-
It's been two years since Eli Roth directed a feature, but he's kept busy on the side with writing, producing, and acting. After his recent appearance as Sgt. Donny Donowitz in Quentin Tarantino's Inglourious Basterds, Roth is returning to horror, the genre that made him famous with his Cabin Fever and Hostel movies. He's also readying himself to take on science fiction.
At the Morelia International Film Festival in Mexico, Roth announced that he is finishing a script for a new sci-fi movie called Endangered Species, which he also plans to direct. He also mentioned that he's writing and directing a feature-length version of his Thanksgiving mock-horror trailer that appeared in Tarantino and Robert Rodriguez's Grindhouse double-feature. Roth said that he needed the time away from directing to revive his creativity.
I haven't been this excited since the first Hostel. I had to divorce myself from the [Hostel] project 100% to free up my brain for other things.
Posted 10.18.09 by BrentJS -
Machete started out as a "fake" trailer Robert Rodriguez shot for the double-feature Grindhouse — one that looked arguably better than the Rodriguez and Quentin Tarantino movies put together. Production on a feature-length Machete starts July 29, and co-directors Rodriguez and Ethan Maniquis have put together a star-filled cast. Danny Trejo will return as Machete, alongside Michele Rodriguez, Jonah Hill, and surprisingly Robert DeNiro. Make up artist-actor Tom Savini will alsoappearin the movie.
According to a Bloody-Disgusting source, DeNiro will be playing Senator McLaughlin, a corrupt civil servant who double-crosses Machete. DeNiro's casting seems a little unusual, as does Hill's, so this may simply be rumor. But it would help stabilize Trejo's claim that Machete is intended to be a trilogy.
Posted 07.17.09 by Ryan -
Tom's review of Grindhouse is now live on the site and, as of yet, it's certainly not the popular opinion. The reviews are looking pretty strong so far, but you have to wonder who's doing the praising? Rottentomatoes shows an 87 % so far, but... I have a question. Would anyone give a !%# about this movie if it were directed by anyone other than fanboy figureheads Tarantino and Rodriguez?
I didn't like the movie, as I expressed the other day. Now, before you call me a naysayer, understand that I loved Pulp Fiction, Kill Bill, Sin City, El Mariachi, etc. I was really looking forward to this movie. Unfortunately, Grindhouse just a BIG FAT LETDOWN.
Posted 04.05.07 by reelz -
Producers of Grindhouse are rolling the dice big-time, betting that fans of Quentin Tarantino and Robert Rodriguez, demographics not known for their long attention spans, will be able to sit still for the entirety of the three-hour-plus double feature.
It's interesting to note that the individual films, Planet Terror and Death Proof, will be released separately abroad and will contain additional footage not seen in the U.S. version.
Check out our review of Grindhouse.
Posted 04.05.07 by reelz -
And it sucked. And and I don't mean that it was one of those "good in a bad way" movies that Tarantino and Rodriguez claim to be going for. Nope, this movie is just plain lousy.
Rodriguez's Planet Terror is a passable enough genre flick. It's entirely too long, but it's got some clever moments. Still, stacked against similar recent zombie flicks such as 28 Days Later and Zack Snyder's Dawn of the Dead, it pales in comparison.
Tarantino's Death Proof is a terrible movie. Yes, it's true that there are a few brief cool car chase moments thrown in,
but those briefly pleasurable moments in the middle and the end (the last 15 minutes are great)are sandwiched between some of the most painstakingly boring footage you could ever imagine. It's basically girls sitting around talking about cars and relationships. Tarantino's trademark dialogue is wooden and ridiculous. Death Proof is Tarantino's fantasy movie of the girls he wish existed. Well Quentin, they don't and no one actually talks like this. He actually re-uses dialogue from his other movies. Death Proof is the worst thing he's ever done. And yes, I saw Four Rooms.
And finally, Quentin, look, we've been saying it for more than a decade now.... STOP ACTING!!! Tarantino appears in BOTH of the Grindhouse movies, as cheesy and distracting as ever.
Tom used the word "excruciating" to describe Grindhouse when he saw it a week ago. I wanted him to be wrong, but he was dead on.
Check back for a more complete review of this highly anticipated and extremely disappointing flick.
Posted 03.31.07 by reelz