Grindhouse Presents, Death Proof - Extended and Unrated (2007)

I wanted to like more than I do

I agree with many of the points brought up in the lower-star reviews. It is too long with too little happening, sub-par dialog, etc.
But I have my own personal point that almost no one brings up.

Vanessa Ferlito is ugly as sin. I mean it - uglier than an orangutan that's been in a bar fight.

I mean, I can see the angle - "she's got that kind of Angelina Jolie thing going on." Way off base. She is just oddly put together. That one scene where she turns around from the jukebox, mouthing the words (not the lapdance scene, the other one), it's downright scary.

Now, what does this have to do with the quality of the film, you say? The character of Butterfly is clearly the focal point of the first half. She's the one that has the sense of foreboding, repeated sights of Stuntman Mike, etc. Heck, she's the one who dies most creatively in the car crash. Having her be this funky looking, foul-mouthed, bossy chick is something of a distraction. Certainly the most unappealing lapdance ever put to film. August 31, 2008

Not for those who want instant gratification....

I didn't actually get the chance to see "Death Proof" in theatres, though it escapes me as to why...Anyway, I first saw this on DVD. A friend of mine demanded that I see it, and since I'm a Tarantino fan, found this to be no hardship.

I think part of the problem why some people rated it so low is that most are all about the action--instant gratification, loves a drive thru and not a sit down at dinner type of person. This movie, though slow, is full of some of the most realistic and witty conversation I've ever heard in film or television. But no need to worry, gentle readers. The ending made me want to leap out of my chair and pump my fist in the air. The payoff is *extraordinary*, and it is one of my favorites of all time. And that is a damn hard list to get on.

Simply put, it is top notch. It takes a brilliant bastard to draw it out like that, and I don't think anyone else would have been capable of pulling off such a feat other than Mr. Tarantino. He is truly talented, and this film, by the way, was rated high marks by certain well known critics (Ebert & Roeper--I agree with most of their assessments of a film). August 20, 2008

Grindhouse Presents, Death Proof - Extended and Unrated

Another B movie Drive-In Theater Grindhouse production. I enjoyed Kurt Russell and the rest the cast in this fun 70s style horror emulating many of the movies back then like Death Race 2000 made in 1975. Although I didn't find this quite as entertaining as Grindhouse Planet Terror, I still think it is worth at least a rental and for this low low price for this two disc set I went ahead and bought a copy. Russell plays a heartless stunt driver bent on killing women. Unfortunately for him he runs across the wrong group of ladies that want some payback. The dialogue isn't as good as "Pulp Fiction" and "Kill Bill" so characters aren't as appealing. That and the cast isn't as impressive as Planet Terror. You may find yourself distracted so try and hang in there for the action sequences. Afterall I don't know about you but I saw the real movies like this in the 70s and they weren't all that gripping all the entire time and during those slow moments we got popcorn and sodas. Good quality DVD with some replayability. If you enjoyed this catch "Planet Terror", "Kill Bill", and "Sin City". - C. Luster August 11, 2008

Don't quit on Tarantino until you get your dessert

It's true; Death Proof starts out a bit slow. Don't quit on Tarantino, however, because he eventually delivers. If you've enjoyed his past works, stick around for the ride and you will be pleasantly entertained.

On one hand, this movie is ground-breakingly original. It's a seamless blend of various genres, with great camera work and character development, and an homage to old fashioned movie-making that is so devoted as to foregoing various modern film-making advances - so much so that the entire film is full of cigarette burns, screen flickers, and color changes that accentuate the action and overall tone being conveyed. On the other hand, it's an effort in exaggeration, with nearly everything on-screen coming across as a bit forced; it's almost like Tarantino is following his own script at this point, attempting to live up to his own hype. What has made him famous is the originality and unique style, but it's as if he's trying desperately to repeat everything he's done for his fans previously. And in the end, it's PERFECT.

With that said, it's quintessential Tarantino, from the ingenious dialogue (aside from the overuse of profanity) and random movie inserts (Big Red!) to the quirky, close-up angles and the ubiquitous foot fetish scenes. Appreciate the yin and yang of the long character buildups because they get totally flipped upside down when least expected. Relish in the shocks, because they're sudden, and you won't see them coming. In my favorite part of the movie there's an absolutely epic car crash scene in which four different characters meet their demise, and the scene is replayed four times just to show how each dies tragically - and as a side note, when spinning tire meets face, tire wins.

The summary of the movie is essentially Stuntman Mike (Kurt Russell), finding, stalking, and murdering groups of young, attractive women, by driving directly through them in a moment of carnage from which he narrowly escapes alive because of his death proof stunt-car. Stuntman Mike is sadistic to the point of psychosis, taunting the women as he toys with their lives; and in each altercation, the end result is meaningless, no matter who dies the audience wins. Typically, he gets the better of each encounter, but when he runs into a daredevil group of professional stuntwomen his luck changes.

Making a great cameo reappearance alongside the cock-eyed, initial victim of Beatrix Kiddo's string of revenge murders in Kill Bill is the father-son cowboy cop combo who investigated the wedding day massacre. They work their way through the first Stuntman Mike situation in the same clever, humorous manner as they did the chapel. They provide a wonderful addition that, like the entire movie overall, is like dessert: it's often unnecessary, and you usually have to wait for it, but in the end it's almost always delicious. August 11, 2008

Death Proof

You know I wish that I could agree with most of you on this movie. But I was kinda dissappointed with it.I just thought there was too much dialogue at the beginning I was so "bored".There were only maybe four scenes that I liked from the whole movie and they were all close to the end. I just wish the guy in the movie done more killing, or had a little more action in it just something better than the way it is. It was still pretty good in those four scenes though.Well not everyone agrees with everyone about how they feel about movies. Everyone is different dont take just my word for it watch it and see for yourself you may like it better than me. August 10, 2008

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