The Big Picture
With the release of Eli Roth’s Thanksgiving, which is in theaters now, 2007’s Grindhouse is back at the forefront of movie buffs’ minds everywhere. Ever since Quentin Tarantino and Robert Rodriguez’s explosive double feature hit the map, people have been clamoring for the fake trailers that were sandwiched in the middle of to be adapted into their own feature films. So far, we’ve been lucky enough to see Hobo With a Shotgun, Machete (which has strangely spun off into its own franchise), and now Thanksgiving, brought to fruition. That leaves us with just two unmade movies until the first phase of the Grindhouse project is complete — Don’t and Werewolf Women of the SS. Let’s just say… one of these movies has a lot more potential to be made than the other.
First off, there’s Edgar Wright’s Don’t. This fake trailer parodied the supernatural horror and Hammer movies of the ’50s, ’60s, and ’70s. However, this one would be tricky to pull off. As great as Wright’s segment is, it’s basically just a smorgasbord of jarring and spooky images racing by on-screen while a narrator repeatedly exclaims, “Don’t!” It’s safe to say that we would all welcome a feature-length attempt at that fake trailer, but it’s hard to imagine how successful it would really be. Rob Zombie’s Werewolf Women of the SS, on the other hand, almost has endless potential. Between its parody of Nazisploitation, werewolf horror, mad scientist movies, WWII action, and kung fu movies, Zombie left more than enough potential to be picked off the Grindhouse tree with this one. Even when compared to the fake trailers that already have been adapted, Werewolf Women of the S.S. gives the most bang for your buck. So, where is the feature-length film?
Quentin Tarantino and Robert Rodriguez’s homage to exploitation double features in the ’60s and ’70s with two back-to-back cult films that include previews of coming attractions between them.
Director Robert Rodriguez, Eli Roth, Quentin Tarantino, Edgar Wright, Rob Zombie
Cast Danny Trejo, Cheech Marin, Rose McGowan, Freddy Rodriguez, Josh Brolin, Marley Shelton
Release Date April 6, 2007
Rating R
Main Genre Action
Writers Robert Rodriguez, Rob Zombie, Edgar Wright, Jeff Rendell, Eli Roth, Quentin Tarantino
Tagline Welcome to the grind house – it’ll tear you in two.
‘Grindhouse’ Was the Ultimate Playground for Horror Filmmakers
2007 was a very cool time for movies. No Country for Old Men was busy calling coin tosses and thrilling audiences, David Fincher was hunting the Zodiac killer, rats were top chefs, and grindhouse movies were being made again. The double feature extravaganza known as Grindhouse was a throwback to the types of movies that its title references. These were exploitation movies shown in run-down theaters, typically presented in double and triple bills. You could catch two or three movies for the price of one, all back to back, and with trailers shown between the main features. These films were typically cheap productions and fell into the horror or action genres. Slasher movies, kung fu flicks, zombie gore fests, revenge movies, and more of the like thrived in these theaters. Grindhouse theaters were at the height of their popularity from the late ’60s to the early ’80s, but with the rise of home video, people didn’t have to venture out to theaters anymore to endure back-to-back unfathomable horrors.
There was a generation of filmmakers that grew up loving these movies, though. Folks like Edgar Wright, Rob Zombie, Eli Roth, and most importantly, Quentin Tarantino and Robert Rodriguez. As the mid-2000s rolled around, the latter two decided it was time to team up and bring back the double bill exploitation experience. In one corner, we had Rodriguez’s zombie apocalypse film Planet Terror, and in the other, Tarantino’s auto-themed Death Proof. Their movies were released in theaters together, played back to back, were given a beat-up and grainy aesthetic, had huge ensemble casts, and were sold for the price of one. What a deal! But it didn’t end there either. This duo asked their popular filmmaker friends to make trailers for fake exploitation movies to accompany the double bill.
‘Werewolf Women of the SS’ Has the Potential to Be Rob Zombie’s Most Ambitious Project
Werewolf Women of the SS is and isn’t a surprising move from Rob Zombie. On one hand, it’s the exact kind of trashy, violent, horror schlock that his previous works had obviously been inspired by. On the other, the scope is way greater than any film Zombie had touched previously. Remember, by the time Grindhouse hit theaters, the only movies that he had to his name were House of 1000 Corpses, The Devil’s Rejects, and his Halloween remake (which would be released just a few months later).
Werewolf Women of the SS is the kind of over-the-top ’70s horror movie that is way too complicated for its own good, but that’s also what makes it so great. In just a few minutes, Zombie promises the most operatic exploitation film ever made. The trailer is set in WWII at a snowy Nazi research base, where women are being transformed into flesh-eating, almost naked werewolves. Evil generals and soldiers fire off machine guns while surrounded by flashy laboratory equipment, scientists are shouting in German, and deafening classical music blasts through the soundtrack. Of course, you have typical Zombie veterans Sheri Moon Zombie, Bill Moseley, and Tom Towles appearing, but the addition of Udo Kier as the commandant of a Death Camp is just perfect. This movie’s scale is enormous.
‘Werewolf Women of the SS’ Would Need Some Updating
But, of course, this trailer would need to do some trimming if was getting a reboot in 2023. Then, just when you think Zombie has played all of his cards, he jumps the shark and deals us Nicolas Cage as Fu Manchu. Yes, Nic Cage shows up decked out in an old-school Fu Manchu get-up that you might find another white actor donning in some racist old adventure serial from the ’30s and ’40s. Even if people weren’t really tackling the idea of cultural appropriation in 2007, this is still a headscratcher of a decision, and would likely stay left in the dust if this trailer was ever adapted. This touch and the over-sexualization objectification of the Werewolf Women very much place this trailer in the mid-2000s. It’s one thing to have some fun making a dicy grindhouse movie trailer, that’s why we’re all here in the first place. When it comes to Nicolas Cage playing Fu Manchu and having a bunch of women running around naked for the entire runtime, it makes you question where exactly Zombie’s intentions are. He’s never been the classiest filmmaker on the planet, so this shouldn’t be too surprising, but that doesn’t excuse anything.
Still, given all of the subgenres at play, there is a ton of room for expansion with Werewolf Women of the SS. We’re working with horror, werewolves, Nazisploitation, action, and kung fu; the possibilities are endless. Who wouldn’t have fun with this movie? We know Zombie did! The behind-the-scenes making-of featurette looks like everyone on set had the time of their lives with this one (despite the freezing cold set and werewolf makeup). We’ve already expanded on a few of the fake trailers, so why not do this one next?
Why Hasn’t a Feature-Length ‘Werewolf Women of the SS’ Happened Yet?
In an interview with SciFiNow, Zombie explained why a feature-length Werewolf Women of the SS hasn’t happened yet. While he acknowledged adaptations of the other fake trailers, in regard to his own, he stated, “That was originally the plan and we certainly spoke about the spin-off movies at the time. Of course, they ended up doing Machete, but the others fell to the side.” He continues to express his desire to explore the project one day by saying, “I would still love to make it but it is probably never going to happen because I do not own the rights. The whole Grindhouse thing is owned by Dimension. It is a shame because it would have been a great movie – but when Grindhouse did not pan out to be the success that Dimension were hoping for that was pretty much the end of it.”
So essentially, rights issues and Grindhouse’s disappointing box office returns have kept Zombie’s film from happening. Let’s hope that one day the studios might look at the box office success of Machete (and hopefully a hit Thanksgiving movie) as a sign to believe in Werewolf Women of the SS. Please, someone let Rob Zombie make this movie and get him out of his Munsters rut! Then, Edgar Wright can knock out his Don’t feature, and the Grindhouse trailer-to-feature pipeline will be complete!
Grindhouse is available to rent in the U.S. on Vudu
Rent on Vudu
