When I saw there was a sci-fi drama written and directed by the incredible Francis Ford Coppola I was so down for it!

Unfortunately, despite being in the cooker for a long time, Megalopolis could have done with a touch more time in the cooker. Or maybe less time, not totally sure.

Megalopolis is set in a version of New York called New Rome. Here we have the city controlled by the rich elite class. Caesar, played by Adam Driver, is a genius who has invented a magical new building material.  As such he is trying to reforge the city to be better in every way, for everyone. Unfortunately the elites, including the mayor Cicero, who is played by Giancarlo Esposito, love their old traditional ways. So we see a battle as a visionary tries to make the city a better place for everyone, while the old elites try to maintain their way of life.

Now that on its own would have made for an excellent movie. The issue is the movie tries to do way too much.  In the just over two hour run time it starts at a solid and really interesting pace, but ends with all kinds of chaos. Caesar can stop time, for reasons, and then he loses the ability to do that and needs to fix it. There are important characters that seem to drop off for ages for no reason and then it throws so many at you.

Fundamentally the movie needed to focus a bit more on its core story and it could have been something special. Megalopolis is loaded with so many exceptional actors and actresses and they all do stellar jobs in their roles.

The setting and world that is built is visually stunning, and so much heavy lifting is achieved with how everything looks. The CGI is solid and makes for some stunning scenes, even if some don’t seem necessary.

Looking back on my first watch of this movie, I have to say I enjoyed myself.

There are some interesting ideas in here, and it has some fantastic messaging. The only real issue is there is way too much crammed in. A simple futuristic allegory of how America is going down the path of Rome could have been a banger. Unfortunately it winds up being overly messy making for an interesting movie I will be keen to revisit in the future. Good thing I have it on Bluray.

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When Bong Joon Ho returns off the back of his 3 Oscar win with a satirical Sci-Fi featuring not one but multiple Robert Pattinsons – you bet you’re bottom dollar that I am sat.

Bong Joon Ho is a master at tonal shifts and sociopolitical commentary. I was first introduced to him through studying The Host at university. But I truly fell in love with his work through watching Okja.

Like Bong Joon Ho’s other English-speaking films, I had a feeling this movie was going to be incredibly zany and unexpected.

And that it was.

Mickey 17 follows Mickey Barnes (Robert Pattinson), a down-on-his-luck nobody, struggling on an overpopulated earth. With loan sharks on his heels, he signs up to be an ‘expendable’ on a spaceship heading to a new planet.

An expandable is what it says on the tin. A person who can be killed over and over, thanks to the problematic science of cloning. When Mickey 17 is believed to be dead, Mickey 18 is printed and now you’ve got two Mickeys – an offence punishable by death.

We get a solid exposition dump on the world’s political climate and scientific advancements before the title card finally flashes 20 minutes into the film. But by that point you’re already so enamoured by the charming absurdness of the film that you feel ready for anything to be thrown at you.

But what gets thrown at you for the next two hours is a jumble of ideas that don’t quite land.

This quirky Sci-Fi leans heavily on its characters to deliver its message.

Mark Ruffalo does his best Donald Trump impression as Kenneth Marshall, the expedition leader and egomaniacal politician. Instead of Bong Joon Ho’s go-to Tilda Swinton, we get a delightful performance from Toni Colette as Ylfa, Marshall’s wife. The couple are over-the-top cartoony villians, and literal colonisers.

As the antagonists of the film, they are set on building a ‘pure’ new world and must eradicate the existing creatures on the planet. But these big fluffy armadillo creatures aren’t cruel or stupid. In fact, they’re the sole reason Mickey 17 even survived.

Now, let’s talk about Mickey. Robert Pattinson is one of the actors I will defend with my dying breath – and I won’t accept any Twilight slander. Mickey feels fitting for an actor who has spent the past decade proving his range across blockbusters and indie films alike.

Each iteration of Mickey is slightly different, allowing Pattinson to give multiple outstanding performances. He pulls off playing Mickey 17 and 18 with ease. It genuinely had me wondering if someone could win an Oscar for Best Lead and Best Supporting Actor in the same film.

Having two Mickey’s at once might be a serious problem – but it’s great for Mickey’s girlfriend Nasha (Naomi Ackie). But there’s a slight love triangle introduced here that did nothing but muddle the plot.

And this wasn’t the only thing that felt a bit under-developed.

I’m a big Steven Yeun fan, and I was expecting to see something great from him in this film, considering he was third in billing. But sadly, he doesn’t get enough screentime. He’s a jerk in this film, and the reason Mickey is in so much trouble, yet this movie isn’t big enough for another villain. He has his own minor side plot but then gets left behind while the film wraps up without him.

This film gets a bit lost in its own absurdity. Its core message might be loud and clear, but the story itself has too many loose ends and unexplored points.

It’s a love or hate kinda movie. A potential future cult classic. Someone on Letterboxd perfectly dubbed it a ‘Lemony Snicket Sci-Fi’.

This movie has too much going on to fit into its 2 hour and 17 minute runtime. But even with its pitfalls, I still commend Bong Joon Ho for creating cinema that feels totally unique.

It’s a delightfully funny, chaotically messy sci-fi with a wilhelm scream cherry on top. What more could you want?

The post Mickey 17 (Warner Bros. – 2025) Review appeared first on Shane the Gamer.

Companion is a fresh new addition to the horror / SciFi genre, garnished with deliciously dark comedy.

If you have managed to not see a single thing about this film yet, I implore you to close this review and go into the movie cold. (This is your spoiler warning).

But if you have seen the trailer or read the synopsis, then you’ll already know what’s coming. But trust me, this knowledge doesn’t take away from the fun to be had.

The film opens on an awkward meet-cute between Iris (Sophie Thatcher) and Josh (Jack Quaid). It’s a fumbling love at first site.

Next thing we know, the two lovebirds are on their way to a getaway with Josh’s friends. Iris is uncertain, aware that his friends treat her differently.

But what starts as a normal getaway quickly unravels when Iris ends up with blood on her hands.

And then suddenly the love of her life has her tied to a chair and the bomb is dropped. She’s a robot, more specifically, a companion robot bought and controlled by Josh. Their meet-cute was simply programming, as are her feelings for him. And Iris herself in the middle of a scheme she was unaware of.

His once-endearing nickname for her – ‘Beep Boop’ – now both extremely comedic and a slap to the face.

This film is a blast, as we watch Iris fight for survival and unravel her own identity.

The characters in this film add moments of joy and tension. Alongside the unravelling of Iris and Josh’s relationship, we see the inner workings of the relationship between Eli (Harvey Guillen) and Patricks (Lukas Gage). They’re more than just background characters, and their moments of tenderness make you question the ethics of human / robot relationships.

Sadly, the only other female character, Kat (Megan Suri), isn’t fully formed. She despises Iris and doesn’t really seem to like her friends all that much either. While not necessarily plot important, it was a bit of a let-down to have one member of the small cast not have as much material to work with.

But this movie is where Sophie Thatcher shines.  The new scream-queen has found her horror calling and she’s truly a spectacle in this film. The not-quite-human walk and the microexpressions add nuance to Iris. Every movement builds the character and makes you feel completely enamoured by her.

Jack Quaid and Lukas Gage are the other stars of this film. Both with a handful of horrors under their belt, they delivered performances equal parts terrifying and hilarious.

The humour in this film is a perfect balance to the darkness. From Iris changing her language settings, to finding out her namesake – there were plenty of chuckles in the theatre. It’s camp, it’s fun. It’s Ex Machina for the less serious.

There are probably more faults with this movie. It’s not a new plot in the slightest. But the pink hue and new-age comedy shine through. I went in with high expectations and walked out perfectly satiated.

So while this film should probably be 4 stars, I’m rating with my heart.

My Sophie-Thatcher-kicking-ass loving heart.

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Godzilla has had a long and fascinating history.

But of course I live in the west where my first experience was the Mathew Broderick version. Well to my childhood brain, that movie ruled. Much later we got some fantastic Godzilla movies, but I kept hearing about the Japanese ones being superior.

Well it was time to finally check one out!

Godzilla Minus One takes us to Japan at the end of World War II.

Shikishima is a kamikaze pilot who chickened out and lands on a little island. He says he couldn’t due to an equipment malfunction, but the military on the island seems to find no fault with the plane. That night they hear suspicious sounds, and are attacked by a pretty damn big monster. Here we are introduced to a much smaller, but still massive and agile, Godzilla. He stomps around killing almost everyone.

Our man Shikishima has the chance to shoot Godzilla with the guns in his plane, but chickens out again. He returns home to find his family embarrassed by a living kamikaze pilot. He goes through a fun journey where he winds up essentially adopting a young girl who has lost her family. Alongside all of this is the threat that is Godzilla.

The issue is, every time he is attacked, he heals stronger. Soon this fast agile monster is turned into the much bigger, much more powerful Godzilla. He absolutely decimates a city before returning to the water, where the humans hatch a plan and take the fight to him.

The biggest issue the movie has, is the period between first and second encounter with Godzilla we have a really long period of human storylines. It’s the same issue the newer western Godzilla movies had, the difference being this one is actually better and doesn’t drag as long, but still a little longer than I would have liked.

The biggest strength the movie has is, well, everything else. Godzilla looks amazing, and getting to see him in different stages is really fun. The human’s story and redemption arc that is a little predictable, is still excellent. There are genuinely tense moments, and some really solid acting, that makes this silly fun kaiju action flick not just fun, but engaging. And the action and fight sequences are absolutely top notch! This alone makes it well worth watching on 4K to really enjoy the exceptional CGI and action in the best possible ways.

If you want to start checking out some Japanese Godzilla films, then 2023’s Godzilla Minus One is a damn fine place to start.  It acts as a reboot in the best possible ways, and is just everything I want in a Godzilla movie.

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Doctor Who is such an amazing series, but it has been so hard to find.

DVD’s, Blurays and streaming services occasionally have one series at a time at most. Fortunately it seems like they are being re-released on DVD, so you can finally stock up your collection.

So it was time to check out Peter Capaldi’s second season, with Doctor Who: The Complete Ninth Series.

Series eight finished on a shocking twist with the Twelfth Doctor and his companion Clara headed separate ways.  series nine kicks off with Santa having some issues on a rooftop. Clara walks out of a door to see him, realise who he is, and the series kicks off full Doctor Who chaos.

After series eight ended I did wonder if they were going to bring in a new companion for the Ninth doctor  I was glad they didn’t get rid of Clara as I thought they were a great pair. And in Series Nine this only gets better. A lot of the episodes instead of being just one and done, carry on over a couple of episodes which is so great to watch.

It’s not uncommon for Doctor Who to be a bit all over the place tonally, it’s kinda where a lot of the charm comes from. You can have a super dark episode, followed by a strange and wacky one.

In series nine there are some episodes where they jump around too much and it kind of loses some of the momentum. One of the early episodes the Doctor goes to help a boy in a vast desert looking space, surrounded by strange hand mines. It’s creepy as hell, when the Doctor realises who the boy is, someone that causes a very big baddy to exist in the future, he leaves. Then the episode jumps around way too much, instead of just landing that punch of an ethical dilemma.

That’s probably the most critical thing I can say though, is that jumping around too much?

As someone reasonably new to the show, I may just need that little bit more hand holding than some much longer term fans. Having said that, It may be one of my favourite seasons I have seen thus far. Some of the episodes are brilliantly dark and serious, and some silly as expected. Peter Capaldi keeps absolutely slapping in the role, and it’s just damn fine TV.

The DVD itself is loaded with heaps of awesome special features.

The first disc includes a short prequel and a refresher from series eight, which are both dope. Then there are heaps and heaps of behind the scenes shots throughout which is an amazing add on.

One the whole, Doctor Who: Series Nine is a fantastic series and well worth a watch. The DVD collection includes so much awesomeness that makes it well worth adding to your collection.  Thank goodness it is now more readily available to enjoy.

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Doctor Who is one of the longest and oldest running nerd series around, and somehow this nerd only got into it recently.

I have slowly been making my way back through the Seasons and I am loving it. So with the chance to check out the mini series Flux on DVD, I jumped at the chance.

Doctor Who is generally a series of individual episodes that contain an isolated story. Season Thirteen is a big change to this in that it’s a six episode mini series. The series tells the story of a universe and time destroying event called the flux which is causing absolute chaos. And the only person capable of saving everything is the Doctor.

The series kicks off with an old villain being released. If you are new to the series, like me, then you won’t have a clue who he is, but you know he is bad. He kicks off the flux and things go bananas. We are also introduced to a Liverpool man called Dan.  Dan is captured by a new character who is a giant dog-like being called Karvanista.  When the Doctor and Yaz follow the strange signals in Dan’s house, the journey to Karvanista’s spaceship winds up with them learning about the flux, and its impending taking over of Earth.

Dan winds up with the Doctor and Yaz in the TARDIS and the Flux hits, sending them all in different directions in time. The story goes absolutely bananas, with a bunch of iconic villains, and some weirdness with time as the worlds history is rewritten. On the whole, it’s a really fun Doctor Who romp.

If you are new to the show, then this isn’t the worst jumping off point. There are heaps of old characters and some information that is really useful to know as a long time watcher. On the flip side, as with every new companion, Dan really helps a new watcher ease through the questions. Is the TARDIS alive? What’s the deal with the Doctor? Space travel? Lots of questions you will have, will be asked by Dan as he goes from living his chill Scouser life to travelling through space. There were plenty of times I was lost and had no idea which characters were new and which were old, but I was in it for the journey.

The DVD collection comes with heaps of special features on each disc which is super awesome, but it doesn’t come with the Season 13 Specials which is unfortunate because they wrap up a few storylines. I really wish it did come with them, as finding places to watch Doctor Who in NZ is hard.

Doctor Who: Flux is a really awesome and fun series that is as good of a starting point as any for someone wanting to check out the show. There are some plot holes, and it’s not always consistently excellent, but it’s dumb and fun. Turn your brain off, and enjoy the 6 hour journey the series has to offer.

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I went along to Alien Romulus with just a few vague memories of the first film that I watched probably once, and way too young.

I know the franchise’s significance, but I somehow have made my way through life, and a SciFi film paper, without watching any more of the films.

And from a completely naive standpoint, I had a lot of fun.

At a very surface level, the movie did exactly what I expected it to. It was tense and gritty, with a solid budget, great acting and really cool effects.

But now that I’ve had time to digest it, I feel it was a mixed bag.

The majority of the film is a love letter to the original Alien series. It follows the same tried-and-true formula to deliver a story we’ve seen with fresher faces.

It spends ample time paying homage to its predecessors. Even without knowing all the references, they were made so obvious that I knew when I was supposed to say ‘Oh that’s a callback!’

Some references were tasteful, some not so much.

A misguided deepfake of an Alien OG with the sole purpose of an exposition dump felt rather disappointing. Furthermore, it felt so uncanny it took me out of the movie. When sitting alongside spectacular practical effects, you can really see the flaws in the CGI.

There was a lot going on in this movie.

It was evident that the film was toeing the line between trying to stay true to the franchise while also bringing in new ideas. And some of these new ideas got lost amongst the chaos and never quite landed.

Knowing this movie sits between Alien and Aliens, it was clear that anything introduced would have to cease to exist by the end of the film.

But still, it felt authentic to the Aliens universe. And this was largely due to the set design, special effects, cinematography and sound design. There was such a high level of craft put into making this film look, sound and feel true to the originals.

To be completely transparent, a huge reason I was keen for this film was because I really enjoyed Archie Renaux in Shadow and Bone.

I thought the entire cast was refreshing and I applaud the movie for creating space for up-and-coming talent.

The stand-out stars were definitely Spaeny and Jonsson. As the heart of the whole film, they really sold me on this movie. Their scenes together were poignant and powerful, and I was rooting for them the entire film. They truly delivered.

So then we get to the end of the movie.

In the last twenty minutes of the film, it’s like someone flipped a switch. No longer were we in a Scott / Cameron love fest.

With Fede truly showing off his style in the final act, the film starts to find its own identity.

While I don’t know if the actual final plot of the film fully gave me what I wanted, it definitely was nice to see the director take a new direction.

So where do I stand with all of this? I think the movie may have tilted a bit too far into fan-service and not everything landed.

But apart from that, it was a beautifully made thrill ride. It leant heavily into the horror and had an intensity that left me speechless. It’s definitely a film you want to watch on the big screen.

As I have been racing to catch up by watching Alien movies back to back, I can say this is a solid addition to the franchise.

The post Alien: Romulus (20th Century – 2024) Review appeared first on Shane the Gamer.

Alien: Romulus returns the sci-fi franchise to its roots with an entry that draws on the horror premise of the original film rather than the high-brow aspirations of the most recent entries.

Set sometime between the events of the first and second movie, Alien: Romulus is a more grounded effort as opposed to having the philosophical undertones of Ridley Scott’s Prometheus and Alien: Covenant. The result is a more approachable movie but sometimes feels more like a video game.

The original Alien movie, at its heart, was a slasher movie set in space. Following that first movie, subsequent filmmakers, and Ridley Scott, himself, seemed to overlook what makes the Alien universe so appealing. In a nutshell, it’s essentially a load of blue-collar workers in space working for a shit company. Something very relatable for most of us. In the case of Weyland-Yutani quite possibly the shittiest company ever.

Aliens shifted the series more towards that of an action movie. The third movie, which could have ended novice director David Fincher’s career, didn’t know quite what it was. The fourth movie, well, we’ll leave it at that. Even Ridley Scott’s return to the franchise struggled to revitalise the series.

Alien: Romulus seeks to right the ship.

After a brief dialogue-free scene-setting sequence that suggests that “the company”, Weyland-Yutani, is up to its old tricks, Alien: Romulus takes us back to the 1970s retro-future of Alien. Rain and her “brother”, Andy (a salvaged synthetic programmed by her late parents to look after her) live on Jackson’s Star, a Weyland-Yutani mining colony. The grim place is also in perpetual darkness.

The movie gives us a better idea of the conditions the people of Hadley’s Hope lived under that was only alluded to in James Cameron’s Aliens. The colonists, effectively indentured slaves, are forced to work for years to buy their way to a better life on a terraformed world. Most, though, end up dying of one of the novel illnesses that seem to afflict space-faring humans.

A group of Rain’s acquaintances have had enough of being exploited by the company and have found a derelict space station in the ringed planet’s orbit. The station has the cryo-pods that they need to make the nine-year space voyage to freedom. The only catch is that they need Andy’s help, as a Wayland-Yutani synthetic, to access the station. Of course, the salvage mission doesn’t go to plan.

I wasn’t sure of the distinctively youthful cast, at first. But Cailee Spaeny, fresh from Alex Garland’s Civil War, steps into the archetype made famous by Sigourney Weaver, with ease. David Jonsson, as Andy, also does an impressive job as both the malfunctioning synthetic and an upgraded version later in the film. Hats off to the rest of the cast who also do a great job of selling the idea of a rebellious, if fated, crew of misfits.

The movie features all your favourite stages of the xenomorphic lifecycle. Lots of facehuggers, a chestburster and, of course, the aliens, themselves. The movie introduces a new stage in the lifecycle, a cocoon, both for the transition between the chestburster and the adult alien, as well as a dormant stage. We also get to see something similar to the hybrid aliens in Alien 3 and the engineers from Prometheus.

The movie manages to include callbacks to all the previous Alien movies, including the two most recent entries. For instance, the USCM pulse rifles as well as a surprise appearance harking back to the original Alien movie.

The gore is unrestrained, reminding me of the disturbing scenes that were the stock and trade of the direct-to-video sci-fi horror movies of the early ‘80s. The director exploits the opportunities for body horror presented by the alien xenomorphs to the max. The addition of a refined version of the alien liquid from Prometheus results in a gross-out sequence that could scar you for life. The movie more than doubles down on the facehuggers as the crew are chased through the station by a horde of the things, their gross finger-like appendages feeling their way through that gap in a door that absolute nightmare fuel.

The movie does rely on a few too many set pieces. Having the cast tasked with challenges like traversing through floating alien acid-blood in zero-G, quietly sneaking past facehuggers and having to hit all the levers makes it feel like a video game at times.

Overall, though, it is a proper Alien movie.

It may stick too close to the formula for some, but to be honest, that’s what makes it an Alien movie. You are not going to walk away with a greater understanding of the origins of humanity, but you will have a great time having jumped out of your skin a few times and been grossed out by some proper old-school body horror.

The post Alien: Romulus (20th Century – 2024) Review appeared first on Shane the Gamer.

The trailer for a truly terrifying cinematic experience from producer Ridley Scott and director / writer Fede Alvarez, 20th Century Studios’ Alien: Romulus, is now.

The sci-fi / horror-thriller takes the phenomenally successful ‘Alien’ franchise back to its roots.

While scavenging the deep ends of a derelict space station, a group of young space colonizers come face to face with the most terrifying life form in the universe. The film stars Cailee Spaeny (“Priscilla”), David Jonsson (“Agatha Christie’s Murder is Easy”), Archie Renaux (“Shadow and Bone”), Isabela Merced (“The Last of Us”), Spike Fearn (“Aftersun”), Aileen Wu. Fede Alvarez (“Evil Dead,” “Don’t Breathe”) directs from a screenplay he wrote with frequent collaborator Rodo Sayagues (“Don’t Breathe 2”) based on characters created by Dan O’Bannon and Ronald Shusett. “Alien: Romulus” is produced by Ridley Scott (“Napoleon”), who directed the original “Alien” and produced and directed the series’ entries “Prometheus” and “Alien: Covenant,” Michael Pruss (“Boston Strangler”), and Walter Hill (“Alien”), with Fede Alvarez, Elizabeth Cantillon (“Charlie’s Angels”), Brent O’Connor (“Bullet Train”), and Tom Moran (“Unstoppable”) serving as executive producers.

Alien: Romulus will be in cinemas from 15th August, 2024.

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Strap yourself in, grab yourself a tasty beverage and a Big Kahuna burger because it’s time to revisit 2007’s Grindhouse, courtesy of the brand-new special edition Bluray.

Directors Robert Rodriguez and Quentin Tarantino bring the Grindhouse genre back to life with their groovy double feature of Planet Terror and Death Proof, complete with faux trailers created by directors like Eli Roth and Rob Zombie. While each respective film may not be considered the best Rodriguez and Tarantino have made, together the double feature is a grimy, delicious thrill-ride with references and easter eggs that the most discerning cinephile will appreciate.

First up in this double feature is Rodgriguez’s Planet Terror, a gooey zombie flick that sees go-go dancer Cherry Darling (Rose McGowan) and her assorted posse taking on a town deliberately infected by a bio-weapon discovered during the capture of Osama Bin Laden.

The ragtag group of survivors who join her include Dr Dakota Block (Marley Shelton), who was recently assaulted by her husband (Josh Brolin) using her own anaesthetic needles, Cherry’s mysterious glowering ex-boyfriend Wray (Freddie Rodriguez), and Sheriff Hague (Michael Biehn). The manufacture of the bio-weapon is thanks to Abby (Naveen Andrews), a biochemical engineer who has a penchant for acquiring the testicles of people who have wronged him. And did we mention that Cherry happens to have had her leg ripped off by zombies and replaced with a firearm? Yeah, there’s that too.

But that’s the beauty of Planet Terror and the grindhouse genre itself: it doesn’t have to make sense. It’s there to thrill, titillate and take audiences on a wild ride. When it comes to capturing the essence of grindhouse Rodriguez gets the assignment; right down to fake scratches on the print and missing reels.

That’s another genius move by Rodriguez: the ‘missing reel’ provides the middle act, so when we transition from the first act to the third our protagonists have assembled together and are ready to fight. There’s no need to explain how they got there, and it makes for a shorter runtime as well.

Heightening the Grindhouse experience in Planet Terror are the zombies. Completely sentient, once infected these zombies will morph into gooey, pulsating monsters with infectious pustules. There’s not a single dry husk of a corpse between them. It’s also wonderful to see SFX genius and actor Tom Savini on screen, especially given his own contributions to makeup/SFX in zombie classics Day of the Dead and Dawn of the Dead.

While Planet Terror and Death Proof are miles away from one another in terms of storylines, there are elements which unite them as a cohesive whole, predominantly through the use of recurring characters. Dr Dakota Block, Earl McGraw and the Babysitter Twins all appear in both films; while Rose McGowan appears as Pam in Death Proof after appearing as Cherry Darling in Planet Terror. Quentin Tarantino is also in front of the camera for both films in separate roles.

To usher the audience into Death Proof we are then treated to fake advertisements and trailers for Rob Zombie’s Werewolf Women of the SS, Edgar Wright’s Don’t and Eli Roth’s Thanksgiving. Thanksgiving, (along with Machete which appeared as a fake trailer before Planet Terror) would go on to become a recent feature film.

But the thrills don’t let up when Planet Terror finishes, as Quentin Tarantino ramps up the adrenaline with his vehicular slasher, Death Proof. A homage to films like Vanishing Point and Faster, Pussycat! Kill! Kill!, the audience meets the seemingly charming Stuntman Mike (Kurt Russell), a teetotaller whose stunt car is ‘death proof’, fitted with roll cages and other accoutrements standard for withstanding tumbles and crashes. The caveat? It’s only death proof on the driver’s side, and Stuntman Mike is using his car to kill women.

When local radio DJ Jungle Julia (Sydney Tamiia Poitier) and her friends Butterfly (Vanessa Ferlito) and Shanna (Jordan Ladd) are enjoying a night out, they are targeted by Stuntman Mike. After giving Pam (Rose McGowan) a lift and subsequently using his car to kill her, he successfully obliterates the remaining women. Ending up in hospital after the murders, he cannot be charged as he was found to be sober, whereas the women had been drinking and smoking marijuana. And when he finally recovers, he’s got his sights set on a new group of women. The caveat? He didn’t count on them fighting back.

Death Proof sees stuntwoman / actress Zoe Bell front and centre as herself, not only charming the audience with her very Kiwi manner, but also thrilling viewers with some magnificently heart-stopping vehicular stunts. Zoe Bell was a frequent stuntwoman in Tarantino films including The Hateful Eight and Django Unchained, and would be reunited with Kurt Russell in front of the camera for Once Upon a Time in Hollywood (listen closely during that scene and you can hear Russell accidentally picking up Zoe’s Kiwi accent).

There are also some usual Tarantino trademarks thrown into the mix, like lingering foot shots; and Inglourious Basterds cast members Eli Roth, Omar Doom and Michael Bacall appear briefly in the film. Cinephiles will appreciate a generous sprinkling of easter eggs throughout the film; including Shanna’s t-shirt which features the image of Faster, Pussycat! Kill! Kill! star Tura Satana.

There’s also a killer (no pun intended) soundtrack. In fact, it’s a particularly good soundtrack, with songs that team up beautifully with certain scenes (for instance, the song Hold Tight! which makes for one of the most thrilling and gruesome parts of the film), rounded out by April March’s infectious Chick Habit to close the film. The extended version of the film also unites the Coaster’s Down in Mexico with Butterfly’s lap dance for Stuntman Mike.

Comparing the two films is like comparing apples to oranges. Some may prefer the gory stylings of Planet Terror to the revenge vibe of Death Proof, but together they are a satisfying duo.

The special edition Bluray is an absolute treat for fans. The first disc features the theatrical version of Grindhouse in 1080p high definition, with additional extras like audio commentary by Robert Rodriguez. The second disc contains the extended version of Planet Terror, also containing a scratch-free version of the film. Disc three contains the extended version of Death Proof, and disc four is the motherlode: a gargantuan amount of bonus features, including the making of the fake trailers. Throw in photo cards and a lenticular slipcase, and it’s a sweet little package.

Grindhouse is a whole lot of ridiculous fun, and the special edition Bluray definitely celebrates that.

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