Full Tilt Boogie

source: Full Tilt Boogie

Well, not physically in it, but I'm there in spirit. The brief clip they show of Tarantino and Robert R. at the 1995 Fangoria Convention was the part where I should have been seen in. I was in the front row to the right of the stage, just outta camera range dangit! But I digress, this is an amusing trifle of a movie. It's a documentary about the making of the flick From Dust Till Dawn. It has some amusing bits like the opening scene with Tarantino and Clooney doing a badass walk to the movie set and being besieged by fans. I also liked the brief interview with my fave blaxploitation movie star, Fred Williamson. But to be honest this film has a pretty thin premise. To be brutally honest this film is based on a thinner premise than a movie based on a Saturday Night Live sketch. Ouch! The filmmakers needed to take a few tips from the makers of Truth Or Dare on how to liven up a documentary. Later once again alligator...

I did not even know that this movie existed until I recently rented From Dusk Till Dawn. I began watching it and was totally won over by it. If you've ever wondered what is all involved in the movie making process, this movie is a must see! =)

Full Tilt Boogie has its good points. It shows some incredibly brilliant behind the scenes looks at the making of the From Dusk Till Dawn. However, this is a documentary which only fans of Dusk Till Dawn will enjoy. There are some fantastic things caught on camera and there are some good edited scenes, with fairly detailed looks at how they did a lot of the special effects. It also has a very slick opening. The really die hard fans of Dusk Till Dawn, may be a little bit disappointed with the documentary, because there are long gaps where there is very little said about the actual making of the movie, but interviews with the actors agents and footage of some union dispute. There are fairly short pieces of footage of on set dramas and special effects, which leave you wanting more. At the end, you feel a little unsatisfied. They could have added a lot more good stuff then they did. If you loved Dusk Till Dawn, watch this documentary, because you should enjoy it. If you didn't enjoy the film or haven't seen it, don't watch this. You won't like it. Strictly fans only!!!

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)

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.

Full Tilt Boogie is a longer version of what you normally find as an extra on DVD's. It's a making of documentary focusing on the entire production process of From Dusk Till Dawn, Robert Rodriguez' fun vampire film and scripted by Quentin Tarantino. Director Sarah Kelley (previously a production assistant for QT) follows around about everyone who even has the slightest connection to the film. From essential crewmembers to extra actors who just walk through the screen for half a second. She even dedicates a chapter on the difficulties that occurred with the Union of independent filmmakers. Some parts are really interesting, like the interviews with the always-amazing Tarantino, but most of what you see is tedious and redundant. Like it usually is the case with documentaries, it's a lot more fun shooting them than actually watching it.

I really wasn't too interested in watching this one, thinking it would be another typical 'Making of…', with the only exception that it had feature-length. There were just two reasons I decided to give it a try. The first one is me being a bit of a Tarantino/Rodriguez fan who felt that From Dusk till Dawn was a brilliant picture. The second one was, that it was on TV and it didn't cost money and I could just turn it off when it became annoying without feeling scr..ed because I payed money to watch it. In the end I was pleasantly surprised, because this was nothing like a 'Making of…' in which everybody is like: 'I loved working with…' and 'The story was just so great!' & '…is the best director I've ever worked with.'! I actually despise any 'Making of...' for being like that, because it is just propaganda to get people to see the film. Full tilt boogie on the other hand gives people a behind the scenes look at what various employees do on a film set and what can (and will) go wrong whilst making a picture, which is what made the film watchable. But it isn't without flaws. Despite being pretty interesting, I felt that I could have used a bit more background info about the whole 'union-thing', so I could understand it all. I guess if you're into Tarantino/Rodriguez, or if you want to know what it's like to work on a movie set and are interested in the basic 'who-does-what', this film is for you. Otherwise you haven't missed a thing. 6,5 out of 10 (with a 6 given upon voting, since this is basically for 'freaks' and fans only)

This is one of the best behind-the-scenes documentaries I've ever seen, but it's long and pretty slow, unfortunately. This has just about every single part of the behind-the-scenes process, and just about every single crew-member that there was on From Dusk Till Dawn. It has a little of the actors involved as well, but it concentrates more on showing the people behind the film, rather than the ones that you actually see in the film itself. It has plenty of clips of crew-members explaining what they do and why they like their job, and many shots of them working or enjoying their spare time. It's more "behind" the scenes than any other behind-the-scenes documentary that I've ever seen, that's for sure. I thought it was pretty interesting to see so much of what went on between takes and behind the camera, for once. I just thought too much of this was dull and less interesting than it could have been. I would have liked more talking about the actual movie, and more of Rodriguez and Tarantino explaining their vision of the film, instead of various crew-members joking around. All in all, a decent behind-the-scenes documentary, but too long and uninteresting. Not worth getting the collectors edition of From Dusk Till Dawn for, but if you can watch it for free, do so... once. I recommend any big fan of From Dusk Till Dawn to get the collectors edition, though. It features plenty of stuff that fans of the film and/or fans of Tarantino and/or Rodriguez will enjoy. Overall, Full Tilt Boogie rating: 5/10. From Dusk Till Dawn collectors edition DVD rating: 7/10. 5/10

DVD extras can often be mind numbingly low on interest. Where the "making of" docs consist of boring technical computer crap and actors telling us what they do in the movie. However Full Tilt Boogie is the most in depth and funny making of I have ever seen. Not only does it show the commitment and passion (that wear's thin at times when the dreaded Union come in) of the filmmakers it also shows a intimate group of friends working together on a movie. It has a movie like narrative including a stylized openening, a conflict and a happy ending. It also features several great artists playing around and partying (including Quentin Tarantino, Robert Rodriquez etc). There are numerous stand out moments including the AD'S discussing who they find attractive, what George Clooney got for Juliette Lewis on her birthday, Quentin Tarantino singing "Momma Tried" and Michael Parks being predictably hilarious. Put all this together and what do you have? One of the rare treats where a making of documentary is better tho the actual film. A true Gem.