Quentin Tarantino Vs. Robert Rodriguez: Which Filmmaker Is Best?
Round 4: Best Grindhouse Film - Death Proof Vs. Planet Terror
It was around the point of Rodriguez's Sin City, which then lead both directors to work together on their rather ambitious Grindhouse project, that I became a big fan of both Tarantino and Rodriguez. Though Grindhouse wasn't received as well as anyone had hoped, especially the heads of The Weinstein Company, and became a box office flop in America, while Planet Terror was only released as a direct to DVD film in the UK, I still enjoyed both films. To this day I respect the ambition, creativity and egotism that both these men had in creating a film in the style of a rather dead and mostly forgotten type of cinema.
When it comes to Death Proof, even Tarantino himself has admitted it wasn't very good and is his worst film. I would actually disagree with this point and say that Jackie Brown is Tarantino's worst film, purely because it wasn't his original creation and ultimately doesn't fell like a Tarantino film for me. However, I will admit that Death Proof certainly isn't Tarantino's finest hour.
It feels dragged out, too self-indulgent and strangely for a film about a stunt-man who is also a serial killer, is quite boring. My main problem with Death Proof was that it didn't feel like a Grindhouse film, which is what both directors were trying to replicate. Tarantino's effort feels far too grounded and realistic for a genre which is basically founded on zombies, super-evil Nazis and extreme exploitation.
On the other hand, Rodriguez's Planet Terror was absolutely superb and felt like he understood the concept of making a Grindhouse film more than Tarantino did. Planet Terror has bucket fulls of blood and gore, over-the-top action scenes and a plot that includes Zombies, lesbians, government conspiracies, mad scientists and soldiers, one of which is Quentin Tarantino who tries to rape women while his penis is rotting off. It may sound juvenile and disgusting, but that is basically what Grindhouse cinema is; a genre and style of no boundaries in terms of taste, class and violence.
Not only was Rodriguez's effort at a Grindhouse film far more entertaining, but he also came up with a fake trailer to accompany his film. Ironically it is this fake trailer, which Rodriguez never intended to be a film, that has gone on to become more popular than Planet Terror, and will hopefully be turned into a trilogy one day soon. I am of course talking about Machete. Therefore, not only because he created such a fun and ridiculously entertaining Grindhouse film, but also by introducing the world to Danny Trejo's Machete, this round goes hands down to Rodriguez.