`You want sanctuary, you gotta pay the price.'

Rating: 9/10 (29 July 2003)

Have you ever noticed that modern horror movies can sometimes run parallel with porn movies, containing horrible (yet sexy) actors with no purpose but to become eye candy as they are devoured? From Dusk Till Dawn' is the Avatar which finally broke this new mold and raised the bar for future horror movies to come.
Plot: Two bad-boy thieves and a Faithless preacher's family become turbulently entangled on their escape to Mexico to seek sanctuary which will arrive at the break of dawn. All they need to do is make it through the night at what would seem to be the sleaziest bar in Mexico. Then Salma Hayek happens.
Robert Rodriguez and Quentin Tarantino are not amateur film makers. Harvey Keitel and George Clooney are not rookie actors serving lunch on Melrose for a day job. What we have here is a flimsy idea backed by Hollywood's finest. Tarantino's Rebirth of Cool' combined with Rodriguez' flair for the dramatic gives the audience a joyride throughout. From every head gesture by Clooney to every `P^$$y' remark by Cheech Marin, you can tell the actors really had fun with this one. And let me tell you it's nice seeing actors having fun, for all of a sudden their true talent surfaces. Of course the soundtrack is more than adequate, only one more element drawing you in to this world of murderers and thieves. The film editing is actually very appropriate and only enhances the overall intentions of the film.
*Spoiler*
After watching the film a few times more I began to realize the story is more a fantasy, where El Rey is merely a mythical location for sanctuary. The subjects were put more or less to a test of faith. It is not uncommon for these movie makers to include some folklore and legend. This movie dives in to regions of the occult and makes reference to Anne Rice's idea of the Theater of Vampires. When Salma Hayek begins the body shot, the coin flips. The movie becomes Hitchcock morphed in to Evil Dead'
*End Spoiler*
Bottom Line: What if Quentin Tarantino began drinking half way through his screen writing process and decided to make his action/comedy into a B-Movie Zombie Flick? Would it stand up in court? Answer: Yes it would. What if Rodriguez had to come up with a movie to rival Desperado'? Would he sell out to Hollywood? Answer: From Dusk Till Dawn' (Then Came Spy Kids'). At a great pinnacle in their careers, QT and RR assemble an extraordinary cast to execute what some may call the worst movie ever and others may deem genius