Judge it in it's class

Rating: 8/10 (11 April 2007)

You can't look at Grindhouse up against Volver or Children of Men. You have to judge it in the same weight class. There you will see a champion. It's a loud, bloody, long homage to the cars, corpses and copulation Z-pictures of the 1970s that captures reverence for the medium that was evident in the original "grindhouse" movies, films catering to an unsophisticated audience in an era when mass movie-going was in danger of fading away.
It has roots in films such as Rolling Thunder (1977), Dawn of the Dead (1979), Zombi 2 (1979), Rock All Night (1957), and Escape From New York (1981). Robert Rodriguez's gives us a knock-off of Night of the Living Dead with Planet Terror, and Quentin Tarantino champions tough-talking chicks and Dodge Challengers in Death Proof. The former is a much more interesting film, but the latter was excellent, too. The previews of coming attractions added immensely to the film. At least we didn't have to watch previews that were "suitable for all ages." Why would previews at an "R" rated movie not be "R" rated also? Zoe Bell, Kurt Russell, and Rose McGowan are among a cavalcade of stars that include Nickolas cage and Bruce Willis.
You go to Grindhouse for the same reasons people went to the original grindhouses visceral action and visceral sex. You don't go for the acting or an "Oscar" experience.