Adapting a moderately successful film into a television series can be a tricky choice to make. Let us see if From Dusk Till Dawn was worth the effort.
Who:
Director: Robert Rodriguez (as well as others)
Starring: D.J. Cotrona, Zane Holtz, Wilmer Valderrama, Robert Patrick, Eiza Gonzalez, Jesse Garcia, Don Johnson
What:
Series one
Why:
A televised version of the 1996 film of the same name
When:
Released 2014
Where:
Good old Texas, heading for the Mexican border
In 2013 Robert Rodriquez launched El Rey Network; a channel that targeted Latino Americans. The programming for the station consists mainly of grindhouse type content. Part of the deal though included releasing original shows. From Dusk Till Dawn was the first original drama show for the network.
Having directed the movie version, Rodriguez felt there were still some unexplored themes that would enhance the narrative further and also wanted to delve into the backgrounds of the main characters. With that in mind the series went into production.
El Rey is not on the same level as HBO or AMC so the budget for this series is of course on a much smaller scale. When your content relies heavily on movies that generally appeal to certain target audiences; your income is only going to be of a comparative nature.
From Dusk Till Dawn the movie was Rodriguez's second Hollywood film after Desperado. He had formed a close friendship with Quentin Tarantino after both discovered a mutual appreciation of all things grindhouse. Tarantino wrote the script for the movie and Rodriguez directed, with Tarantino taking the acting role of Richie Gecko.
I think as time has gone by Rodriguez has thought of other ideas and learnt a bit more about Aztec history, with the intention of revisiting this story at a later date. From his research he developed new plot points which inspired him to want to explore this environment and delve deeper into these characters in the television medium.
There is definitely potential to expand this premise into a full blown series and the groundwork was laid out from the film. Rather than continuing the story from the climax of the first movie; they decided to hit reset and start the series from the beginning with a few changes to the original story. There is actually a sequel and a prequel to the film (neither of which I have seen; both having been given rather average reviews) so starting things afresh probably felt like the right move. This is a retelling as much as a reboot of the source material.
All the major characters from the film are present in the show, with the exception of Frost played by Fred Williamson whose character has been left out of the series. The Gecko Brothers are again the focus of the story along with the Fuller family who get reluctantly caught up with the siblings as they make for the Mexican border.
In addition to the people we are already familiar with; the series introduces Carlos Madrigal a drug lord with ties to the Gecko Brothers. It is on Madrigal's orders that they rob the bank that kicks off the whole scenario. He is a welcome addition to this setting and is excellently portrayed by Wilmer Valderrama. He is more famous for playing Fez on That '70s Show but this character is a million miles away from the lisping wannabe ladies' man from that comedy.
Valderrama plays Madrigal as a very cool and calculating criminal. He is an associate of Santanico Pandemonium but you are unsure as to their exact relationship and who is in charge of whom until it becomes clearer as the show progresses. Madrigal is also answerable to a cadre known as the Nine Lords but there are further machinations going on that blur his loyalty. Either way you view him, he is definitely a breath of fresh air and adds a new dimension to the tale.
I do like D.J. Cotrona as Seth Gecko. He had some tough boots to fill, taking the role first portrayed by George Clooney (admittedly before Clooney became a global megastar). He carries off the role with the same nonchalance and nothing seems to faze him. Sure he might be attacked by vampires and demons but to him it seems it is all in a day's work!
Another tough act to follow is Harvey Keitel but again the casting of Robert Patrick in the role of Jacob Fuller is an inspired one. Patrick is able to imbue Fuller with that tormented soul required for someone who has lost his faith.
Eiza Gonzalez as Santanico Pandemonium can be summed up in one word: Hot! She definitely has all the, ahem, attributes required for the role. She certainly nails the dance scene at the Titty Twister which is our official introduction to her; apart from all the visions of her that Richie has experienced until this point.
I will say that in general the makeup is good. When compared to something of a similar nature in say Buffy the Vampire Slayer, it measures up quite well. They have gone for a bit of a unique look to their vampires, possibly to suit the Mesoamerican nature of their beasts. It is a smart decision as it gets away from the generic vampire look and still retains some of the qualities portrayed in the film version.
This segues nicely into the Mesoamerican influence that appears throughout the show. Using a Mayan temple as the base of the Titty Twister bar was an innovative original idea for the film and there was no need to alter this for the series. What the show does do well is expand on this concept and further examines the mythology of the Mayan and Aztec culture and the conquistadors who first invaded this territory.
Ritual sacrifice was common as part of their religious beliefs and forms a large part of the story here with Richie's knife being a prominent tool. The serpent features strongly as well throughout Aztec culture and appears regularly to reiterate this theme.
I can't think of another film or show that uses Mesoamerican heritage as the basis for its evil denizens. I feel they have only just started to scratch the surface in this first season. They need to continue to dig further into this area as the show progresses as it gives it a unique take on what can quickly become a stagnant genre.
It is obvious from the beginning that Rodriquez wanted to reset and say, this show is how this saga unfolds and this is going to be the blueprint for the duration of the shows run. He has chosen a slightly different path for how this series unfolds as opposed to the original source. The film starts off as a heist movie that gets switched at about the halfway mark into straight out horror.
The series however blurs those lines a lot earlier with having Richie experience visions of Santanico and other demonic creatures straight from the off. I can understand wanting to get a few of the supernatural elements in early as spending a few episodes just on the heist and kidnapping would have quickly worn thin.
However if you want to reboot this as a series whilst still maintaining the basic premise of the film it would have been more appropriate to leave the vampires and demons out until they reach the Titty Twister. They could have at least avoided having our two main protagonists experience the mythical nature until they arrived at this juncture.
It destroyed any element of surprise that might still exist in the viewer by the time they finally get to the cantina. Once they reach this destination the undead are revealed to everyone as being real. We get to see the vampires battle with the Gecko's and the Fuller family but by this stage we are already inured to their presence in this universe.
You also have a fairly good idea by this stage that Richie is going to side with Santanico as he has been enamoured with her haunting his dreams. Once they come face to face you have no doubt that he will follow her like a lovesick puppy. You also get the strong impression that Seth will go against Richie as he often appears freaked out by his brother's increasingly erratic behaviour.
Don Johnson makes a great Earl McGraw in place of Michael Parks. Why am I mentioning this then as a bad point I hear you ask? Considering Don Johnson was advertised as such a big drawcard for this show; he is killed off far too early. We then only get the odd flashback of him with his protégé Freddie Gonzalez.
He could have still been given a heroic death at a later stage. We would have got to see more of the camaraderie between Gonzalez and McGraw which in turn would have given us more of an insight into why Gonzalez is so intent on getting the Gecko's for McGraw's death. It is such a missed opportunity.
McGraw would have made for a far more interesting adversary for the Gecko's if they had used him more. Gonzalez is just not interesting enough on his own. There is nothing to convince you that this ranger would decide to just go off the grid to get revenge on the Gecko's for McGraw's murder. We have hardly seen anything of the relationship that they have shared until this point.
Jesse Garcia seems to think that by scowling a lot; that it conveys the pain he is suffering from losing his mentor. Gonzalez is the hero character that you are supposed to cheer for. We aren't presented with enough of a character arc for him though, to create some feeling of sympathy as to his loss; which in turn would make you want to support him. He just doesn't get your pulse racing.
Sex Machine was a fun character in the original film played with relish by Tom Savini. Considering they chose to axe Fred Williamson's Frost, I thought they would have done the same with Sex Machine; especially as this series isn't as tongue in cheek. I guess they felt that this character was too iconic to drop.
Zane Holtz is another one who seems a bit one note. Admittedly he probably has the easiest job here of out acting Quentin Tarantino who appeared as Richie in the big screen version. Holtz however is sometimes just as wooden. For someone who is supposedly haunted by visions and a bit unstable, you never really get to see his manic nature explode. It all just seems to be simmering on a low heat below the surface.
That is one of the main issues I have with the show. It just appears that less gifted actors are mimicking superior ones in a lot of cases. Sure there are some good performances but none of them are better than the ones from the cinema release. Whereas the film was true popcorn entertainment and the actors made it look like fun; the series just takes itself far too seriously. Ignoring Jake Busey's lack of talent for a minute; even having someone like him, who is known for appearing in quirkier roles, doesn't help bring the tone down.
Now I know this production isn't blessed with a massive budget and so I am prepared to make allowances for some things looking a bit cheap. What I am amazed at though is the shoddy level of CGI used. At times the effects look completely rubbish and cartoony, especially as the series draws to its conclusion and CGI is required for some of the demonic characters.
If you are going to tell a story based around horror then you know that you are going to need kick arse make up, which I would say they mostly got right. You are also going to need some decent special effects but what we got appeared far too fake and cheap looking. If this was intentional as part of the grindhouse aesthetic then they missed their mark by making the overall tone not light enough. Dodgy CGI would not have looked so out of place if there was more emphasis on playing this for fun.
I have stated how the Mesoamerican heritage is a new and novel approach to take for this genre. It is a good idea and is used well throughout but I did find other issues with the plot. What was confusing about the story was all the double crossing going on. I found it far too convoluted and it seemed that people would side with one person only to betray them the next for no discernible reason.
Overall I think the reason they made the plot have all these twists and turns is because they had to drag out what is essentially a 108 minute movie into a seven and a half hour, ten episode television show. You often hear the mantra that if you tell a simple story well, then people will often enjoy it. The film achieved that. The series unfortunately wants to reboot that simple tale but throw in too many confusing sub plots that in the end turn it into more of a melodrama.
At times it was hard going getting through this series when I could have watched the film instead and got the same story in a fraction of the time. Nice try Mr Rodriguez but I am afraid you fail with this first season. I hope that over the following seasons the producers try to create their own legacy without the noose of the movie hanging over its neck.
Verdict:
The producers deserve to be staked out and left in the desert sun to cook for a while.
Evidence:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/From_Dusk_till_Dawn:_The_Series
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt3337194/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/El_Rey_Network
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