longer cut more. IIRC, the longer, stand alone cut has two major additions to the Grindhouse version. The lapdance, and second, a scene that happens after the initial crash, and introduces 3 of the 4 later girls and how Mike finds them. Both are very strong additions.

Ferlito moves well in the lapdance scene. But more importantly, the Grindhouse version's missing reel played as a gag, but the first half of the movie was always building to this moment. Taking the lapdance away is frustrating audience's expectations. The dance itself was not as sexy as Rose McGowan's opening in Planet Terror, but that's not my point. To see what happened makes the film more satisfying, even if the dance is abridged in the longer cut as well.

I believe the longer cut now has a "14 months later" time posted after the first crash, which may settle some debate people had in this thread when Grindhouse was released. The scene immediately following is terrific. It shows how Mike first sees the second group of girls. When Mike takes pictures of the girls later, and we see that most of his focus is on Rosario Dawson, it gains a little bit more meaning--she's another Jungle Julia. I especially liked Tracie Thomas's "big ass cup of coffee," which is not a LOL joke, but made me smile.

Lastly, I think seeing Death Proof by itself may have made me enjoy this movie more too. Everything in Grindhouse leading up to Death Proof is instant gratification. I don't mean that in a bad way, but Rodriquez's film and the trailers don't let up for a single minute, whereas Tarantino's film is slower and talkier than most mainstream movies. In contrast, then, Tarantino's film seems even slower than it is. I felt my mind wander a bit during Grindhouse Death Proof, but not so this time; the pace seemed fine.