Quentin Tarantino was cheered by reviewers watching his new movie Death Proof at the Cannes Film Festival.

The legendary director said being recognised at the festival was "an honour beyond measure". In 1994 he won its top prize, the Palme d'Or, for Pulp Fiction.

Journalists, who cheered Tarantino as he began an address, described his movie as "amazing".

He repaid the compliment by saying Cannes was the "Mount Olympus" of cinema. "It's where the gods go," he added. "It's where the great film-makers go. It's where the greatest films ever made had their first screenings."

Death Proof formed part of double bill Grindhouse, along with a colleague's movie, in the US. But it and Planet Terror, by Robert Rodriguez, are being released separately in Europe.

Kurt Russell, star of Death Proof, said he was sad Europe would not get the double bill: "I am disappointed for any audience that won't get the Grindhouse experience. If you want to have the full effect, the experience is something bizarre - I just have never experienced it before."

However, Harvey Weinstein, executive producer on the movie, disagreed: "European audiences are going to get a lot more, and a lot more enjoyment, when they see the films as intended.

"You are going to get Robert Rodriguez and Quentin Tarantino doing their thing, and it will dwarf Grindhouse."