By Andrew Ferrell
Bad news for fans of the Robert Rodriguez/Quentin Tarantino-helmed “Grindhouse.” Because audiences avoided the exploitation double-feature like a zombie plague back in April, the struggling Weinstein Company now seeks to recoup its losses through separate DVD releases of the two films. Tarantino’s “Death Proof” hit DVD on September 17, and Rodriguez’s “Planet Terror” will follow on Oct.16. While each movie gets the two-disc, “Unrated and Extended” treatment, consumers will still be paying twice for an incomplete Grindhouse experience. The very popular trailers that ran between the main attractions are nowhere to be found on either release.
“Death Proof,” presented here in the longer cut shown at the Cannes Film Festival, yields somewhat mixed results when taken on its own. With about 24 minutes of additional footage, the already-relaxed pacing of the theatrical cut now feels bogged down by a few lengthy passages of dialogue that border on overindulgent. The infamous lap dance scene, a missing reel in the 90-minute version, has been restored. But whether or not it was worth losing a very funny edit in the shorter version depends on the viewer’s desire to see Vanessa Ferlito climbing all over a hideously scarred Kurt Russell for two minutes.
The best of the new and expanded scenes, which actually flesh out characters and service the story in a meaningful way, come about halfway through. With some extra exposition involving Michael Parks’ recurring Earl McGraw character and a new introduction to the second set of girls that is actually far livelier and creepier than what was left in. These new scenes should also put to bed the ludicrous internet rumor that the events of “Death Proof” took place out of sequence, a la “Pulp Fiction.”
The DVD itself offers a solid range of bonus features, although many of them are far too short. Two featurettes focus on Zoe Bell and the amazing stunt work involved in the film’s two main driving sequences (done without the help of CGI). Several featurettes examine the cast, including one dedicated entirely to Kurt Russell, who clearly had a blast playing his most memorable character since his days working with John Carpenter. All of these mini-docs have nifty behind the scenes footage and informative interviews, but still leaves viewers wanting more. Shortest of all is a tribute to Tarantino’s longtime editor Sally Menke, the presence of which is ironic on a movie crying out for further cutting.
Even with the pacing issues of this new version, “Death Proof” remains a good film. Tarantino still has a poet’s ear for dialogue, the car chases are among the most exciting ever shot and the soundtrack rocks. However, the definitive version remains the one that played as part of “Grindhouse,” and the release of that DVD seems pretty far off. When that happens, perhaps this cut will be included on a bonus disc as an example of why sometimes even a master filmmaker like Tarantino needs the guiding hand of a judicious editor to save him from himself. Die-hard fans probably own it already but everyone else is encouraged to rent it before deciding if it’s worth the purchase, especially when a DVD release of the full “Grindhouse” seems inevitable. Hopefully, we will not have to wait as long as we have for the still unreleased “Kill Bill: The Whole Bloody Affair.”

Death Proof (tepasmas.com)