Tim Roth is one of the regulars who appeared in Quentin Tarantino movies. Over the last few movies though, Roth has been noticeably absent. Which is actually a bad thing because he is such a wonderful actor. But it looks like Roth and Tarantino is going to reunite once again.
Tarantino’s much publicized World War II epic Inglorious Bastards is currently in pre production and there has been talk that Roth will be returning once again along with another Tarantino favorite, Michael Madsen. In an interview Roth (who will appear as The Abomination in the upcoming Hulk movie) said that he has been hearing the same talk but has yet to speak to Tarantino. he revealed that he and the director have talked about this movie a long time ago and he is hoping that he will become part of it.
Movie Review: Planet Terror
Robert Rodriguez is one of the shining stars of the new maverick style of American filmmaking that his contemporary Quentin Tarantino helped define. The two could be considered as two peas in a pod if you look at how both artists have turned filmmaking on its ear, bringing with them a freshness of vision and a love for pop culture and cinema that has become their distinct calling cards.
Among the two, Robert Rodriguez has been both the most prolific and the person who has straddled the line between indie cinema and mainstream movies. His Spy Kids trilogy is well loved by both children and adults, his teen movie romp The Faculty is a great sci-fi flick with
Planet Terror can be considered as Rodriguez’s return to the horror genre after successfully tackling it with the immensely enjoyable From Dusk ‘til Dawn. This time around though, its zombies that Rodriguez tackles with a lot of gusto.
Carrying on with the 70’s grindhouse theme, Planet Terror is an over the top and ultimately silly romp into the horror genre. Zombies as Toxic Avenger-like drones clearly define what Rodriquez is going for. He does know that applied to new millennium sensibilities this kind of pulp horror may look silly so he takes the most obvious route of making it a “kind of” parody. He succeeds in doing this because his actors were able to translate his vision on to the screen very accurately. Rose McGowan is superb in her role as the exotic dancer with comedic aspirations. Michael Biehn and Jeff Fahey may be dinosaurs already but in Planet Terror they show why they should be given more projects. They can be hilarious, serious and over the top at the drop of a hat. The only miss here for me would be Freddy Rodriguez who seems to be confused about his motivation. There are scenes when he is at a loss whether to act like he’s in a parody or if he straight acts the scene. It feels rather disjointed watching him. I distinctly remember Demi Moore in Striptease who also had the same problem – straight acting all throughout a movie that is a satire. This problem really illustrates that “thinking actors” is not an oxymoron.
Rodriguez’s signature visual style is well and truly used in Planet Terror. His penchant for expansive angles that swallow the characters in its breadth is used brilliantly here, most especially in the establishing shot of the restaurant. The weight of that angle carries a thick sense of foreboding that is conveyed in one brilliant shot. The editing is so well paced that even the deliberate slowburn of the scenes with the amazing Josh Brolin serve as a great counterpoint to the more frenetic scenes that happen in between it.
The Grindhouse experiment may not have been a complete success but I think it was a great exercise in creativity and a wonderful homage to a genre of filmmaking that has been unjustly ignored. And as homages go, Planet Terror has done it successfully.
Movie Review: Death Proof
Quentin Tarantino’s Death Proof, his latest movie after the one-two punch of Kill Bill Vols. 1 and 2, is part of Tarantino and director Robert Rodriguez’s homage to the grindhouse movie culture of the 1970s. The two directors decided to make their tribute by trying to faithfully embody what grindhouse cinema is – aside from the themes of their movies, they also decided to show it back –to-back just like the “double feature” practice during that time.
Death Proof, Tarantino’s grindhouse take, is vintage Tarantino. All the elements that you have come to expect from a Tarantino movie are here – and he really brings in bucketfuls of “Tarantino-isms” to the screen. You’ve got the imaginative shots and perspectives, the lightning fast witty repartee, and the pulpy plot and story that is filled with obscure pop culture references. Tarantino has really honed his personal style to a razor’s edge and Death Proof shows it in spades.
Trying to give short description of the plot of Death Proof will be futile because a synopsis will not do the story any justice. It is Tarantino’s penchant for making the different scenes of his movies twist, fold, and bend into each other that makes it quite difficult. The great thing here is that Death Proof is told from a straight narrative, with absolutely no flashbacks or post-modern story structures like the one Tarantino used in his breakout movie Pulp Fiction. It is precisely because of Tarantino’s immense talents that the movie feels like it folds in on itself without even screwing with the narrative.
I absolutely love the fact that the two “halves” of the movie is punctuated by probably one of the most memorable crash scenes in recent history. It serves as a dramatic counter point that signals the end of the first half, if you will, and the beginning of the second half. I think it is really clever. You enter the first half not really knowing where the movie will go then you see the crash scene so by the time you get to the second half you already have this immense sense of foreboding. This new set of girls are going to get it too. That’s what drives the second half of the movie – the impending sense of doom. But Tarantino still manages to turn the tables on us by actually pulling in another twist. This time, it is the Stuntman (devilishly played by Kurt Russell) who gets the surprise of his life.
Tarantino mined a lot of talent for this movie. Russell is just picture perfect for his role. Rose McGowan’s cameo of sorts is very memorable. CSI New York’s Vanessa Ferlito is a revelation here. She really dove into her character with gusto and that lap dance sequence is just phenomenal. Same goes for Rosario Dawson, who provided her character with the right amount of zing.
I know that Death Proof has polarized a lot of people, this is one of those “love it or hate it” type of movies. I for one loved it and this is another fine addition to Tarantino’s already impressive filmography.
Rating: B-
The Beat of the Feet: Shoes On Television and Film
As important as shoes are in real life, it’s no surprise that they hold a special place in television and film. Whereas a lot of attention is paid to actor’s expressions, voices, and script, there’s a lot to be said for those extra details that make everything believable and immersive, and small things like footwear can do that trick.
For a few illustrations of the overall importance of this topic, consider that there are entire shows that feature shoes of some sort, that they often have thematic importance in movies and film, the foley work that goes into good film sound, when they get focused on, and their importance in niche martial arts movies. [Read more…]