Just because a movie is a grindhouse tribute (that is what we're going for here right?), the acting doesn't have to completely suck, there actually can be some suspense, the plot can be kind of coherent. Sure, it can be cheesy, it can be sleazy, it can (and should) be downright disgusting at times.
The one thing it must be is entertaining, and HWAS just is not. It's a humorless blood-fest with a script that barely exists. It's what happens when people take the "Grindhouse" (2006) trailers too seriously. Yes, this is funny s*it for 2 or 3 minutes. It's unendurable for 87 minutes unless your idea of an action movie is a nonstop video game, with all the realism and heart that goes with it.
It's really a shame Rutger Hauer got corralled into this crap-fest, because you can tell in many scenes that he's desperately trying to construct a character where one just doesn't exist. He's really the only light here. The trio of villains are so lame they need to shout and scream laughter constantly to get across that they're "bad-ass." The Drake is about as scary looking as Uncle Fester on a bender.
The defenders of this "film" constantly respond to all argument against it with something like: "it's supposed to be offensive, it's supposed to be stupid, it's supposed to look like crap..." etc. Is it supposed to be incoherent as well? Again, my problem with this film is its lack of quality. There's a scene where a villain, after torching a bus load of school kids with a flamethrower (brutal satire, eh?) later finds himself hauled away by the ghostly school bus. OK, so now we're in the realm of scifi-fantasy too? HWAS has no idea what it wants to do and fails at everything it tries to do.
What is *truly* disturbing about this film is how many supposedly thoughtful critics are being wowed by its ridiculously aggressive hyperbole. If you want amusing tongue in cheek satire that's not badly made, rent a Troma release, if you want bloody fun, go Tarantino, Rodriguez, or Corman. But if something as nihilistically grim and pointless as HWAS can only get your rocks off, see a shrink and fast.
The one thing it must be is entertaining, and HWAS just is not. It's a humorless blood-fest with a script that barely exists. It's what happens when people take the "Grindhouse" (2006) trailers too seriously. Yes, this is funny s*it for 2 or 3 minutes. It's unendurable for 87 minutes unless your idea of an action movie is a nonstop video game, with all the realism and heart that goes with it.
It's really a shame Rutger Hauer got corralled into this crap-fest, because you can tell in many scenes that he's desperately trying to construct a character where one just doesn't exist. He's really the only light here. The trio of villains are so lame they need to shout and scream laughter constantly to get across that they're "bad-ass." The Drake is about as scary looking as Uncle Fester on a bender.
The defenders of this "film" constantly respond to all argument against it with something like: "it's supposed to be offensive, it's supposed to be stupid, it's supposed to look like crap..." etc. Is it supposed to be incoherent as well? Again, my problem with this film is its lack of quality. There's a scene where a villain, after torching a bus load of school kids with a flamethrower (brutal satire, eh?) later finds himself hauled away by the ghostly school bus. OK, so now we're in the realm of scifi-fantasy too? HWAS has no idea what it wants to do and fails at everything it tries to do.
What is *truly* disturbing about this film is how many supposedly thoughtful critics are being wowed by its ridiculously aggressive hyperbole. If you want amusing tongue in cheek satire that's not badly made, rent a Troma release, if you want bloody fun, go Tarantino, Rodriguez, or Corman. But if something as nihilistically grim and pointless as HWAS can only get your rocks off, see a shrink and fast.