Okay, I am personally happy that I got to see Grindhouse as Quentin Tarantino and Robert Rodriguez had intended me to, as a double feature and with all the fake trailer goodness. However, I would love to go see Tarantino’s segment “Death Proof” again, but if you think I am sitting through Rodriguez’s gore fest a second time you are crazy. Rodriguez’s segment, “Planet Terror,” was good for a one-time viewing, but coming in at approximately 75 minutes it felt like it was almost 105 minutes of movie. It was so much, so fast and for so long. I know it is supposed to be B-movie style filmmaking and I did enjoy it, but I don’t have any aspirations to see it again. However, as for Quentin’s movie, now that one I am chomping at the bit to see again.
“Death Proof” was essential Quentin and the thought that he is going to bump some more footage into that bad boy and make it longer just makes me even happier. But, before we go there, how about this news that Nikki Finke brings us from Deadline Hollywood saying that Harvey Weinstein is so disappointed in the meager $12 million box-office over Easter weekend that “he’s considering abandoning the double feature as a single feature concept and re-releasing the Quentin Tarantino/Robert Rodriguez movie around the U.S. “in a couple of weeks” as two separate feature-length movies with additional footage put in.” Yowsers! Now I am smiling.
I don’t really know if this makes good business sense considering all the re-promoting that will need to be done to make the move successful, but if you ask me maybe just releasing Quentin’s and not Robert’s is the move. After all, if people pay to see Grindhouse they get Rodriguez’s movie first and it doesn’t need any additional footage and while they are there they can see Quentin’s basically free. However, if people would rather just see a Tarantino movie they currently would have to wade through Rodriguez’s film, that is unless Harvey goes ahead and gives Quentin a full-feature release like it appears he should have gotten in the first place.
This split was already intended and has been promoted for overseas release. Apparently it has already been sold as two different pieces for both video and in the TV deal with Starz Entertainment Group. So how much double dipping on DVD is yet to be seen, but I can betcha a quick bare bones release is only three months away with an uber-special 90-disc edition complete with grindy packaging for Christmas is also planned.
As for the extra footage mentioned above apparently the two “missing” sex reels may find their way back into the film.
It is no secret the length of this film deterred people from heading to the theater, but I am ashamed of Deadline Hollywood for once again going the route of blaming Internet buzz for the creation of false hope. Gimme a break, either your movie works for the public or doesn’t, the Internet has nothing to do with it. As a matter of fact all there was on the Internet was buzz, I hardly received an asset from anyone for this film that I didn’t have to go find out of some international press site or just happen to luck into. RopeofSilicon has more clips from both films than any other site, perhaps it is our fault the film flopped. My bad!
The Deadline Hollywood article continues on and if you are at all interested you should read the whole thing here it is quick and an interesting look into the world of making movies and being open to why it performed so bad. That is when you skip over that one line comparing it to Snakes on a Plane… Sheesh!
