Death ProofYear: 2007
Dir: Quentin Tarantino
Style: Grindhouse Revival
I know, I know... Sid, what the hell are you doing? Death Proof isn't a horror movie. It's an action thriller at best! Screw that. Quentin Tarantino does a great job of taking a simple car-chase movie and adding the creepy elements. This isn't just about slick muscle cars tearing up the asphalt. This isn't just a movie about girls out on a simple road-trip. It's much more complicated than that. This movie definitely gets your blood pumping.
Kurt Russell does a masterful job of being the psychopathic serial murderer Stuntman Mike that stalks young girls and runs them down viciously in his stunt cars. We watch Stuntman Mike stalking two sets of girls who seem fairly similar. Jungle Julia, a local radio jockey, and her crew along with Rose McGowan are the first set of victims. Then we have the stunt-women. After being stalked by Mike, these tough chicks are eventually confronted. Stuntman Mike and his beautiful 1969 Dodge Charger R/T 500 decides to take to the road against their 1970 Dodge Challenger R/T. The latter being the exact car from Vanishing Point. The two trade more than just paint as Stuntman Mike makes sure the girls get the idea that he is out to kill them!
I really like this movie for the obvious. It has been years since a movie had a decent car chase. This movie does it so well. The speed, the rush, the feel. It's so exhilarating. Nothing like watching a well put together chase scene. The movie is pretty weak on the gore scale. You get a few really nasty scenes when Stuntman Mike uses his car as his weapon. Other than that the scares come across really slowly. It creeps up on you. I also really like the Tarantino element. This movie takes place in the same world as Planet Terror (it's sister movie), Pulp Fiction, Kill Bill, From Dusk Till Dawn, and to a lesser extent Machete. A world where everyone is witty and talks really fast. An ultra-violent world where the gun knows best. For some people it's too much. For me it's just right.
Kurt Russell, Rosario Dawson, Zoe Bell, Quentin Tarantino, Rose McGowan, and Michael Parks are just some of the names in this action packed horror. I highly recommend it to any Tarantino fans. If you love his movies then this will fit right in there. If you want car chases, this movie is for you. Do you miss movies like Bullet? Then pick up Death Proof!
"Hey, Pam, remember when I said this car was death proof? Well, that wasn't a lie. This car is 100% death proof. Only to get the benefit of it, honey, you REALLY need to be sitting in my seat."
- The film was physically scratched to achieve its dirty look, rather than digitally scratch the film footage.
- The original name for this film, which pops up for about a frame, is "Quentin Tarantino's Thunder Bolt".
- In an interview, Quentin Tarantino said that the version of "Down in Mexico" heard in 'Death Proof' was likely the rarest recording in his entire collection. When he was working at a stag theater in his teens, he showed the record to the projectionist, another record collector, who immediately pointed out the words "Newly Recorded" on the record's label. Tarantino said this version soon became one of his favorite tracks of all time.
Comments