In 2007, Quentin Tarantino and Robert Rodriguez opted to make a double Grindhouse feature that pays homage to the exploitation films from the 1970s. The double-feature even had fake trailers from guest directors Rob Zombie, Edgar Wright, Eli Roth, and Jason Eisener. Tarantino’s feature was Death Proof, which followed Stuntman Mike, a professional body double who has a sick thrill for murdering innocent women. Unfortunately, his murderous pleasures may come back to haunt him as Mike targets a group of female friends who promise to make his life a living hell. The Robert Rodriguez feature was Planet Terror, which is a zombie flick that sees a horde of flesh-eating humans take over a small town in Texas. A go-go dancer, her ex-lover, and a band of survivors go balls to the wall to make sure they escape the bloody nightmare.
Both features were well received by critics and with talents such as Bruce Willis and Kurt Russell attached, it seemed that the special double-feature had a great chance at success. Unfortunately, Grindhouse only made nearly $12 million opening weekend and the final tally would end with $25.40 million worldwide. Considering the fact that the budget was $67 million, this effectively killed any chances of another gimmick like this ever hitting screens in the modern era. So, what happened? Quentin Tarantino and Robert Rodriguez were solid box office draws who provided a unique movie-going experience with their Grindhouse features. Let’s examine why Grindhouse bombed at the box office.
Tarantino and Rodriguez Overestimated The Nostalgia Factor
Nostalgia can be a strong force when it comes to media and television. Executives and producers understand this, which is why we consistently see multiple reboots or remakes on a yearly basis. The success of Disney’s live-action films, and more recently, Scream and Halloween, are strong examples of this model. However, nostalgia doesn’t always work. The Terminator and Alien franchise slowly diminished with each return. The recent Westside Story and The Matrix Resurrections showcase that sometimes audiences grow past the popular things of yesteryear. The same can easily be applied to Grindhouse. However, the differences between movies and popular trends is that society has changed since the 60s and 70s. The era of Grindhouse films will always be etched in the cinema history books alongside Film Noir, Silent Films, and Westerns, but not many people were exactly looking for this trend to make a grand return. The new generation had absolutely no idea what Grindhouse films were and likely didn’t care enough to research its history. Only an older demographic and film aficionados would be interested in the Grindhouse special. This genre falls into a niche category that really isn’t built for mainstream appeal. Granted, Death Proof and Planet Terror are great popcorn entertainment features that should’ve been a hit with audiences, but unfortunately, that just wasn’t the case here. There’s definitely an audience for these midnight-type movies, but there’s just not a clamor for them on a mainstream scale.
The Crazy Amount Of Violence Likely Backfired
When you think about Quentin Tarantino and Robert Rodriguez, they’re names are usually associated with over-the-top and insane violence. Rodriguez has managed to dip into the family territory thanks to his Spy Kids features, though his filmography is more so plagued with graphic and gory violence. Tarantino’s films contain nothing by R-rated madness. It sounds crazy to think their Grindhouse were controversial due to violence as both directors have seen success due to their particular style, though there was some blowback for Death Proof and the violence against women. In truth, this wasn’t a major deal in the media, but there were some fans who weren’t keen on Stuntman Mike’s fixation on murdering women. Again, the film wasn’t met with major fire or anything as Death Proof isn’t all that controversial to begin with but seeing acts of violence against women in that nature is a turn off to many. Kill Bill didn’t have this major issue because A) the protagonist was an elite warrior, so audiences were more so conditioned to seeing a woman getting beat due to the fact that its action orientated. The victims of Stuntman Mike were no Beatrix Kiddo, which is a bit of a harder pill to swallow. Though Stuntman Mike would ultimately get his comeuppance in the end, that just wasn’t enough for moviegoers’ sensitive to this type of violence. Planet Terror mainly avoided the negative heat, though the fact that the movie separately made less than Death Proof showcases that audiences just weren’t that interested in the story. The film looks cool, but is grotesque in parts, which is highlighted to a certain degree. As I previously mentioned, Grindhouse is a specialty film for a select group of moviegoers. Nothing less, nothing more.Robert Rodriguez
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