I loved Grindhouse. Well, I loved Planet Terror, loved the ads, and liked Death Proof. But I loved, loved, loved the Machete trailer. Being a huge fan of Danny Trejo, Machete gave me just what I wanted -- a silly movie focused on someone I love watching. Of course, after Grindhouse came out, there were tons of rumors about Machete getting his own feature film. Some believed it. Some didn't. I just hoped.

The other day, The Movie Blog threw up the poster to the right, which you can see on their site in all of its full-sized glory. Is this really an official poster for Machete? Is it really on its way? Was a script completed before the strike? I would hope that "yes," is the answer to all of those, but I'm trying to reign in my excitement for now.

In the meantime, we can fangirl and fanboy away. What do you think of the poster? Me, I like it, but it would lose a lot of its charm if its grainy artwork was shown on a shiny, slick new poster. My thought: keep it as-is, but send it to all theaters folded where the folds are, and printed without gloss. That would be sweet, but not as sweet as the decent man who was living a decent life, but now he is a brutal savage who must slaughter to stay alive!

This was originally going to be a casting bite, but with a little snooping, I discovered that there's more to this new flick Boston Girls than meets the eye. Today, Variety reported that Camille Solari, who last popped up in an uncredited role in Factory Girl, is starring in the pic, which shot in Boston back in December. It wasn't really a role she nabbed, but rather held onto as she wrote the film as well. So, she created it, will star, and Gabriel Bologna is helming it. Yes, the son of the wonderful Joseph Bologna -- Chapter Two, My Favorite Year, Blame it on Rio, and of course, Rags to Riches.

The big coup is that Gabriel convinced Joe, and his mother, actress Renée Taylor, to join the cast. So, this indie flick has Ma and Pop Bologna, and just to make things even more interesting -- it reunites Solari with Shay Astar (August from 3rd Rock from the Sun) who has popped up in her other films like The Bliss, Robert Miano (Confessions of a Pit Fighter), and Danny Trejo, the tough-ass Machete. According to Boston.com, the film is being described as "a dark-horror-comedy" by producer Jon Waterman, and at Projo.com, they say that the film is about "a New Year's resolution by the two Boston girls of the title, who have had it with their cheating boyfriends and decide to murder everyone who has wronged them." A movie where two gals come face-to-face with Machete AND Bologna? I'm sold.

"And then people will ask why I have a picture of President Garfield on my wall, and I'll tell them it's because I like lasagna, of course!"

I've been watching all the buzz surrounding Smiley Face for some time now, following two positive reviews from both Monika (at Toronto) and Jette (at SXSW), and yet the film still couldn't find its way to theaters (with the exception of a limited run at New York's IFC Center). Part of the reason why I wanted to review the DVD was because, after all the wonderful feedback, I needed to see for myself why, in fact, Smiley Face was not worthy of a theatrical run. Aside from a great, marketable cast (including Anna Faris, Adam Brody, John Krasinski, Danny Masterson, Jane Lynch, John Cho, Danny Trejo, Brian Posehn and friggin' Carrot Top), the flick comes with a very funny script, some great edge-of-your-seat set pieces and plenty of memorable quotes (see above). So what gives? Why is this one heading straight to DVD (tomorrow), instead of enjoying some theatrical face time?

Well, the problem probably lies in the fact that it's a straight-up, unapologetic stoner comedy ... with the words 'cult following' written all over it. With its R rating (for foul language and massive amounts of drug use), Smiley Face would've been near impossible to market to a mass audience. That said, they could've cut together a "safe" trailer, and I imagine the critics would've liked this one -- so either the money wasn't there or First Look just didn't have enough faith in their product (it is a female-driven stoner comedy after all -- and those are rare). Dazed and Confused grossed only $7 million when it was first released in 1993, but the film has gone on to reach cult status among teenagers (that DVD was passed around like a joint back when I was in college). It's my belief that, while Smiley Face will probably not reach Dazed and Confused status, it will definitely find an audience on DVD and perhaps go down as the first great stoner comedy of the new millennium ... or at least give Harold and Kumar Go to White Castle a run for its money.

Despite having a familiar cast and an easily digestible concept, Gregg Araki's stoner comedy Smiley Face has been dumped to the same status as a modern Steven Seagal vehicle. That's right, according to MTV, it's going straight to DVD, following a barely-even-limited run in Los Angeles, that is. The movie, which premiered at this year's Sundance Film Festival, stars Anna Faris (Scary Movie), John Krasinski (The Office), Jane Lynch (The 40 Year-Old Virgin), Danny Masterson (That '70s Show) and Danny Trejo (Grindhouse), none of whom are apparently good enough for a theatrical release. Maybe it's the fact that it can't be sold to Araki's typical fans, or maybe it's the fact that nobody likes to admit that Up in Smoke, Harold and Kumar Go to White Castle, Dazed and Confused, Knocked Up, Half Baked and Dude, Where's My Car? were all fairly popular and successful movies -- because then maybe it will seem like an admission that marijuana is cool.

Smiley Face stars Faris as a woman who starts her day by smoking up and then mistakenly taking care of her munchies with a batch of pot cupcakes. Then ... hilarity ensues. During its Sundance premiere, crowds were reportedly laughing non-stop (though Karina claimed that it received some awful buzz) and it seemed to be well-enough-received at later festivals, too. Jette reviewed the movie at SXSW, pointing out that it's "the kind of movie that will be more fun to watch with a big audience than alone on your DVD player." So much for that idea. Earlier this month, Monika saw the film in Toronto, where she confirmed its worth. "Araki's comedy gives us the best of many comedic worlds in an incessantly funny, easily-quotable serving," she said in her review. "From discussions of Marxism to love of lasagna, Smiley Face serves it all -- with some weed and a very, very stoned smile." Well, at least we can be sure it will develop a cult following on video; aside from that we can only hope our local art-house cinema will give it a midnight screening somewhere down the line.

First, I must disappoint some of you by warning: This film is NOT some strange remake of the classic line-animation La Linea. Remember that? It's the cartoon about a line that becomes a little guy who walks around, often walking into things and always either making requests of the artist, or yelling at him for something. While we won't see a big line on the big screen, this new La Linea incarnation is looking like it's worth the time. The Hollywood Reporter posted that Ray Liotta has signed on to star in the crime drama with Esai Morales and Valerie Cruz, and they've got one heck of an ensemble cast in final talks. There's two of my favorite actors, Joe Morton and Danny Trejo, as well as Armand Assante, Kevin Cage (the porn star, or did THR typo?), and Jason Connery. Plus: Andy Garcia is in early talks for a small role.

The film, loosely-based on the Arellano Felix drug cartel, is about a lieutenant of a drug cartel (Morales) who takes over business and becomes a loose cannon. (Garcia would play the ill kingpin of the cartel.) An LA-based assassin, played by Liotta, is hired to kill him. Cruz, meanwhile, will play a woman named Olivia, who is a meth addict in Tijuana trying to get clean for her kid -- how she fits into the rest remains to be seen. The feature was written by R. Ellis Frazier, who is also producing with Geoffrey Ross, and will be directed by James Cotten. Production is scheduled to begin next month in LA and Tijuana.

While Gregg Araki's early films have been the subject of much debate, the tide began to change with his impressive Mysterious Skin -- delving into the troubling world of molestation with class and depth. His accomplishments continue with Smiley Face, in a light and stoned capacity, of course. For his latest, Araki has dipped into the world of comedy and shows that he can leave many of his usual, challenging themes behind and make an easy-to-serve, and completely fun, mainstream comedy.

Anna Faris is Jane -- a struggling, pothead actress -- who somehow travels from point A -- her couch, to point Z -- the top of a ferris wheel. How she got there is a strange melange of events that puts Dude, Where's My Car to shame. Earlier that morning, Jane fired up her bong and got nicely stoned. In a munchie daze, she looks in her fridge and discovers a platter of cupcakes on which her roommate (Danny Masterson) has written a note for Jane to keep her hands off. Thinking she'll just eat the cupcakes and make more, Jane devours each and every one -- and only after does she realize that the cupcakes had pot in them. From there, Jane exists in a sea of stoned stupidity and verbose clarity (at least, in her own mind).

I want to start this off by saying that I love Grindhouse. I was anxiously itched for it to come out, and I absolutely adored Robert Rodriguez's Planet Terror, as well as the Danny Trejo faux trailer, Machete. (I enjoyed Death Proof as well, especially the end, but not nearly as much as the other.) Of course, I was thrilled when Trejo said that El Machete had been greenlit by the Weinsteins. Now, I'm not so sure -- at least, not sure if Rodriguez's nieces are to be believed -- the movie might not be a feature on its own.

While chatting with Bloody Disgusting, Electra and Elise Avellan said: "Robert said he'd do it [Machete], and asked for us to be in it," and "Robert wants to do Grindhouse 2 with [the two films being] Machete and The Babysitter Twins." I'm sure fans of the twins will love this news, but it just isn't working for me. Although Rodriguez is currently working on Barbarella, the twins say that they already know a bit about the potential plot. Electra said: "Robert mentioned something about the end of the world and Hollywood action films, where we'd be trained in Mexico to come back here and fight," while Elise says: "Hollywood starts f*cking with us, so we start killing... we [would] kill Harvey Weinstein in the movie, although that's just talk [right now]." This is all just the rumor stage, so I'm hoping it stays that way -- or, that they morph it a little. Maybe machine-gun-leg Rose McGowan trains them and they're her right-hand women or something. Otherwise, let Trejo shine on his own.

It looks like a future for the Mexican bad-ass, otherwise known as Machete, isn't just a hope-inducing rumor. In March, there were rumblings that the short trailer for Grindhouse would become a direct-to-DVD feature. Cinema Blend believed it, our Jette Kernion didn't and I was just holding out hope. It didn't seem really realistic, and one would imagine that it would be even less so after Grindhouse failed to meet expectations. Yet the latest news has an even better future than we could've imagined for the man with the big knives.

While talking with the guys over at IESB, Danny Trejo has said that Bob and Harvey Weinstein have greenlit El Machete. The big kicker -- it won't be a straight-to-DVD release, but a feature film where the machetes in Trejo's jacket can shine larger than life. I'm not sure why they would choose to increase the film's scope after its partnering films did so poorly, but I can't complain. It's great news for people like me, who are huge Trejo fans. Then again, it'd probably get a bigger draw than a gorey, 3-hour horror film -- there's all those action fans and ladies anxious to see Trejo having manly moments with naked women and waterfalls. Or, at least, the former!

However, this tasty treat is also housed with some less-than-awesome news. Trejo also says that it might come out before Sin City 2. Coming after news that Robert Rodriguez might take on The Jetsons, and now a feature Machete, when in hell will we get the next Sinstallment? I'm hoping that none of these are affecting the Sin City schedule, and that all of this side-work isn't indicative of problems with the adaptation. But either way, at least we haven't seen the end of Machete.

The Robert Rodriguez-Quentin Tarantino collaboration Grindhouse is a carnival funhouse/rollercoaster ride of a movie. You scream, clutch your date's arm, and wait frozen in suspense for the next scary moment. You know it's cheesy and silly and maybe you even can see the wires working the scary bits, but you don't care. You have a thrilling time, and maybe you even want to go again later. The next day, only a few highlights of the dark ride stick in your head -- but who cares? It's just a ride, you're not supposed to take it seriously. And if you don't care about taking a movie seriously, if you don't try to analyze Grindhouse or measure it up against the filmmakers' best work, you can enjoy the ride.

Most of the three-plus hours of Grindhouse fly by, although I can't say I was never bored. I couldn't help but compare the two features included in the movie with the exploitation films to which Grindhouse pays homage. Would Grindhouse have the same hair-raising stunts, eye-rolling dialogue ... and most important for many audience members, would the women be as scantily clad? (They certainly are on the current cover of Rolling Stone magazine.) Tarantino's segment Death Proof is the better homage to grindhouse, but Rodriguez's segment Planet Terror is more of a contemporary update of the old drive-in movie genre. If you don't want to see even cartoonish renditions of lurid decapitation, amputation, gunshot wounds, automobile crashes and cannibalism, Grindhouse is not going to appeal to you.

Austin held a regional premiere of Grindhouse on Wednesday night, and I was there on the red carpet to meet and shoot photos of the celebrities in town for the event. (That's Quentin Tarantino in the above photo, in case you've been living under a rock.) I'm not the world's best photographer, and I used a digital camera that I bought mainly for its ability to fit in my purse. But I had a lot of fun in front of the Paramount as the actors, actresses and filmmakers each made their way down the red carpet. It was so crowded and noisy that I didn't have the chance to ask many questions, but fortunately Cinematical's Kevin Kelly attended the Grindhouse junket earlier this week and posted a two-part report that tells you just about everything you want to know about the movie. Check out my photos after the jump.