Don't Split Grindhouse!

Grindhouse, the new collaboration between Quentin Tarantino and Robert Rodriguez, has been a resounding flop in the states. It's essentially a movie double bill - you get two movies for the price of one! With some made-up comedy trailers in between! Go see it, Americans!

Well, inevitably, its failure has prompted a lot of people to say that it was too long (about 3 hours). Length is always the first thing to be highlighted if a long-ish film flops, but come on. The top two films of all time, which have both been released in the last ten years (Titanic, LOTR: Return of the King) are both well over 3 hours themselves.

Anyway, the latest development is that Momentum have deleted the release date from the film's UK website. It looks likely that the Weinsteins, who financed it, are now going to release the two films which constitute Grindhouse separately. If this happens, it sucks. The main appeal for me with Grindhouse is that it should be a unique cinema experience, with the double-bill aspect adding to it immeasurably.

Put it this way. Rodriguez's Sin City is basically 3 stories, but if you watch those stories separately it's nowhere near as good. It's more than the sum of its parts.

Which brings me back to the title of this post: respect the filmmakers' original intentions, and don't split Grindhouse, please.