From Dusk Till Dawn: The Series

I suppose you could save time by just going back and watching the original movie (which starred George Clooney and Quentin Tarantino, who wrote the script), but if you liked that one, you'll almost certainly dig this.

While the flashbacks deepen the characters, some elements are smack-you-in-the-head obvious. Still, the stylization of the story is impressive as is the way Rodriguez, who wrote and directed the premiere, introduces the robber characters, the more level-headed Seth Gecko (D.J. Cotrona) and his possibly crazy/possibly prescient brother, Richie (Zane Holtz).

The original film’s strengths are washed out in this version, which is instead mining it for televisual drama.

It's probably enough to say that if you like this sort of thing, this is just the sort of thing you'll like. (If the tautology fits, wear it.) Rodriguez knows how this machine works as well as anyone alive. Whether such sensationalist kicks are good for us "as a people," or indeed as people in particular, is a question the culture and its guardians and gadflies have been batting around for years. A decision is not due any time soon.

As a 40-minute expansion on the first 10 minutes of the original film, the action can seem needlessly drawn out and played for time rather than for narrative sense. But the occasionally snappy dialogue, twisted humor and cinematic direction--which are all in Rodriguez's hallmark style--bode well for the rest of the series.

Some casting choices are inspired, others awkward. Some style choices by Rodriguez simmer, others fizzle.

Although the script isn't quite as memorable as Tarantino's film script, it is faithful to the events of the film as well as the signature mix of over-the-top violence, cartoonish dialogue and just a hint, so far, of the vampires who will form a welcoming party when the brothers get across the border to Mexico.