"Death Proof" is a thriller film directed by Quentin Tarantino. The film centers on a psychopathic stuntman whose sole purpose as it appears is to follow young (may be intoxicated) women before murdering them in staged car accidents using his "death-proof" stunt car. First of all, is it really a thriller film?
I watched Tarentino’s masterpieces Reservoir Dogs and Pulp fiction before watching this film. Unlike those films, the story line is simple without any non linear features but he ensures that the viewer is bound to the screen till the film ends. The introduction of the stuntman (Mike), his clumsy way of eating, his car, his looks at the young girls and many other unusual things makes us think what he is up to? The stuntman also has got nice way of dealing with girls by putting them at ease with his apt words. So, definitely his character intrigues you more. The lap dance scene is surely worth seeing and sometimes orgasmic. With all this going on, the viewer is definitely interested to know what would happen next. He is suddenly horrored when Mike kills the young girl who is on a ride with him by his atrocious driving when she is put in a cage without any safety restraints ultimately smashing her skull. This follows the breath taking accident scene where all the young intoxicated women whom Mike has been following are brutally killed by him in a barbarous accident where everyone is dead in a horrified manner. The scene is highlighted and is shown in various angles highlighting the fate of each one of them during the accident. There would be no evidence to convict Mike and hence would be set free. He doesn't weed any smoke,doesn't drink alcohol, turns on the head lights before the crash, destroys the photographs and most importantly targets the intoxicated young women.
After fourteen months, Mike is again ready for his new adventure when he comes across another bunch of young girls at a store. One of the girls wanted to test drive a car similar to the one in the film 'Vanishing Point'. She convinces her friends and rides on the car's hood using only leather belts to hold onto, while one of her friends drives it at high speeds. The scenes worth watching are shot well. Mike who will be observing them from a distance gets ready for his new adventure with his death proof car. Unfortunately for him, the girls turn out to be the masters this time. The movie ends when the girls physically strike him until he falls unconscious on the ground.
This is a film probably with an aim to highlight ”Every dog(Mike here) has its day” type thing where the issue of a bully targeting young and helpless women is dealt . Though the thrill is maintained initially by first disclosing the way the stuntman does his amazing psychotic acts, the ending disappoints you as Mike stays in defense for most of the time while the girls take the lead. This might have been necessary for the script where the bully need to be taught a nice lesson but this leaves the viewer questioning why the stunt man was shown so aggressive and skilful in his stunts with the first group of girls. On the whole the film is worth watching. You get everything you expect from Tarentino without troubling your brain much. Nice dialogues with 'fuck' inserted wherever possible, great cinematic shots, nice editing and back ground score with occasional references to pop music to boost you up. Give it a try in case you don’t get anything else. One who doesn't know Tarentino can safely give it a rating of 7.5.
