Wednesday, October 15, 2014

DVD Review - From Dusk Till Dawn: Season One





From Dusk Till Dawn: Season One
Starring: D.J. Cotrona Zane Holtz, Eiza Gonzalez, Jesse Garcia, Madison Davenport, Brandon Soo Hoo, Wilmer Valderrama, Robert Patrick, Don Johnson
Studio: Entertainment One
Release Date: September 16, 2014
Retail: $39.98
ASIN: B00KYL80SO
Running Time: 452 minutes
Rating: Not Rated
Buy Link: Amazon

Review:

Before George Clooney suited up as the Dark Knight in the godawful Batman & Robin and before he started winning Oscars, he played in the cult 1996 horror flick From Dusk Till Dawn. The film was directed by Robert Rodriguez and written by Quentin Tarantino, who also co-stars. While receiving mixed to positive reviews from critics, the film barely made back it's budget while in theaters, tough it did do better in rentals. Three years later a direct-to-video sequel, From Dusk Till Dawn 2: Texas Blood Money was released, but was criticized for the horrible plot. A year later a prequel, From Dusk Till Dawn 3: The Hangman's Daughter, was released direct-to-video, though it was better than Texas Blood Money, the film put the final nail into the coffin for the franchise. That is until rumors of a fourth film surfaced on the internet in 2010, but the film seemed to be abandoned when From Dusk Till Dawn: The Series premiered on the El Rey Network earlier this year, a channel created by Robert Rodriguez.

Instead of picking up where the movies left off, the series is a complete reboot of the original movie with D.J. Cotrona and Zane Holtz taking over the roles of the deadly Gecko brothers, whom have just killed four Texas Rangers during a bank robbery. Texas Ranger Earl McGraw (played by Don Johnson) stops by Benny's World of Liquor, but he was unaware that the Gecko brothers are also there. After a long standoff, McGraw is killed and the Gecko brothers escape, but McGraw's apprentice, Freddie Gonzalez (played by Jesse Garcia ) vows to avenge his death.

With the law not too far behind them, Seth Gecko is worried about his brother, Richie, who sees a little unbalanced, especially when Richie claims a beautiful woman appears to him, telling him to kill. They have no other choice, but to kidnap the former pastor Jacob Fuller (played by Robert Patrick), his daughter Katie (played by Madison Davenport) and his adopted son Scott (played by Brandon Soo Hoo), whom are traveling in an RV to Mexico. This is the only way Seth and Richie can get across the border where they are to meet their partner in crime Cartel boss Don Carlos (played by Wilmer Valderrama) at the Titty Twister bar, but what is waiting for them is a group of hungry vampires.

Episodes on the 3-disc set are:
  • Pilot
  • Blood Runs Thick
  • Mistress
  • Let's Get Ramblin'
  • Self-Contained
  • Place Of Dead Roads
  • Pandemonium
  • La Conquista
  • Boxman
  • The Take
Bonus Features include:
  • Audio Commentary with Robert Rodriguez, Producers and Cast
  • Full Length Trailer
  • Best Kills Video
  • On Set: Making of From Dusk Till Dawn: The Series
  • Behind the Scenes "On Set: Brought to You by General Motors"
  • Behind the Scenes "On Set: Brought to you by Dos Equis"
  • Character Bios Featurettes
  • General Motors Comerical featuring Seth Gecko
  • Dos Equis Commerical featuirng Carlos Madrigal
  • Big Kahuna Commerical
  • "What's in the Briefcase" Spot
  • SXSW Featurette
  • Q&A from Premiere at Almo Drafthouse with Robert Rodriguez and Cast
I think I was around fifteen-years-old when I first saw From Dusk Till Dawn and it instantly became one of my favorite vampire movies. I can't say the same for the sequel and the prequel, which I felt were a waste of time to watch. Even with the original creators, I was a little skeptical about the television series that is until I watched the Pilot episode and then my opinion completely changed. Yes, it uses the same plot and characters from the original movie, but everything is expanded. The characters are more fleshed out and the vampires are given a deepier Aztec mythology. Speaking of vampires, the makeup for the vampires are better than what was seen in the movies. Just because the series was aired on cable doesn't mean there isn't plenty of gore as the last four episodes are bloody well done. Overall, From Dusk Till Dawn: Season One surpassed my expectations and now I can't wait to watch season two, but I don't get the El Rey Network, so I'll have wait until the DVD is released sometime next year.


*Disclaimer -I bought the DVD myself for this review!

No comments:

Post a Comment

I adore reading reader feedback! I will, however, remove all spam and pointless comments.

Please take note that I have the right to delete comments from this site. Please only post constructive and respectful feedback.