DVD Review Death Proof Extended DVD Review (1 Viewer)

[Michael Reuben]

You don't have to know physics to know something about momentum. And two of these women were trained stunt doubles (one in real life).

M.

 

[John CW]

Zoe Bell is a really smart, sweet, lovely person. Have you seen Double Dare (the documentary about her and her work)?

 

[JeffMc]

No, I haven't seen DOUBLE DARE. I don't plan to. She was annoying enough in DP so that was plenty, thank you very much.

Zoe Bell may be a stuntwoman in real life and other actresses in the film as well, but that doesn't mean her "character" was smart. In fact, all of the characters came off as idiotic and annoying. And if Zoe was a smarter idiot character, she wasn't the one to decide to slow down or not anyway as she was outside.



SPOILER!!!!








In retrospect, the characters were all so stupid so why expect them to even think about slowing down in the first place. Duh! Was I the only one wishing Stuntman Mike killed them all off in brutal fashion?

 

[BarryS]

That's in keeping with Tarantino's style. He includes details both modern and retro all the time. Just look at Pulp Fiction which often feels like it takes place in the '70s, but it doesn't. Its set in modern day (well, 1994). Mia Wallace uses a reel-to-reel tape deck, yet Vincent Vega talks on a cell phone. Same with Reservoir Dogs, Jackie Brown and Kill Bill.

Of course, Robert Rodriguez does the same thing in Planet Terror. So I guess that's how the envisioned both movies, feeling retro but taking place in present day.

 

[Brent M]

Just watched the flick for the first time(didn't catch Grindhouse at the theater) and I'm not really sure what to think about it. I'm a huge QT fan and Pulp Fiction is easily one of my favorite films of all-time. Jackie Brown ranks up there pretty high as well. I'll probably need to watch Death Proof a few more times to really appreciate it, but upon the first viewing I don't think it holds up to his other work. The characters weren't as strong as they have been in his previous films and the dialogue was a lot weaker than it was in those flicks as well. Russell was really the only character that gave a good performance IMHO and Zoe Bell, while she might be an awesome stuntwoman, was just flat out annoying. I will say, however, that the car chase was one of the most entertaining action sequences I've seen in a long time. Just plain AWESOME and worth watching the movie for alone. Overall, I'd probably give the movie a B- or a C+, but I'm sure I'll probably grow to like it more on subsequent viewings........when I fast forward through the parts where Zoe talks.

Oh, and yes Travis, Quentin's foot fetish is completely out of control.

 

[Ronald Epstein]

Brent,

Your post has annoyed me as you are an example of many
more comments like this to come....

(and it has nothing to do with you personally)

This is the first time you have seen Death Proof. You
never saw the complete GrindHouse experience. You also
claim that you didn't quite like the film.

This is the ultimate problem with the studio deciding to release
these films separately and in extended editions.

Watching this DVD outside of the GrindHouse experience is
bad enough. However, having to sit through all the extra dialogue
padding that was put back in makes this even a worse first-time
viewing experience.

You really need to see DeathProof as it was originally
presented. The film was much tighter, and the fact that the lap
dance scene was replaced with a "reel missing" card was
one of those moments you really appreciated.

This DVD release, in my opinion, is a travesty. It's fine to put
out an extended edition with all these extra scenes, but it is the
sort of thing that should be done after the theatrical versions
are released. GrindHouse should have been released
as one film on DVD before even attempting this edition. In doing
so, I think you would actually have liked this film much better.

 

[Justin W]

 

[TravisR]

Love it or hate it, it is Tarantino's preferred version of the movie. Not to say that he's disowned the Grindhouse version of DP but the only reason that you didn't see the extended version in the first place is because it couldn't fit into its 90 minute slot in Grindhouse.

 

[Brent M]

Honestly, 10 or 20 minutes of extra dialogue is not something I would ever complain about in a Tarantino movie, but in the case of DP the dialogue just isn't that good in the first place. At first I thought maybe it was the fact that the lines weren't being delivered by Tarantino veterans like Samuel L. Jackson, Michael Madsen, Harvey Keitel, etc, but then I realized that even if they were saying the dialogue it probably wouldn't have made a difference. This movie is not a quotable flick like Pulp Fiction or Reservoir Dogs and that's fine as all of QT's movies can't be expected to be on that level, but as I said before after the first viewing this was something of a disappointment for me and I just hope it will improve upon repeat viewings. Maybe I would've liked the original version more, but thanks to the Weinstein boys I'll probably never get to find out.

 

[Corey3rd]

This should be called The Bloated Edition of Death Proof. At first I was ticked off that they cut the promised lapdance scene. Now watching it, I feel cheated that there's no Reel Missing moment. Tarantino won't be declared the next Bob Fosse anytime soon.

The black and white scene just drags to the point of pain. The movie comes down to two scenes. Everything else is extreme filler. There's so little tension built up into this film. And since nothing major included in this cut heightens those two scenes, it's pure bloat.

The films worked as Grindhouse since it was playing with a concept with the fake trailers and the ratings promos. But as solo features, they show two directors who couldn't have made deals with Sam Arkoff.

What's amazing is seeing the international trailer. That film looks amazing.

 

[Mike*Sch]

Ronald,

I pretty much disagree with your entire last post. To me, GRINDHOUSE was a failed experiment. The idea was great, but the execution was bad. Placing DEATH PROOF inside the Grindhouse experience only compromised it. The look of the film was altered to support the gimmick and the length of the film was shortened to allow for the double-feature. Additionally, people's expectations were incredibly skewed by what this film promised which hurt their appreciation for what it delivered. Splitting these two movies up is the best thing that ever happened to them.

 

[Doug Schiller]

The young lady driving the white Charger 100 miles an hour as her "friend" was flipping around on the hood. Dawson was at least not trying to be like Jackson.

 

[TonyD]

ron, i agee with your post.
especially with the way this was released to dvd.
it should have been the entire grindhouse feature, first.

i said that in post 52.

it would have made a better film as GH first then as seperate extended releases.

oh well.

 

[Dale MA]

I never saw Grindhouse in cinemas (it was never released that way here in England), but I picked-up the extended cut of Death Proof and loved it.

Because it was never released as Grindhouse where I live, I really hadn't been following all the various developments and problems that the film had been through during its theatrical run in the US, therefore I watched the film with fresh eyes so to speak, without any prior knowledge of the shorter cut.

Anyway, I really enjoyed Death Proof, it actually kind-of felt like a lost video nasty. I guess it's true what Tarantino always says, we Brits do "get" his work far more than anyone else.

 

[Brent M]

I have to take exception to that remark because I think a lot of us here in the states "get" Tarantino's work. I've been a huge fan of his since the beginning, but I just don't think Death Proof lives up to the bar he's set in previous films. I didn't dislike the movie and as I said before the last 20 min. was worth the price of admission alone, but it certainly wasn't my favorite QT flick by any means.

 

[TravisR]

I'm sure most people are just goofing around about 'getting' Death Proof but as with any movie it's not mutually exclusive- you can get the point that people were trying to make with the movie and still not like it.

EDIT: Dale, I love the Brit term 'video nasty'. It sounds both sleazy and funny at the same time (even if government censorship isn't really a funny subject).

 

[TonyD]

the "dont get it" thing is overused for a defense when someone disagrees with one's opinion.

i used it in this topic and probably brought it in here when i used it, a way that misinterpreted

 

[John CW]

Well this is clearly a film that has split opinion.

You're misinformed about Death Proof extended, though. This wasn't a "studio" decision. Tarantino was always going to release Death Proof as a standalone film in its fuller cut (his preferred cut) on DVD, whether Grindhouse was successful or not (it wasn't an issue). (He even hints at this with the "missing reel" gag in the Grindhouse version.)

In his own words, the only way he could have released Death Proof in the extremely cut down version in Grindhouse (cut "past the bone", as he put it) was because he knew that HIS version was going to be the one out on DVD. Also, not sure if you know this, but Grindhouse was NEVER scheduled to be seen in many countries outside the US. Most territories were always only ever going to see his extended version.

Finally, Grindhouse is surely something that was designed for cinemas. I don't think you can really recreate the same feeling at home (although I'm sure many will want to try).

Finally finally, the reason why the juxtaposition of "old" dirt and scratches and the modern technology works is that back in the 70s you would have had these same poor projections, but you would have been in the 70s, too! (They weren't "old" back then ).

Also, the reason, IMO, that the scratches disappear at the end of the movie is because it's a different film at the end. We're more "onboard" by then, it's less jokey (except for the last shot, which is priceless).

Overall, Death Proof is Tarantino's most joyous and fun film, if you ask me.

 

[Jon Martin]

Yes. This DVD is essentially the director's cut of DEATH PROOF. This is the version that QT submitted to Cannes. This is the version he wants you to see.

While I haven't seen the new cut yet, the GRINDHOUSE version was easily QT's weakest work (and I would include FOUR ROOMS). The dialogue was like someone doing a parody of QT's pop culture driven dialogue. And yes, the foot fetish stuff was embarassing.

It did have its moments, in the final half. But it was a 62 minute movie stretched out to whatever the GRINDHOUSE running time was.

 

[John CW]

Like I say, it's interesting how the movie has divided opinion so radically. I did feel ambivalent at first, but now I really enjoy it. The dialogue wasn't immediately addictive, but as I've said, it is character consistent, and seems to get better on subsequent viewings.

I find the film now oddly compelling. It's almost like Tarantino has succeeded in creating what he was originally homaging: A guilty pleasure.