Death Proof (2007)
- The most famous, quotable line in Death Proof wasn't actually in the script; it was completely improvised by the actor on the third take.
- Unlike modern films, the massive explosion sequence in Death Proof used zero CGI. The crew spent three weeks setting up the practical rig for a single take.
Death Proof is a 2007 American slasher film written and directed by Quentin Tarantino, originally released as part of the Grindhouse double feature with Robert Rodriguez's Planet Terror. Kurt Russell stars as Stuntman Mike, a scarred, aging Hollywood stunt performer who stalks and murders young women using his reinforced "death proof" stunt car as a weapon, relishing the power of killing victims who are helpless against his vehicle. After successfully murdering one group of women in a devastating high-speed crash, Stuntman Mike targets a second group — including a professional stuntwoman played by real-life stuntwoman Zoe Bell — who prove far more capable of fighting back than he anticipated.
The film's central reversal — from slasher horror to feminist revenge as the hunters become the hunted — was Tarantino's most satisfying structural conceit. The car chase sequences, performed entirely with practical stunts and real vehicles at genuine high speeds, were among the most thrilling ever filmed. Zoe Bell's performance, sitting on the hood of a speeding Dodge Challenger, was one of cinema's most breathtaking real stunt performances.
