Grind House

Started by MacGuffin, May 26, 2005, 12:11:11 AM

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MacGuffin

Weinsteins ready for 'Grindhouse'
TWC's risky business
By ANNE THOMPSON; Variety

At last week's L.A. premiere of "Grindhouse," Harvey and Bob Weinstein looked like themselves again, after seeming to have left their brash personae behind at Miramax and Disney two years ago.

The moguls' career-long investment in Quentin Tarantino and Robert Rodriguez has yielded the $53 million "Grindhouse," a daring gamble that puts the showmen where they like to be: on the edge.

"It's the most adventurous thing Bob and I have done since the early days of our company," says Harvey. "It's a huge risk. I love the danger of it. I love these guys for pushing us."

Indeed, the double feature is far from an easy sell. It pays homage to the schlockhouses of the filmmakers' youth -- a concept likely lost on today's demos. Including four trailers, the entire package runs three hours and 12 minutes. And it's rated R -- a hard R.

Reflecting the filmmakers' desire, the pic is going out, the first ever, under the labels of both the Dimension and the Weinstein Co. ("It's too bad it's not Miramax," laments Bob), rather than MGM, which was the first option considered under the Weinsteins' deal with the reinvented banner.

Back in January 1992, having already fallen for Tarantino's script "True Romance," Harvey Weinstein scooped up "Reservoir Dogs" at Sundance. When a studio passed on "Pulp Fiction" for being too violent, Miramax backed that one, too.

After "Pulp Fiction" won the Palme d'Or at Cannes and scored $213 million worldwide, Weinstein took care of Tarantino like a benevolent studio dad through many dry years between such films as "Jackie Brown" and the lengthy martial arts fest "Kill Bill," which Weinstein insisted on breaking into two films.

"Quentin works when he wants to," says Weinstein. "There's no pressure from us to work at all. It's better when he's excited about something. He blends his life and his art. He's not a journeyman director. He doesn't have to make a movie every year."

Rodriguez and Tarantino have worked on each other's films ever since they met in 1992 in a movie theater lobby following a Toronto Film Festival panel on violence. Tarantino read scenes from "Pulp Fiction" to Rodriguez while in adjoining offices at Columbia Pictures. Both contributed short films to 1995's "Four Rooms."

Since Bob Weinstein backed Rodriguez on "From Dusk til Dawn," the prolific filmmaker's movies for Dimension have grossed almost $900 million worldwide, including the finale of the "El Mariachi" trilogy, "Once Upon a Time in Mexico," the "Spy Kids" trilogy and the stylized digital gamble "Sin City." (Now that Zack Snyder's adaptation of another Frank Miller novel, "300," is a global smash, stars are lining up to be part of"Sin City 2.")

Still, "Grindhouse" tested the relationships between the filmmakers and their studio patrons.

Initially, Rodriguez and Tarantino were supposed to deliver two 60-minute movies, on a budget of $40 million. But by last July's Comic-Con, that bubble had burst. The two filmmakers were each delivering a feature, "Planet Terror" and "Death Proof." The Weinsteins were still hoping that they'd be 70 minutes long.

First up, Rodriguez shot his zombie splatterfest "Planet Terror" at his Austin-basedTroublemaker Studios. When he fell in love with his femme fatale star Rose McGowan, he broke up his marriage of 16 years to producer Elizabeth Avellan. The production had to shut down for a month while he recovered.

The visual effects on the digital film, especially on McGowan's peg leg, also boosted the "Grindhouse" tab. They had also planned a December release. By July, it was pushed back to April.

Tarantino helped Rodriguez on his film by playing a supporting role and shooting second-unit work. By the time Tarantino completed the daredevil live-action stunt work on the climactic car chase on "Death Proof" in January, he had only six weeks left to edit the movie. In typical fashion, he tinkered up to the last possible minute, delivering a wet pristine 35mm print (which had to be digitally married to Rodriguez's intentionally scratched digital picture and turned into film again) just in time for the March 23 media junket.

The two filmmakers had cut as much as they could, but "by accident," says Rodriguez, each film wound up at 85 minutes, surrounded by four trailers directed by Rodriguez, Edgar Wright, Rob Zombie and Eli Roth.

Confronted with a three-hour-plus running time, Bob and Harvey blinked.

"Can't we go with two movies with two trailers each?" they asked.

"No way," the filmmakers replied.

This time, instead of one movie for the price of two with "Kill Bill," says Tarantino, "'Grindhouse' is two for the price of one."

"That's when they killed me," says Harvey. "When you see it, you just say, 'OK, you've got to be brain-dead not to get that one, it's so good and fun.' It's the fastest three hours you ever spent in a theater. It's an event, like a Stones concert, or the Who at Leeds. We're asking people to go to the movies. It's not something to watch on DVD or cable."

Finally, with the opening date bearing down, the Weinsteins went along with a three-hour-plus package with no intermission. "It's not just a double bill," says Bob. "It's an attitude. Not everything is about money. Theaters need something new."

Self-styled sensation junkies Tarantino and Rodriguez both challenged the norm with this one. Tarantino took live-action stunts to the limit with his climactic car chase starring stuntwoman-daredevil Zoe Bell. And Rodriguez scratched up his zombie gorefest to look like a rickety old print with broken sprocket holes. Both movies have "missing reels," and that excised footage will be featured, natch, on the DVD.

"It's so easy with them," says Rodriguez. "I love it that they're a hands-on studio. You can talk directly to them and they'll make a decision at the speed of thought. They said economically two movies was better. But it's stronger as two movies together. That's an event. Separate, it's just another movie. We didn't have to convince them very much. If you bring out the showmen in them, they'll embrace you even more."

The one thing everyone counted on being a problem -- bringing the film in with an R-rating -- turned out to be not so difficult.

"Just leave it to me," veteran ratings wrangler Tarantino told the Weinsteins.

Only minor trims were required. "Did you forget about the dripping penis?" the filmmakers asked the MPAA on MTV.com.

While the Weinsteins could have sent the movie out through MGM, which includes a lucrative Showtime pay TV deal, they agreed to the filmmakers' request to release it themselves through Dimension. Bob pacted with Starz Encore.

This may partially account for the Weinsteins' renewed energy. The brothers are on the line again, booking theaters, mounting one of the largest junkets ever, putting McGowan through 82 interviews in one day and pulling out the stops on a lavish downtown premiere party.

Instead of wearing suits and hobnobbing with investment bankers on Wall Street, Bob and Harvey are back doing what they do best: being showmen, putting their taste on the line, loving their movies and trying to send that message to the rest of the world.

Next stop: the European launch of "Grindhouse" at Cannes, where a longer version of Tarantino's "Death Proof" is expected to screen in competition and Rodriguez's "Planet Terror" may land a midnight screening.

Rodriguez and Tarantino want to keep the "Grindhouse" series going. For his part, Tarantino wants to shoot an old-school Kung Fu movie in Mandarin with subtitles in some countries, and release a shorter, dubbed cut in others. If the movie plays to theaters packed with screaming patrons, the Weinsteins may be willing to indulge him.
"Don't think about making art, just get it done. Let everyone else decide if it's good or bad, whether they love it or hate it. While they are deciding, make even more art." - Andy Warhol


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MacGuffin

Eli Roth's Thanksgiving trailer
"Don't think about making art, just get it done. Let everyone else decide if it's good or bad, whether they love it or hate it. While they are deciding, make even more art." - Andy Warhol


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MacGuffin

'Grindhouse' In-Jokes: Bread Crumbs Tarantino, Rodriguez Hid In Film
Directors left treasure trail for sharp-eyed moviegoers.
Source: MTV

You already know that "Grindhouse" consists of two mini-movies (Quentin Tarantino's "Death Proof" and Robert Rodriguez's "Planet Terror") and several hilariously phony movie trailers. In order to see the whole picture, however, you'll want to know all the in-jokes, intentional mistakes and general bread crumbs the cinema-savvy directors have placed for their sharp-eyed viewers. So, with some help from the stars, we were able to assemble this spoiler-free compilation of things you need to know before you visit the Grindhouse.

In Loving Memory If you listen carefully, you'll hear a radio dedication in Rodriguez's movie for a character who'll die in Tarantino's flick. "In 'Planet Terror,' Tammy, who's played by Fergie, is listening to the radio and then you hear a voice come over the radio," Rose McGowan explained. "That's because Quentin's movie would take place before Robert's movie, since ['Planet Terror'] is supposed to be the end of the world."

The Case of the Missing Reel Vanessa Ferlito did indeed shoot a striptease scene. Watch the film's trailer closely, and you can see the "Death Proof" actress crawling seductively across the barroom floor toward a seated Kurt Russell. Tarantino has said the deleted scene will be restored for DVD and international releases.

A Black-Eyed Zombie? To film her broken-down-Volvo scene with Jeff Fahey, Fergie rushed offstage immediately after playing a sold-out Black Eyed Peas concert in Dallas. Mere hours later, she was on-set in Luling, Texas.

A Cutting-Edge Tradition Robert Rodriguez and Danny Trejo continue a running joke with their fake trailer for "Machete," with Trejo once again named after a sharp weapon. In the "From Dusk Till Dawn" series he played Razor Charlie and Razor Eddie, and in the "Spy Kids" films he was also named Machete.

Two Eli Roths for the Price of One "Eli Roth plays the guy that's trying to get with me," actress Jordan Ladd said of the "Hostel" director, occasional actor and occasional MTV News contributor, who appears in "Death Proof." "He was in pre-production for 'Hostel II,' so we shot him for five days, and then we had to use our first [assistant director]. Quentin thought he looked a little bit like Eli, but he looks nothing like Eli! So if you see Eli's character in the background, it's actually the first A.D."

Nacho Problem Sharp-eyed watchers of "Death Proof" will also notice a continuity flaw when Russell is seated at the bar alongside Rose McGowan. In three successive cuts, Stuntman Mike is holding a drink, then a nacho chip, and then his drink again. Much like the Eli Roth "mistake," Tarantino purposely dropped it in because it's the sort of thing you'd see in a cheap '70's movie.

I Know That Voice! That familiar personality behind the narration-heavy trailer for "Don't!" is none other than "Blades of Glory" funnyman Will Arnett. The comedian's extensive voiceover background includes straight-faced ads for Lamisil medication and GMC trucks.

The Bride Lives! "The colors of my uniform, they're black and yellow," noted Mary Elizabeth Winstead, who wears a cheerleader outfit reminiscent of Uma Thurman's now-famous jumpsuit. "It's got black trim, and it says 'Vipers' on the front, so that's definitely an homage to 'Kill Bill.' " Rodriguez added: "Quentin uses some colors from 'Kill Bill' in one of the cars as well."

Time to Bring the Pain In "Planet Terror," Freddy Rodriguez portrays a mysterious man with a knack for gunplay. If you look closely, however, you might see pain in his eyes. "I was injured," he admits. "In that gun scene I was spinning the guns around, and every time I would spin the gun the trigger would dig into my finger. Eventually, pieces of skin started flying out, along with blood. I had two big holes in my finger." Rodriguez noted that if you look closely, you might even catch a few Band-Aids wrapped around his injured digits.

Is There a De Niro in the House? Josh Brolin gained 25 pounds for his role as Doc Block, in order to develop a believable beer gut. Much to his dismay, Tarantino cut most of the footage of a shirtless Brolin.

Whose Blood Is It, Anyway? "I'm sure you guys are wondering where my blood comes from," grinned Electra Avellan, one half of the Crazy Babysitter Twins. "I have blood all over my boobs — it was Quentin's choice, and my choice too. But no one seems to figure out where it comes from. Everybody has other people's blood on them, but mine comes from somewhere else." Rodriguez's real-life niece claims that if you watch the movie close enough, you'll catch a bizarre, background bloodbath.

Put Your Hands Together for Marley Marley Shelton was excited to find a scene in the script that called for her to lose feeling in her hand — because her hands are oddly jointed in real life. "Funnily enough, I can actually move my wrists in a really bizarre way," she laughed, letting her hand hang freakishly limp. "Stupid human tricks!"

Quentin Nearly Fell for Real "Rosario's character tells a story about when [our characters] were in the Philippines shooting a movie, and how I was trying to take a photo of her and nearly pushed her in a big gutter and she thought she was going to die," Zoe Bell explained, referring to a foreshadowing story told in "Death Proof." "That is [a real] story about Quentin and I, when we were shooting 'Kill Bill' in China." In real life, the stunt woman attempted to take Tarantino's picture and almost made him back into a ditch. "I was the woman that nearly killed Quentin Tarantino!"

Coming Soon to a Fictional 7-11 Near You Explaining that he likes to create "a Quentin universe," Tarantino once again sidesteps product placement with fictional stand-ins. In "Grindhouse," he unveils four new creations. "One of them is an energy drink from Japan, called GO Juice," the director explained. "There's also a Tennessee beer called Old Chattanooga. And one of my favorite ones is we introduced a new cigarette called Capital W. Whites, and it's for women. We also introduced a new version of Red Apple cigarettes, called Red Apple Tans."

A Cultural Exchange Continuing with the theme of fictional product placement, Tarantino and Rodriguez traded creations for "Grindhouse." A character in "Planet Terror" can be seen smoking Red Apples, and "There's a Chango beer in Quentin's part," Rodriguez said of his fictional brew referenced in flicks like "Desperado."

The Big Gulp Winstead's memorable final word wasn't actually supposed to be spoken at all. "It was in the script, but it was meant to be a thought — like, 'She swallows and thinks, "Gulp!" ' — but I said 'gulp!' out loud," the actress admitted. "Everyone started cracking up hysterically, so I guess it worked."

Slick Work at a Greasy Spoon "One take," Rosario Dawson proclaimed, daring us all to look for any edits in the lengthy scene with her and the other "Death Proof" actresses in the diner. "Quentin was like 'You guys have this scene down! Let's just try it.' It was so amazing, especially because Zoe Bell has never acted before".

Planet Terror Royalty "Michael Parks plays Earl McGraw, and he shows up in many of Robert and Quentin's movies as Earl," Shelton pointed out, noting that the character appears in "Kill Bill" and "Dusk." "I play his daughter, Dakota McGraw, so it's a huge honor. Now, I'm part of the royal McGraw family — maybe I'll get some more cameos as Dakota McGraw."

Jukebox Hero Keep your eyes peeled for a scene-stealing cameo by one of Tarantino's favorite inanimate objects. "That is his actual jukebox, and his actual record," actress Sydney Tamiia Poitier revealed. "[The jukebox's] name is Amy, and she's stunning. He flew it in specifically to use it in the movie."
"Don't think about making art, just get it done. Let everyone else decide if it's good or bad, whether they love it or hate it. While they are deciding, make even more art." - Andy Warhol


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modage

Quote from: MacGuffin on April 05, 2007, 06:47:08 PM
Is There a De Niro in the House? Josh Brolin gained 25 pounds for his role as Doc Block, in order to develop a believable beer gut. Much to his dismay, Tarantino cut most of the footage of a shirtless Brolin.
does tarantino edit rodriguez's movies now?  or does anyone at MTV pay attention to what the hell they're writing about. 

Quote from: MacGuffin on April 05, 2007, 06:47:08 PM
Coming Soon to a Fictional 7-11 Near You Explaining that he likes to create "a Quentin universe," Tarantino once again sidesteps product placement with fictional stand-ins.
except the giant billboard with Scary Movie 4 and Wolf Creek on it?
Christopher Nolan's directive was clear to everyone in the cast and crew: Use CGI only as a last resort.

The Red Vine

I really liked this.

SPOILERS!
Planet Terror

My least favorite segment of the movie. I loved some of the filmmaking but the dialogue was mediocre. I didn't buy QT as a badass, but he was funny.

Death Proof

Absolutely loved it. It's a little slow in the middle but totally makes up for that at the end. One of the most exciting car chases I've ever seen.

Trailers

Loved them all.
"No, really. Just do it. You have some kind of weird reasons that are okay.">

polkablues

My house, my rules, my coffee

Gold Trumpet

I didn't dig Planet Terror that much. Since I am not able to smile at zombie movie lore, I was pretty bored through out. The audience I was with dug it a little way too much, but I enjoyed Freddy Rogriguez's character. He seemed like a relief from the ham performances by everyone else.

Death Proof, for the most part, was very boring. Quentin Tarantino took his time with the dialogue and characters that he reminded me of Tom Wolfe trying to prove he can write for any subject. The characters in this movie were unlike anything Tarantino wrote for before, but there was little direction. I was impressed by the chase sequence, but it didn't save the movie for me. It was so good that it was the only thing that stood out. I have a feeling that repeat viewings will begin to slowly strip away the effect it had on first viewing. As good as it was, it had nothing else to back it up. I think that is the perfect ingrediant for quick aging.

The trailers were best because they were the perfect lengths for their respective stories. Death Proof was much too long and needs to be shortened instead of lengthened, but Planet Terror was too cult for anyone to like but fanboys of the genre.

All in all, not impressed. I'll likely see it again because I am writing a larger piece for another website. I'll try to articulate my feelings better.

The Red Vine

"No, really. Just do it. You have some kind of weird reasons that are okay.">

MacGuffin

As an experience as a whole, I truly dug it. My sister used to work at a drive-in theater, and there was a double-bill theater close to home, so seeing all those Feature Presentaion/Coming Soon slides and ads for food, etc. really brought back a lot of memories. The duo really got it right with the scratchy prints and sound, jump edits, color bleeds and missing reels. Personally, I preferred QT's flick. I felt it captured more of what a B-movie of that era was, and the story felt more of that time and yet still being somewhat original. And the ending couldn't have been any better. Plus, Russell f'ing rocked, and continues to be one of my favorite actors. RR's flick felt overstuffed with many characters and storylines and what felt like a complex plot for an exploitation movie. Plus, all of McGowan kicking ass was pretty much shown in the trailers, so the want to see the 'tease' placed in the trailers and posters of her with the machine gun leg was left till the end and made me feel somewhat cheated. The faux trailers were awesome and could completely pass for real. Roth's was a worthy homage to the Halloween trailer and Wright's was just too priceless.
"Don't think about making art, just get it done. Let everyone else decide if it's good or bad, whether they love it or hate it. While they are deciding, make even more art." - Andy Warhol


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last days of gerry the elephant

Most fun ever.

I loved the little gimmicks with the Acuna Boys restaurant and how the characters were sipping on Acuna Boys cups during the car rides, apple cigarettes, etc.

grand theft sparrow

Quote from: The Gold Trumpet on April 06, 2007, 10:31:44 PM
Planet Terror was too cult for anyone to like but fanboys of the genre.

Do you mean fanboys of the "fanboy film" genre (which is where Tarantino and Rodriguez are now) or the zombie genre?  Because I'd be inclined to agree with you if you mean the former and strongly disagree if you mean the latter.


I was completely satisfied with the whole experience.  Towards the end of Planet Terror, I was having so much fun and then I got even more excited remembering that there was another movie after it.  Death Proof was a little too talky and I can't imagine what he could add to it, short of that lap dance scene from the trailer, but I get what he was after and knowing now what comes after all the talk, I'm sure that I'll enjoy it even more the second time around.  And that ending was just perfect.  But the high point for me was the trailers, in particular the narration on Thanksgiving. 

Enjoyment of the whole thing comes down to how you answer one question: do you find the joke funny?  I did and I had a fucking blast.

Gold Trumpet

Quote from: sparrowhoff on April 07, 2007, 12:08:15 AM
Quote from: The Gold Trumpet on April 06, 2007, 10:31:44 PM
Planet Terror was too cult for anyone to like but fanboys of the genre.

Do you mean fanboys of the "fanboy film" genre (which is where Tarantino and Rodriguez are now) or the zombie genre?  Because I'd be inclined to agree with you if you mean the former and strongly disagree if you mean the latter.

I actually don't care which. But if you do disagree on the zombie genre reference, I'd love to hear an explanation. I've seen some of the movies but never have been a big follower.

modage

Quote from: The Gold Trumpet on April 06, 2007, 10:31:44 PM
Death Proof, for the most part, was very boring.  I didn't dig Planet Terror that much. Since I am not able to smile at zombie movie lore, I was pretty bored through out. The audience I was with dug it a little way too much, but I enjoyed Freddy Rogriguez's character.

All in all, not impressed. I'll likely see it again because I am writing a larger piece for another website. I'll try to articulate my feelings better.

Quote from: The Gold Trumpet on October 11, 2006, 07:53:43 PM
The film world just got a little nerdier
Christopher Nolan's directive was clear to everyone in the cast and crew: Use CGI only as a last resort.

Pubrick

under the paving stones.

The Red Vine

Quote from: modage on April 07, 2007, 09:47:09 AM
Quote from: The Gold Trumpet on April 06, 2007, 10:31:44 PM
Death Proof, for the most part, was very boring.  I didn't dig Planet Terror that much. Since I am not able to smile at zombie movie lore, I was pretty bored through out. The audience I was with dug it a little way too much, but I enjoyed Freddy Rogriguez's character.

All in all, not impressed. I'll likely see it again because I am writing a larger piece for another website. I'll try to articulate my feelings better.

Quote from: The Gold Trumpet on October 11, 2006, 07:53:43 PM
The film world just got a little nerdier

So we're not hipsters if we don't love this movie? I liked this movie (for the most part) but I agree with GT on some things. I was really bored through several scenes. I feel both films could have been cut by atleast 20 minutes.
"No, really. Just do it. You have some kind of weird reasons that are okay.">