Pretty Good

Excellent but underrated film

This is a small, humorous movie in some ways, but it has a huge heart. What a nice experience.

Through painfully honest and emotional moments, the movie becomes irresistibly relatable

What better way to see two of the filmmakers out of the 90s American quasi-new-wave to collaborate together then on a movie like this? More than ten years before Grindhouse Tarantino and Rodriguez teamed up- following subsequent re-writes by Tarantino of the script for Rodriguez to direct- for From Dusk Till Dawn, a drive-in movie for the 90s with lots of violence, lots of nudity and gore, some very disturbing scenes (not just with the vampires), and innuendo for two movies. Plus, did I mention vampires? This takes one into the film-making process in not just the big scheme of things but the smaller bits, like what Tarantino and Clooney's personal assistants have to do for them, or the little stories told in the breaks between shootings (the one that struck as the funniest, if bragging, was one involving a missing extra beer keg).It's not all completely fun and games, despite the opening scene showing the "follies" of Tarantino and Clooney trying to go through the 'back-way' to get to the set. There's drama involving the guilds, specifically the director and actor guilds, and it becomes a bump to get over in order to just continue making the movie. Later on there's detailing of just how much work has to go into making one of the vampires, and how much set-up there is in just doing one shot in the big action sequences at the T**y twister. There's even some insight from Harvey Keitel (prefaced by a very funny assortment of title cards). It's put together mostly for the fans of the filmmakers, and it wont get someone to see how extraordinary directing can be like in the making of Fanny & Alexander or something. It's a fun little doc for a very fun midnight movie; where else will you see Fred Williamson interviewed, seriously, in full vampire makeup?

The problem with this type of documentary is that if you have little interest in the source movie you will have little interest in its conception and behind the scenes footage . I found FROM DUSK TILL DAWN a ridiculous and bizarre mixed genre film that starts off with a couple of desperate men who have murdered sixteen people take a family hostage , they flee to Mexico and then the movie turns into a horror film This documentary might have had some interest for me if it had been done properly but it hasn't been done properly . Even if you didn't like FROM DUSK TILL DAWN imagine how interesting FULL TILT BOOGIE might have been if someone asked Danny Trejo if his time in the maximum security penal system brought anything to his performance: " So Danny , you stab Tarantino's character through the hand . Did you see anything like that inside ? " whereby Trejo recounts all the violent incidents he's witnessed behind bars . For me the most memorable moment of FDTD is the Salma Hayek dance sequence , it's also one of the most memorable sequences in modern cinema and guess what ? Salma Hayek is not interviewed ! Instead we have to put up with endless scenes of assistants running back and forward with lunch for the cast and mundane interviews with the actors and director I guess people who subscribe to Fangoria magazine and horror fans who attend the conventions will like FULL TILT BOOGIE since there's some interesting behind the scenes make up effects on show but this never comes close to rivalling HEARTS OF DARKNESS ( The documentary about the making of APOCALYPSE NOW ) as the definitive making of documentary

Yeah, this film was pretty interesting as far as letting me see what really goes on behind the scenes while making a film. I guess the biggest reason why I liked it was because it wasn't so stuffy and polished--it gave the human side to film making. Tarantino and Clooney aren't represented as gods, but merely guys making a movie. I think that is very important and a big problem with films today--the human aspect of it is gone. But this documentary of the making of Dust till Dawn shows just the human side. And it isn't centered on the main characters, but everyone, right down to the caterers. Also shows the complex side of film making, including the unions. All together a pretty good film.

This is a really good and informative feature length documentary on the making of From Dusk Till Dawn. It covers most aspects of the film making process...Interviews with all of the cast and crew, following them around during filming and off hours from start to finish. Having to deal with issues like unions, paparazzi, weather, long hours, and unexpected fires...yet they all seem to love what they're doing.*** (Out of 4)