Death Proof 2007

Two cult icon directors Robert Rodriguez and Quentin Tarantino work together again to pay tribute to 70s grindhouse. This new double feature film Grindhouse includes two separate stories by each director. The format itself is pretty much like Three or Eros. However, the audience in the States did not understand the real intention of double feature, the opening week box office sales was poor. As a result, Grindhouse was cut into two films for international release. For those faux trailers, only Machete survived the split.

Death Proof
After Kill Bill, Quentin Tarantino's Death Proof continues to add glory to the theme of vengeance angels. The psycho killer played by Kurt Russell is both crazy and interesting, and it definitely took away Russell's tough guy image from our minds. Tarantino also pays his tribute to stunt-men in the film, and the stunts performed by Zoë Bell was extraordinary. The director's effort in the storyline transition is not up to standard though. The story-telling in Death Proof is more straight-forward compared to the Tarantino's previous films. Fortunately the director's trademarks are everywhere in the film, like the ringtone of Abernathy (played by Rosario Dawson) is Bernard Herrmann's "Twisted Nerve" (Kill Bill Vol. 1); the two police officers are the same ones in Kill Bill; and there are many references to Reservoir Dogs, Pulp Fiction and Kill Bill. All these are for the better of this story. Death Proof is in the situation more or less like that for Jackie Brown, which acted as a pit-stop after Pulp Fiction. Maybe we have a lot more request to made for Tarantino after Kill Bill, but if we can put these all behind, Death Proof is still one light enjoyment from the Tarantino. For the ending, it is so good that we joined the full house cheering.

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