From Dusk Till Dawn 3: The Hangman's Daughter

Dir: P. J. Pesce

1999

****

The original From Dusk Till Dawn did not need a sequel but Texas Blood Money was a great film and a Dusk Till Dawn universe suddenly didn’t sound like a bad idea. Like many sequels of the era, this franchise decided to go back rather than forward and From Dusk Till Dawn 3 became a prequel. Titled The Hangman's Daughter, FDTD3 explored the origins of the characters from the first film – particularly Santanico Pandemonium – as well as Razor Charlie (played by Danny Trejo once more) and the Titty Twister itself. The cast isn’t quite the Hollywood bonanza of the first nor does it have the cult line up of the second but it does boast some pretty cool people including Marco Leonardi (Toto from Cinema Paradiso), Rebecca Gayheart (Scream 2, Urban Legend), Sônia Braga (Kiss of the Spider Woman), Orlando Jones (Office Space), Michael Parks (who was in the original From Dusk Till Dawn) and Temuera Morrison (Once Were Warriors, Star Wars). Interestingly, George Clooney, who played Seth Gecko in the original From Dusk 'Til Dawn, said the inspiration for his character's tattoo was taken from recently watching "Once Were Warriors" – starring Temuera Morrison in the lead role. The film also stars the lesser known Jordana Spiro, who in my opinion, steals the show. The prequel is set in Mexico in the early 1900s and begins with an American author, Ambrose Bierce (Michael Parks), experiencing a nightmare in which he dies at the hands of Pancho Villa. Bierce wakes and talks to a local bartender about his intentions to join Pancho Villa's revolutionary army. He joins a stagecoach transporting a newly-wed couple, John and Mary Newlie (Lennie Loftin and Rebecca Gayheart), who are traveling to Mexico to preach Christianity. Meanwhile, Johnny Madrid (Marco Leonardi), a dangerous local outlaw, escapes from the gallows and kidnaps his hangman's beautiful daughter, Esmeralda (Ara Celi). Madrid receives assistance from Reece (Jordana Spiro), a young woman who wants to become Madrid's apprentice as an outlaw. With the hangman (Temuera Morrison) and a local posse on their trail, Madrid meets with his gang. They later rob Bierce's stagecoach because of Reece's belief that Bierce possesses an invaluable object. The object turns out to be the manuscript for Bierce's new book. Annoyed by this, Madrid leaves Reece to die in the desert. She is found by the posse who use her to track the two. As night falls, all the parties coincidentally seek shelter in an isolated inn that also serves as a whorehouse. They meet Ezra Traylor (Orlando Jones), a businessman heading to the U.S. The hangman is the only one who knows that the establishment is run by a group of vampires led by the high priestess, Quixtla (Sônia Braga), who targets Esmeralda. As night falls John gets into a fight with one of Madrid's men, drawing blood. The vampires eventually reveal themselves, lock the exit and attack the patrons. All of the hangman's men and the remnants of Madrid's gang are killed by the vampires. Ezra is overcome by vampire women, is fed on and quickly turns. His newly-undead form grabs the helpless Mary and bites her. Madrid, Bierce, Reece, John, Esmeralda, the hangman and one other patron manage to escape into the dungeons beneath the building and try to work together to find a way out. Mary rises as a vampire and goes after the group, revealing that John is a fraud who has only married her for her father's money. John is eventually forced to kill her. The patron who escaped with them hides a bite he had received from a hooker earlier. As they continue through the catacombs, he turns and bites John. John kills the patron. Doomed, he persuades Madrid to stake him to prevent him turning. As the remaining survivors keep going, Reece confesses to Bierce that she is an outlaw who has killed her entire family. The group eventually ends up back at the bar entrance, only to find Quixtla and the vampires in wait for them. She reveals that Esmeralda is a half-human, half-vampire princess, Santanico Pandemonium (Salma Hayek's character in the original From Dusk till Dawn), and the daughter of Quixtla and the hangman. The hangman had taken her away in the hope of raising her as a normal human but, thanks to his mistreatment and Madrid's kidnapping, she has been led back to Quixtla. Madrid, the hangman, Bierce and Reece are hung upside-down to be fed on later as Quixtla transforms Esmeralda into the vampire princess. Madrid manages to break from his bonds and free the others. Reece is bitten in the scuffle and presumably becomes a vampire. Esmeralda bites and turns the hangman into a vampire, but he manages to open the entrance way and kill Quixtla before the change is complete, allowing Madrid and Bierce to escape. As the film ends, Esmeralda screams for Madrid not to leave her as the entrance is closed. Madrid looks away sadly and joins Ambrose's quest to join Pancho Villa's army. As they leave, the camera zooms out to show the Mayan temple behind the building that houses the vampires, a reference to the first film. The film is a great tribute to vampire films and to the classic western. It is beautifully directed and much like the first sequel, it is criminally dismissed as just another direct-to-video cheap horror film. The story is brilliant, especially when you learn about the character Ambrose Bierce. Bierce was a real author. His book The Devil's Dictionary was named as one of the 100 Greatest Masterpieces of American Literature by the American Revolution Bicentennial Administration. His story An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge has been described as "one of the most famous and frequently anthologized stories in American literature"; and his book Tales of Soldiers and Civilians was named as one of the 100 most influential American books printed before 1900. His horror literature has been compared to both  Edgar Allan Poe and H. P. Lovecraft. His year of death is recorded as 1914 but the truth is that in December 1913, Bierce traveled to Chihuahua, Mexico, to gain first-hand experience of the Mexican Revolution. He disappeared, rumored to be traveling with rebel troops. He was never seen again. From Dusk Till Dawn 3 is essentially a suggestion as to what really happened to the great author – an idea that would become fashionable years later with the likes of Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter. The subtitle of the film, The Hangman's Daughter, is taken from the title of the short story The Monk and the Hangman's Daughter, that Bierce wrote in 1911. I admit I didn’t like it quite as much as the other two films but once again, it could stand on its own merits. Take away the character Santanico Pandemonium and it could have been its own stand-alone story.

From Dusk Till Dawn 2: Texas Blood Money

Dir: Scott Spiegel

1999

*****

As much as I loved 1996’s From Dusk till Dawn - and wanted more - I don’t think a sequel was really necessary as it ended in such a wonderfully bleak manner. However, I thought From Dusk Till Dawn 2: Texas Blood Money was a great sequel – completely different to the first film but incorporating all the right elements to make it original and worthwhile. Back in the 90s Dimension Films were churning out rubbish horror for the direct-to-video market like there was no tomorrow but occasionally they got it right, this film being one of the rare examples. While it doesn’t have the big names of the original, it is a film full of cult favourites. It was lead by Robert Patrick who was at this point still making b-movies but was a cult hero for his work on Terminator 2 and Cop Land. Bo Hopkins, who was one of the Wild Bunch and a bona fide western star, played Texas Ranger Otis Lawson and Duane Whitaker was making a name for himself in popular indies (Pulp Fiction, Eddie Presley) and low budget horror. Raymond Cruz had been in all the best action films of the 90s and James Parks – son of Michael Parks – played the son of his father’s character from the original film. Danny Trejo also returned which was puzzling (as he died in the first film) but very welcome. If that wasn’t enough, the film also featured my personal hero, Mr Bruce Campbell, in a lift, full of bats, with Saved by the Bell’s Tiffani Thiessen. Seriously, this was a great film for us 90s nerds. Robert Rodriguez didn’t return to direct but Quentin Tarantino and Lawrence Bender returned as executive producers. Director Scott Spiegel was asked to write and helm the movie and he was a great choice. Spiegel went to high school with Sam Raimi and Bruce Campbell and worked on the Evil Dead films with them. He actually introduced Tarantino to producer Bender, who helped Tarantino get Reservoir Dogs made. Tarantino subsequently credited Spiegel with helping him establish his filmmaking career. The film starts in a hotel, where Barry (Bruce Campbell) and Pam (Tiffani Thiessen) are seen entering an elevator. While in the elevator, it jerks to a sudden halt. Pam and Barry start to investigate and come across a corpse in the roof of the lift. Suddenly, they are attacked and then killed by a group of bats. The next scene cuts to Buck (Robert Patrick), who is mid-coitus, and it becomes clear that the opening scene was a film Buck had been watching. He then switches channels to view the news and learns that his old "butt buddy", Luther (Duane Whitaker) has escaped from prison. Buck also learns that Texas ranger Otis Lawson (Bo Hopkins) is looking for him. Shortly thereafter Buck receives a visit from Otis and when Otis leaves, Buck gets a call from Luther. Luther who wants to get the old gang back together and arranges to meet Buck at the El Coyote in Mexico. Buck starts rounding up the old team which consists of C.W. Niles (Muse Watson), Jesus Draven (Raymond Cruz) and Ray Bob (Brett Harrelson). Buck, C.W., Jesus and Ray Bob book a room at the motel, where they wait for Luther. Whilst on his way in his car, Luther hits and kills a bat resulting in his car breaking down. When the car won't start, Luther walks over to a nearby bar, the Titty Twister. He calls Buck from the bar to tell him about the breakdown. Luther in the meantime is offered a ride to the El Coyote by the bartender Razor Charlie. However, when Razor Charlie (Danny Trejo) finds out about the bat that Luther hit, he turns back. Realizing that the bat was actually his friend Victor (Joe Virzi), Victor and Razor Charlie begin to attack Luther, resulting in him being turned into a vampire. Back at the motel, Jesus has sex with Lupe (Maria Checa), a woman he bumped into when he arrived at the motel. After they finish, Jesus sleeps while Lupe grabs a shower. Luther, who is now able to turn into a bat, flies through the bathroom window and kills Lupe in the shower. Jesus awakes and starts to get dressed. The shower turns off, and he notices a blood puddle seeping from underneath the door of the bathroom. He goes to investigate and attempts to open the door. He kicks open the door and sees the body of Lupe lying lifeless in the bath. Luther then attacks Jesus before he hides in the bathroom. Lupe then reanimates as a vampire and attacks Jesus. He manages to kill Lupe by cutting her head off and then jumps out of the window in order to escape. Jesus is unsuccessful and is soon caught and bitten by Luther, transforming into a vampire himself. Hearing the noise, the owner of the motel goes to investigate and sees Luther killing Jesus. She panics and runs to the office and tries to call the police but she is attacked and killed by Luther. While Buck is still in the room watching porn, somebody tries to get in through the locked door. Realizing it is Jesus, Buck opens the door where they find out that Luther has arrived. They then plan the heist which involves the robbery of the Banco Bravos. The gang drive off to the bank, with Jesus and Luther covering the windows with black paper. Unbeknownst to the gang this is to allow Jesus and Luther to have a place to escape to when the sun rises. Back at the Motel, after receiving the call from the Motel manager, Otis observes the crime scene in the bathroom where Lupe's head in the bath. Upon arriving at the bank, Luther enters the building through the vents and proceeds to kill the security guard on duty and snatches the keys to lets the others in. Luther and C.W. proceed to the safe where they begin cracking it open. As they try to open the safe they notice the handle on the vault resembles the shape of a cross causing Luther to squeal before quickly covering the handle with a coat. While working with C.W. closely, Luther gets tempted to bite C.W.'s neck. C.W., feeling uncomfortable due to Luther's proximity tells him to back off, before removing Luther's coat from the handle revealing the cross again. Luther is now exposed as a vampire and he bites C.W, turning him into a vampire in the process. The police arrive at the bank. Buck tries to inform them to escape, but they refuse, having turned into confident vampires - all except Ray Bob. Buck and Ray Bob leave the bank but are forced back in by the police and SWAT team. With the bank surrounded by police and no escape in sight, Otis arrives and calls the bank. Jesus answers the phone and Otis asks if Luther is there to which Jesus confirms along with Buck. Jesus passes the phone to Buck and Otis asks to speak to the guard. With the guard dead, Buck tells Jesus to pretend to be the guard and tells Otis in Spanish that he is fine. Otis then tells the SWAT team to enter the bank via the roof. Jesus rips the phone out of Buck's hand and tears it from the wall. Luther and C.W. unlock the vaults, before filling the bags with money. Noticing the SWAT team on the roof Luther has to act and he spots the SWAT team throwing tear gas down the vents. Luther leaps into action and kills them in bat form. Ray Bob, after going to the toilet, is asked by C.W. to help him fill the bags before Luther returns and bites him, turning into a vampire as well. Back in the guard's room, Buck and Jesus are still waiting. Buck takes a lighter from the desk to light his cigarette and notices that Jesus has no reflection in the computer screen. Luther then enters telling the two to help load the money. Buck holds a gun to Luther, Jesus and C.W. and tells Ray Bob to stand by his side, seeing that his friends are vampires. The group attacks Buck but he prevails and escapes the bank only to be arrested and handcuffed by Otis. Otis sends in the SWAT team to clear out the bank, despite Buck's warning that they are vampires, the group of vampires brutally murder and feed on the SWAT Teams. Suddenly, the sun comes up and the vampires try to hide. However, against unbelievable odds, an eclipse takes place and the sun disappears. The vampires leave the bank and start to kill the police and SWAT Teams in a full blown blood bath. Once the police have been dispatched with only Buck, Otis, and the Sheriff are left. A face-off between the survivors and the vampires takes place – western style. Just as all of the vampires appear to be defeated, a female police officer who has been turned, attacks the survivors and succeeds in freeing the vampires. Buck responds by killing the female vampire, just as Jesus kills the sheriff. Jesus then attempts to take the money himself before being caught by Luther. C.W. is then killed by Otis. Jesus is killed by Buck after being thrown onto a car bonnet and is impaled through the heart by a pipe. Luther attacks Otis, as Ray Bob attacks Buck. Seeing that the eclipse is ending, Luther and Ray Bob try to escape, but Luther is killed by Buck from behind. Ray Bob then turns back to attack Buck, but he mistimes his attack and the eclipse ends revealing the sun. Ray Bob is killed by the reflection from Buck's sunglasses lens (the same sunglasses Robert Patrick wears in Terminator 2). Buck observes Ray Bob's sizzling skeleton and stumbles across to Otis. Buck and Otis then ask the big question “Why do vampires want money”?. Otis gives Buck a head start and he leaves while the police come. It is a great genre-bending film, blending classic noir, horror, heist and the western beautifully. It really did have everything a film nerd like myself could want from a direct-to-video release. It actually stands on its own merits aside from the original but it works well in the ‘Titty Twister’ universe. The one aspect of the film no one ever talks about however is the amazing cinematography. Some of the compositions in this film are the most creative I have ever seen and are still totally original. One scene is seen down the curled cord of a telephone. It’s nuts but exactly the sort of thing someone who worked on the Evil Dead films would come up with. The colour tint on the film is always superb and overall the craft involved is criminally overlooked. It seems everyone missed how great the film actually was because they were too upset that George Cloony wasn’t in it. My only criticism was that there were perhaps one Terminator 2 references too many, other than that, it is a great film.

From Dusk till Dawn

Dir: Robert Rodriguez

1996

*****

By 1996 Quentin Tarantino had sold his scripts for Reservoir Dogs, True Romance, Pulp Fiction and Natural Born Killers and he had been able to direct two of the films himself. From Dusk till Dawn however was the first script that Tarantino was paid to write, for the mere sum of fifteen hundred dollars. Special Effects Technician Robert Kurtzman asked him to write a screenplay based on his story in return for providing the ear-slicing scene in Reservoir Dogs. Universal Pictures originally considered Tarantino's screenplay for From Dusk till Dawn as the follow-up to Demon Knight and the second in a proposed Tales from the Crypt film trilogy, but ultimately produced another vampire film, Bordello of Blood, instead. It is fair to say Tarantino took the idea and ran with it, adding his own unique signature to it wherever he could. Tony Scott and Renny Harlin showed interest in directing but it was up and coming director Robert Rodriguez who ended up getting the part, thanks to being Tarantino’s friend but also because the pair where making like-minded films and both were hot property. The name of the movie is taken from the signs found on drive-ins. These signs indicate the length of the shows, which ran "from dusk till dawn". The movie is full of references to midnight movies and films which were often intended for teenagers to watch late at night from their cars but also works as the place where most of the film happens is in a bar that is open from dusk till dawn. It is not the film that anyone was expecting from either Tarantino or Rodriguez and certainly not from heart-throb George Clooney. I was lucky in that I knew nothing about the film before watching it – I didn’t even know it was a vampire horror – so the twist came as a brilliant surprise. The beginning of the film couldn’t have been more Tarantino-like if it tried. Fugitive bank robbers Seth and Richie Gecko (Clooney and Tarantino – Tarantino was originally set to direct the movie, but decided not to, so that he could focus more on the screenplay and his acting) hold up a liquor store – although this isn’t initially obvious. The clerk and a Texas ranger (John Hawkes and Michael Parks – both on top form) talk through some typical Tarantino style dialogue before Richie steps in and makes clear that the ranger has interrupted the hold up by killing him and then argues with the clerk, accusing him of sending signals. He of course gets killed and the building is inadvertently destroyed. It is a great opener and it felt like the start of a great road movie or a chase flick. At the motel room where they are hiding out, the pair tie up a bank clerk they have taken hostage and watch the news about their recent escape from prison. Seth goes out for food and returns to find Richie has raped and murdered the hostage. Seth clearly hates what his brother is but still loves him. Meanwhile, Jacob Fuller (Harvey Keitel), a pastor experiencing a crisis of faith, is on vacation with his teenage children Scott (Ernest Liu) and Kate (Juliette Lewis) in their RV. They stop at the motel and are kidnapped by the Geckos, who force the Fullers to smuggle them over the Mexican border. In Mexico, they arrive at the Titty Twister, a strip club in the desert, where the Geckos will be met by their contact, Carlos, at dawn. Carlos will escort them to sanctuary at "El Rey," a place of safety for fugitives from justice whose admission fee is 30 percent of everything they have. They meet a host of characters at the bar including the doorman Chet Pussy (Cheech Marin) and barman Razor Charlie (Danny Trejo). The place is full of truckers and dancers and after a few near fights, the Gecko brothers calm themselves and begin to enjoy themselves and the company of the Fuller family. Once settled, the big show starts and the stunning Santanico Pandemonium (Salma Hayek) dances around on stage with a giant snake on her shoulders. The characters, as well as the audience, are transfixed. So much so, that when the staff and dancers of the bar suddenly shut the doors and reveal themselves as vampires, it comes as quite a thrilling shock. They then begin to kill all of the patrons and within seconds the film stops being a gangster flick and becomes an amazing horror film. Richie is quickly bitten by a stripper and dies; after much fighting only Seth, Jacob, Kate, Scott, a biker named Sex Machine (horror legend Tom Savini), and Frost (Blaxploitation legend Fred Williamson), a Vietnam veteran, survive. The others are reborn as vampires, including Richie, forcing the survivors to kill them all. When an army of vampires, in bat form, assembles outside, the survivors lock themselves in, but Sex Machine is secretly bitten, becomes a vampire, and bites Frost and Jacob. Frost throws Sex Machine through the door, allowing the vampires to enter. Seth, Kate and Scott escape to a storeroom, followed shortly by an injured but still alive Jacob, brandishing a shotgun. In the storeroom, they fashion weapons from truck cargo the vampires have looted from past victims, including a stake mounted on a pneumatic drill, a crossbow, and holy water, which requires Jacob to recover his faith to bless. Jacob, knowing he will soon become a vampire, makes Scott and Kate promise to kill him when he changes. The group make their final assault on the undead. Jacob becomes a vampire, but Scott hesitates to kill him, allowing Jacob to bite him. Scott hits Jacob with holy water and shoots him. Scott is overwhelmed by vampires, who begin to devour him; he begs for death, and Kate shoots him. As vampires surround Kate and Seth, streams of morning light enter through bullet holes in the building, making the vampires back away. Carlos's arrives and his bodyguards blast the door open, letting in the sunlight and killing the vampires. Seth chastises Carlos for his poor choice of meeting place and negotiates a smaller tribute for his admission to El Rey. Kate asks Seth if she can go with him to El Rey, but he refuses, leaving her with some cash. Kate drives away in the RV, leaving the Titty Twister - revealed to be the top of a partially buried Aztec temple - behind. It is a great horror that is full of tributes but is very much a Rodriguez/Tarantino team-up. Both directors are famous for their signature moves and Dusk till Dawn sees them reaching their pinnacle, as well as begin new trends and mix them up. Earl McGraw became a recurring character in Rodriguez and Tarantino's works, later appearing in Kill Bill, Planet Terror and Death Proof – even though he dies at the beginning of the story. Chango Beer and Sex Machine's codpiece gun are references to Rodriguez's 1995 film Desperado. Seth also returns to the hotel with Big Kahuna Burgers, which were used in Pulp Fiction and mentioned in Death Proof. Seth Gecko also says the line "All right, Ramblers. Let's get ramblin'!", a quote from Tarantino's Reservoir Dogs and, like in all Rodriguez films Danny Trejo features as a character named after a sharp implement. For some unexplained reason (was it Rodriguez suggesting that Americans see Mexicans as all the same?) Cheech Marin plays three characters; the Border Guard, Chet Pussy and Carlos the gangster. All the best horror films have quirks and Dusk till Dawn has plenty. As well as featuring some horror legends, it also featured Clooney who was huge at the time having just ended his run on E.R.. Antonio Banderas, Steve Buscemi, Michael Madsen, Tim Roth, John Travolta and Christopher Walken were all offered the role of Seth Gecko but all passed because of scheduling conflicts, which was quite lucky for everyone, as Clooney really pulled in the crowds. It is the perfect horror in many respects; full of gore, mystery, nonsense and humour. That said, it is also a clever idea and the twist is brilliantly handled. It was a cult hit the moment it was released. My only regret is that Erik Estrada, who was lined up to play Carlos the gangster, had to pull out at the last minute.