Pulp Fiction and Desperado with a little Blade

Rating: 10/10 (24 July 2005)

Two dangerous convicts hold up a convenience store and end up executing a Texas Ranger and engaging in a bloody shootout with the clerk. After leaving, they take family hostage, a once-preacher father and his son and daughter. They make them a deal, stay with them until coming dawn and they will be released unharmed. They hole up for the night in a back-roads bar just over the Mexican border. Unknown to them though, they will soon be fighting for their lives against the bar's real owners, a group of vampires with a taste for blood and gore.
This is a joint film between Quentin Tarentino, the creator of such classics as Pulp Fiction and later Kill Bill, and Robert Rodriguez, the creator of El Mariachi and later Sin City. With Rodriguez directing and Tarentino writing, producing and acting, this film is a force to be reckoned with. The script is classic Tarentino, with references to other cult classics, his own and others, and the dialogue is flawless in getting us close to the characters. The style of Desperado and El Mariachi is seen here too and shows why Rodriguez is one of the most coveted directors in Hollywood.
The acting next to the crew is what really gets this film going. In the opening scene alone, a Texas Ranger played by Michael Park shows what real acting is in his short role of only a few minutes. George Clooney and Tarentino as the convicts play off each other well with Clooney being the quick-witted professional and Tarentino playing his younger brother with a psychopath hiding beneath the surface. Tarentino plays his role well, but Clooney shines as Seth Gecko with classic one-liners and acting ability. Harvey Keitel is great as the preacher father who lost his faith in God and Juliette Lewis as his daughter shows acting potential as well. Smaller roles by Fred Williamson and make-up artist Tom Savini do not go unnoticed either.
This movie is almost two films in one as the opening half gets us into the characters and the second being a twist into horror as the characters fight for their lives against the vampires. People may find that one half suits them better than the other, but no matter what, Rodriguez, Tarentino and the actors take us for a ride that few will forget.