#96

You know how it works, a buddy tells you about this movie that you just HAVE TO see. You catch a movie trailer online or hear a good word about a movie no one has ever heard about, then it happens. You catch a movie that completely knocks you on your butt. Don’t get me wrong, there are major movie studios that are completely memorable but there is something about caching a really great movie that most people haven’t seen. As weeks go by these movies tend to gather a head of steam and six months down the road your coworkers are talking about the very same movie on DVD. That was what independent films were. No budget, no marketing, just a really cool film that didn’t depend on first weekend grosses or test audiences. Success or failure was based on how well people got the word out. Film festivals sprouted up all over the country to help showcase the films that were labors of love, made by some guy and his buddies on maxed out credit cards, the goodwill of family members, and whatever days off they could manage from the video store. Independent film at its basest.

It is pretty safe to say that the resurgence of this genre of film has its poster child, or in this case children. These were guys that have consistently pushed their films and the medium. One was a man who put together a film with witty dialogue about Madonna’s ode to a virgin who learns about nymphomania and the other created a film about a Mariachi guitarist that led to two sequels. Whenever these creators put together a film, you were sure to be watching a pretty incredible experience. These filmmakers always seemed to be making films their way, almost in spite of what conventional studios seemed to be doing.

Last year, Weinstein Studios announced a major collaboration. For some fans, it was a match made in Hollywood heaven. Two friends and maverick filmmakers were going to collaborate on an homage to low budget, schlock action flicks. The movie was fairly high concept: two films, complete with low budget schlock trailers, shown back to back, a reminder of days when a guy could drown himself in a few completely gory and unbelievably over the top action films. The film came complete with a conventional media blitzkrieg, 65 million dollar budget (another 35 million estimated for advertising) and an onslaught of internet guerilla marketing. The movie was released and a strange thing happened. After the first weekend’s grosses were announced, the movie was considered a financial disaster. Critics and industry execs were screaming that people didn’t want maverick filmmaking, that Bad Boys II, and the latest Wayans brothers film was what the masses wanted. All after the first weekend. Now, a few weeks down the road, Grindhouse has failed to gain any momentum and has fallen to 20th on the box office charts and will probably a big hit on DVD. I am a huge fan of both Quentin Tarantino and Robert Rodriguez, but I kept help but giggle a little. Not because I was hoping the film would fail, oh no, not at all. But you really can’t help but see the irony slathered all over this little experiment.

Grindhouse is a studio movie made to look like a low budget maverick film created by two filmmakers made famous for creating low budget memorable films. While 65 million dollars is no Spiderman 3, it is certainly infinitely more than the directors of the original grindhouse films ever had to work with. The movie was mass marketed across the internet, television, print, and the big screen, while the original grindhouse films gained their audiences by word of mouth and a following of people that were just looking for a fun “C” movie and didn’t know what they were specifically walking into. If these films made any kind of money, then it was probably purely by accident. These films weren’t designed as blockbusters, obviously. In an industry designed to capitalize on the quick buck and a “what have you done for me lately” mindset, Grindhouse was immediately discounted as a bust 72 hours after it was released. It was not meant to sit and settle in theaters and ruminate. Two maverick directors created an independent shlock film with Hollywood expectations and all of the trappings that came with it. While this film will definitely be revered by Tarantino and Rodriguez fans, maybe these low budget “C” movies should be just that. Low budget “C” movies. Leave Hollywood out of it. I was kind of hoping Tarantino and Rodriguez knew that better than anyone.


This weekend at your local multiplex (5/5/2007)

Lucky You: Drama
Eric Bana, Drew Barrymore, Debra Messing, Robert Duvall
Plot: A poker player uses his poker career to keep away from relationships until he meets a woman that forces him to reevaluate his life and reunite with his father.
Buzz: Maybe a little something for those that aren’t going to spend the weekend standing in line for what will probably be the biggest movie of the Summer.

Spider Man 3: Action
Tobey McGuire, Kirsten Dunst, James Franco, Thomas Hayden Church, Topher Grace, Bryce Dallas Howard
Plot: Everything is working out for Peter Parker when suddenly his suit turns black and he becomes a darker version of himself. A villain made of sand appears and an old friend carries out the wishes of his father.
Buzz: The first official movie of the Summer blockbuster season. It is time to line up outside your local multiplex with thousands of others. I’ll be there. Judging from the last two movies, this one should be a large popcorn and a super-sized soda type of film.


This week on DVD (5/1/2007)

Little Children
Dreamgirls
Alpha Dog
The Hitcher (2006)
Happily (N’ever After)
An Officer and a Gentleman (se)
Fletch (se)
The Girls Next Door (season 2)
Clint Eastwood collection
Melrose Place (season 2)
Beverly Hills 90210 (season 2)
What I Like About You (season 1)
The King of Queens (season 8)
Will and Grace (season 6)
Dinosaurs (season 3 and 4)
The Sandlot 3: Heading Home
2006 Oscar Nominated Films
Illegal Aliens
Diggers
 

As always, you can send me your loving adoration and hate mail to DPlace76@yahoo.com. You can read about my random musings at http://bigdpimpin.livejournal.com/ and you can read about all of the comings and goings of the Stumblebum crew at www.myspace.com/stumblebumstudios.