DAILY FILM DOSE: A Daily Film Appreciation and Review Blog: Robert Rodriguez
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Showing posts with label Robert Rodriguez. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Robert Rodriguez. Show all posts

Saturday, 16 October 2010

Machete

Machete (2010) dir. Ethan Maniquis, Robert Rodriguez
Starring: Danny Trejo, Jessica Alba, Robert De Niro, Jeff Fahey, Michelle Rodriguez, Lindsay Lohan, Cheech Marin, Steven Seagal

**

By Alan Bacchus

I was totally predisposed to enjoy this movie. I love the Grindhouse double-feature, specifically Robert Rodriguez’s Planet Terror, which I actually thought was one of the best films of the year, and even Scott Sanders’ Black Dynamite from last year. The film even has the most dynamite cast you could ask for: Robert De Niro using his Cape Fear accent as a corrupt right wing Senator, the monstrously ugly character actor whom Rodriguez personally created a career for, Danny Trejo, the comely Jessica Alba from Sin City fame, and Lindsay Lohan as a revenge-seeking nun.

And the plot, of course, expanded from the riotous fake trailer created specifically for the Grindhouse double-bill. And so what a disappointment when the ingredients don’t add up. There’s a helluva lot going in Machete, which unfortunately feels like a ill-matching patchwork quilt of contrasting plaids.

Danny Trejo plays a former federale Machete who in the past saw his family killed and himself left for dead at the hands of a maniacal Mexican drug dealer played by Steven Seagal. In the present, as a daylabourer he’s recruited by a nasty politician to assassinate a controversial Senator John McLaughlin who has a hardline stance against Mexican border crossers. The plot is a doublecross and Machete finds himself set up and framed for the murder. With the cops, politicians, the CIA and the drug dealers all after him Machete fights and fucks his way out of all kinds of danger, eventually going face to face with the man who killed his family.

Admirably Rodriguez and his filmmaking partners throw in as much ridiculous plotting and character to compliment to salacious b-movie plotting of grindhouse films of old. Side characters emerge all over the place for key cameo moments. Ie. Tom Savini, Don Johnson, even Rodriguez’ own nieces Electra and Elise Avellan who play the same deadly nurse duo Planet Terror. But it’s just too much going to on for anything to stick properly to the core narrative.

The action is also disappointing, though it has all the giddy carnage of Mariachi trilogy and Planet Terror, there’s no panache. Hell, where are the machine gun firing guitar cases?

We all know Danny Trejo can’t really carry a movie which is why the film is balanced with so many other better actors. But there’s just not enough done with say, Lindsay Lohan or Steven Seagal to capitalize on their talents and screen personas. Lohan only dons her nun’s outfit at the very end, and for the rest of film looks spaced out and vacant. And Steven Seagal barely gets to fight, instead looks like a bad Michael Madsen – which, come to think of it, would have been a better casting choice.

But kudos to Jessica Alba who was professional enough to be able to french kiss Danny Trejo while riding backwards on a motorcycle. I hope there was a bonus in Alba’s rider for that one.

Extra points for cinematic enthusiasm, but not enough for its execution.
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Wednesday, 9 September 2009

From Dusk Til Dawn

From Dusk Til Dawn (1996) dir, Robert Rodriguez
Starring: Goerge Clooney, Harvey Keitel, Juliette Lewis, Quentin Tarantino

***

Most people are divided into two camps with 'From Dusk Til Dawn' - people who like the two act structure, and those who don’t. And most people who don’t like the split seem to prefer the first act hostage road movie to the vampire gore fest of the second half. I think I’m in rare group that prefers the extreme Rodriguez action to the Tarantino gabfest.

We all know the story. Seth and Richie are a brotherly duo of thieves and killers on the run from the cops. They’re in the desert trying to make their way into Mexico and meet up with their money laundering colleagues on the other side. Seth as played by then ER hunk George Clooney, in his feature debut, is the charismatic but ruthless anti-hero leader. Richie (QT) is the loose cannon rapist who annoys Seth at every turn.

Early on the serial killer tough guy bantering with pop cultural references feel forced and recycled from 'Pulp Fiction', 'True Romance', 'Natural Born Killers' et al. And in particular, Tarantino’s ugly presence standing alongside the dashing and handsome George Clooney is just too strange and out of place not to notice. The film gets a quick jumpstart with the appearance of Harvey Keitel as Jacob, the defrocked preacher who’s lost his faith and his two kids Kate (Juliette Lewis) and Scott (Ernest Liu) along for the ride.

When the new entourage of kidnappers and kidnap-ees reach the Titty Twister bar in Mexico Robert Rodriguez takes over. Even before the rampage of vampire action starts a we’re treated to some wonderful dialogue between Keitel and Clooney discussing Jacob’s lost faith, over a fun drinking contest. Tarantino might have a penchant for overly loquacious dialogue, but as evidenced in ‘Inglourious Basterds’, most of everything we hear is by design and pays off later. And with the eyes of a new millennium genre-savvy audience the transition from talky road movie to bloody carnage doesn't seem all that shocking.

The film’s self-awareness and acknowledgement of both cinema history and the filmmakers’ own previous films in hindsight, makes the switch a natural transition. After all, if the first half is QT’s film, then the second has to be Rodriguez’s film. The duo would essentially do the same thing with their ‘Grindhouse’ pictures years later, except with Rodriguez’s zombie-fare first and QT’s talkfest last.

Though we’re told the monsters are vampires, arguably it’s a Romero-influenced zombie film. And looking back, if we accept Danny Boyle’s “28 Days Later” as the film that revitalized the zombie genre in 2002, for 1996, when “From Dusk Til Dawn” was made, puts Rodriguez and Tarantino way ahead of the curve. Enjoy.

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Tuesday, 21 April 2009

SIN CITY


Sin City (2005) dir. Frank Miller and Robert Rodriguez
Starring: Bruce Willis, Mickey Rourke, Jessica Alba, Clive Owen, Benicio Del Toro

****

The most subversive of mainstream films in recent years has to be Frank Miller and Robert Rodriguez’s “Sin City”. Perhaps only the genuinely independent Rodriguez isolated from Hollywood in his self-sustaining mini studio operating out of his home in Austin could pull off such a feat. With fine cinematic recklessness Rodriguez shows us some of the most violent, vile and misogynistic portrayals of violence ever put to screen and made it successful.

Rodriguez takes several of Miller's storylines and combines them together to form a unique episodic narrative. There's Bruce Willis as Hartigan, a former cop, who, while saving a child from kidnap, rape and murder, unjustly takes the blame for the rap and is jailed. When he gets out he must race to save the girl, now grown up to be Jessica Alba, from the same maniacal perpetrators. Also being chased throughout the city is Marv (Mickey Rourke), a bruiser of a man whose lover is killed in bed by a mysterious sicko cannibalist played by Elijah Wood. Clive Owen rounds out the triptych as Dwight who desperately tries to stop the city from imploding under a brewing street war between the cops, mob and street whores.

It’s all told with an eye popping extreme expressionistic style – a mixture of hard boiled noir and comic book fantasy sensibilities. The dialogue from each of the three stories’ protagonists is read with heighten self-awareness. Like the narration in “The Watchmen”, Marv, Hartigan, and Dwight, speak with grandiose melodramatic eloquence to an audience aware of the noir-speak of cinema past.

If these out-of-this-world characters weren’t played with complete seriousness and integrity, the dialogue would have drowned them in ridiculous overindulgence. Before the so-called comeback or 'resurrection' of Mickey Rourke, he managed to stun us with his portrayal of Marv with sympathy and surprisingly genuine sincerity. Beneath the heavily made up false nose and boxtop haircut, Rourke somehow managed to humanize the muscular-bound monster figure. And has Bruce Willis’ expressive eyes been used to greater emotional effect than in “Sin City”? Perhaps only “Pulp Fiction.” The third anchor, Clive Owen, has the most difficult role. It’s the most talky and least heroic of the three roles, but a testament to Owen’s talents to breathe life into Dwight. And in every corner of the picture is a fun supporting performance, my favourite being the surprisingly passionate performance of Brittany Murphy as the spunky waitress from Kadie's bar.

Years from now the filmmaking philosophy and literal adaptation of the graphic novel medium will be seen as a benchmark in filmmaking. And the immersive blue-screen production methodology has never been used better. With any camera angle Rodriguez can think of at his disposal, it’s his brevity and his adherence to Miller’s frames which elevate the material to high pop art.

The new Blu-Ray edition is a must-have for any fanboy. In addition to the already in-depth special features on the well-packaged extended/recut edition from three years ago, some added goodies make it worth while. Stunningly pristine image quality aside, perhaps the gem of the BD version is a fun ‘audience audio track’. With this clicked on you get to hear the proper 5.1 mixed audio along with the recorded audience reaction to the film’s premiere at the legendary Alamo Draft House in Austin TX. More than just some canned laughter, it's a neat way to bottle the movie experience you can only get from a darkened theatre.

Now I just wish Rodriguez would get going on "Sin City 2"...

"Sin City" is available on Blu-Ray from Buena Vista Home Entertainment

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Sunday, 14 October 2007

PLANET TERROR


Planet Terror (2007) dir. Robert Rodriguez
Starring: Freddy Rodriguez, Rose McGowan, Marley Shelton, Josh Brolin, Michael Biehn, Jeff Fahey, Bruce Willis

****

After a second viewing “Planet Terror” on DVD and alone, without “Death Proof”, it’s clearly one of my favourite films of the year. It’s a remarkably enjoyable film that succeeds on all levels – action, character, comedy, and genre. Every scene is infused cinematic wit and energy and from beginning still had me grinning from ear to ear.

The film opens with a wicked-awesome go-go dance routine from Rose “Cherry Darling” McGowan over the opening credits. Then the film establishes the creation of Rodriguez’s zombies with a ridiculously over-the-top action sequence on a military base in Texas. His blood squibs are extra juicy, like exploding water balloons of blood. Then Rodriguez establishes one-by-one the dozen or so characters in the town that will soon become victims or heroes in the 105min circus of carnage to follow. Each character is given a clear – albeit melodramatic – subplot which is followed through to the end, no matter what happens. Some are sincere and romantic, others are absurdist. There’s Cherry Darling’s list of “useless talents” that help her get out of a number of life-threatening situations, J.T.’s search for the missing ingredient to make his prize-winning BBQ sauce, Dakota Black’s relationship her father, El Wray’s attachment to his leather jacket as well as his attempts to win back his Cherry, his long lost love.

Rodriguez clearly loves his characters and the actors who play them, and so we love them too. My favourites are Marley Shelton, playing a gorgeous blonde doctor, Dr. Dakota Black, who performs all her action scenes in high heels and sexy smeared eye liner, Rodriguez’s own nieces playing a pair of ‘Crazy Babysitter Twins’ who are billed as such in credits, Michael Biehn and Jeff Fahey, two classic 80’s/90’s b-list action actors who seem practically separated from birth. Nicky Katt, Stacy Ferguson, Naveen Andrews – too many to name really – all add to the fun.

John Carpenter’s influence is all over the film. Freddy Rodriguez, who plays the soft spoken nave turned ass-kicking hero, channels the best Carpenter hero roles – Snake Pliskin, Jack Burton, and Roddy Piper from “They Live”. Rodriguez’s score has the same particular synthesized rumblings of a Carpenter score as well, not to mention his recurring theme of the townsfolk forced to defend together against a siege on the town (which originally is a Romero and Hawks creation). “Planet Terror” moves away from the Carpenter formula with its own brand of Grindhouse wit. In addition to many more subplots, Rodriguez manages to set up and execute more successful comic gags than all of his other films combined.

Rodriguez makes the film his own with his trademark hyperkinetic editing and shooting style he perfected with the Mariachi trilogy and particularly “From Dusk Till Dawn”. Rodriguez’s DVD special features are always top notch and his usual 10 Minute Film School Featurette shows how he and his special effects team used a variety of high tech and low tech methods of fooling us.

The digital scratches and imperfections hold well on DVD. When it was first rumoured that the Grindhouse filmmakers would purposely scratch the film to make it look old, I admit I cried foul. But seeing it on both big and small screens, the two films benefit greatly and add to the fun.

“Planet Terror” stands well on its own. The clever and busy narrative could have been overshadowed by the pyrotechnics but amazingly his motley group of Grindhouse characters are the most interesting and lovable from any of his films. I’ve seen lots of great and serious films this year, but “Planet Terror” will definitely find a place in my ten best. Enjoy.



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Monday, 9 April 2007

GRINDHOUSE


The Grindhouse (2007) dir. Quentin Tarantino, Robert Rodriguez
Starring: Rose McGowan, Kurt Russell, Freddy Rodriguez

****

Two exploitation films back-to-back with fake trailers before and in between each film. The film was created to be part of ‘an experience’ of watching bad horror/action films of the 70’s in crappy theatres with bad sound systems, smelly seats and scratchy prints. For the most part the film lives up to its hype, minus one flaw – but more on that later.

The first film is Robert Rodriguez’s “Planet Terror”. The plot of course is secondary but here goes, a group of scientists headed by “Lost” star Naveen Andrews has produced a lethal gas which turns people into man-eating zombies. Bruce Willis has formed a rebel faction of the military and kills the scientists and steals the gas for himself. Meanwhile we meet members of the townsfolk from outside the base: A former stripper, Cherry Darling played by Rose McGowan, the comely doctor Dakota Block (Marley Shelton) and her lesbian lover, Stacey Ferguson, Josh Bolin as Dakota’s husband, a local diner owner played by Jeff Fahey, an ornery sheriff played by Michael Biehn and a drifter, El Wray (Freddy Rodriguez). The film is well cast with semi-popular character actors from various action movies of the 1980’s. Though I have to ask, where was Michael Paré? The set up leads into a blood splatter extravaganza that brings all the characters together to fight off the evil zombies. Rodriguez throws in everything but the kitchen sink to keep our attention locked to the screen and every bit of it works.

“Planet Terror” is so f-ing good. Rodriguez amazingly juggles half a dozen characters and actually makes us care for each of them. The forced emotional moments add to the cheesy hilarity including Freddy Rodriguez’s attempts to win back his former flame, Dr. Dakota’s rescue from certain death by her resurrected father, and the Aliens-inspired suicidal death scene of Michael Biehn and Jeff Fahey. Freddy Rodriguez, though the shortest actor in front the camera, has the chutzpah of a young Kurt Russell and actually holds the film together as an action hero/leading man.

Speaking of Kurt Russell, Tarantino’s segment changes gears (pun not intended) and slows the pace down to add some dialogue into the mix. Quentin’s film is “Death Proof”, a send up of redneck road movies like “Vanishing Point” and “Dirty Mary, Crazy Larry”. A highway vigilante, Stuntman Mike, played by Kurt Russell combs the roads of Texas looking for groups of attractive girls to murder. His weapon is his ‘death proof’ car which allows him to inflict as much damage as humanly possible with his car yet miraculous protecting him from harm.

The major flaw of Grindhouse is in fact Tarantino’s film, which unfortunately doesn’t come anywhere near the humour or excitement of “Planet Terror”. Tarantino’s masturbatory dialogue runs on and on to the point of tedium. Ironically, despite his posturing about his love for Grindhouse cinema and throwing back to his days of watching B-action, kung fu and road movies, Tarantino didn’t make one of those films. He has made a Tarantino film – and a lesser one at that. I can’t imagine Tarantino ever heard such long stretches of banal unfunny dialogue in “Vanishing Point”. The actresses reading his branded dialogue unfortunately can’t sing it, and there’s definitely some poor casting here. And as far as hotness factor goes, he’s lost out as well. The girls in the first half of his film who are unfortunately killed off are far more attractive than the heroes that live at the end (sorry, Rosario Dawson, you’ve looked better). But enough quibbles. Tarantino’s film isn’t all that bad. Vanessa Ferlito sears every frame she’s in, Kurt Russell’s car kicks major ass and the death scenes are bloody lovely.

The trailers which come before and during the film are absolutely gutbusting, especially Eli Roth’s “Thanksgiving” and Edgar Wright’s “Don’t”. You will cry with laughter. Canadians will get an extra treat. Sandwiched between the ‘real’ trailers “Fracture” and “Live Free or Die Hard” is the contest winner for the best fan-produced Grindhouse trailer, the hilariously idiotic “Hobo with a Shotgun” (the title alone makes me grin). You can catch all these on youtube, but you’ll laugh harder in the theatre.

The added imperfections of the film - the intentional scratches, missing reels, faded colour and awesome porn music introductions work like magic and put you in the smelly Grindhouse environment just as the filmmakers wanted. It ALL works. Grindhouse will likely satisfy more of the ironic film loser type (like me) who can appreciate the joy of bad films. As for the others, I guarantee you will at least enjoy the trailers. Enjoy.

PS. I also suggest getting Combo #1 at the concession stand – large popcorn, large coke and the bonus pack of nibs – so fucking good!

Here’s the trailer:



And here’s some real Grindhouse trailers from the 70’s (watch for the cougar attack at the 3 min mark!).


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