Having missed the grindhouse era by twenty years and a thousand miles, I looked to this film for some insight—a lesson in the ways of dirt-cheap, thrills-without-shame cinema, as much of the 1970s “exploitation” crop is now available without scratches, crackling sound bubbles, or missing reels on VHS and DVD at the local library. Which takes away something, considering genuine grindhouse films were shown in dark, dank, cramped, uncomfortable theatres wedged between porno huts and sweltering alleyways; the closest thing I have to this sensation today is a small, outdated theatre back home with sticky soda floors and a bad speaker system. And there was an audience, always a throng of the willing and open-minded to bask in an evening of mindless, sensationalist entertainment.
Which makes the widespread reaction to Grindhouse so disappointing. Despite being praised by critics, the film has earned less than half its budget and never rose above third place at the box office. Perhaps it’s the three-plus hours of mind-numbing action—no plot, purposefully bad character development, endless gratuity—the generational cast, or maybe even the directors, but Grindhouse never seemed to catch on. An especially sad notion, considering this is the most fun I’ve had at a theatre for some time. Even the fake trailers, shamelessly amusing cameos and all, were well worth the price of admission.
by Adam Balz | Source: Dimension Films 35MM Theatrical Print
25 Apr 2007 3:33 PM | Comments (2)
Amen to that, brother. Anyone who turned down the movie missed out on one of the greatest trailers ever, that being “Don’t”. And anyone who isn’t interested in seeing a movie about zombies or babe-killing stuntmen isn’t a person I wanna know.
Also, you can’t beat Cheech Marin as a gun-toting Catholic priest.
Bill
25 April 2007
12:40 PM