Grindhouse: B-

Rating: 7/10 (7 April 2007)

Maybe I'm giving the flick a bit of a raw deal, but going in with rather lukewarm expectations, I was disappointed when the end credits rolled. All in all, the trailers were the best part. In terms of the two films, Rodriguez fulfilled the assignment and while his film went on a tad too long, it was a hell of a lot of fun. Tarantino, in typical QT fashion, tried to de-construct the Grindhouse picture and it came off in a lackluster fashion. Yeah, the car chase was great and Kurt Russell has charisma but the dialogue and structure just didn't mesh with the objective of the project. As a friend put it, "It felt like the opening of "Reservoir Dogs" stretched out over an hour and a half with a car chase towards the end." All in all, the "Grindhouse" experience (two movies, fake trailers, and the whole premise of the shift in viewer mode) was a lot of fun and I suggest it to anyone (especially in the light that the DVD issues will be segregated with the cuts and scratches taken out). However, I cannot help but wonder how far we can push post-modernity and ironic viewership until it deflates into itself.
Thoughts?