Tarantino

[metallicorphan]

I am having a run of Tarantino films

These are the ones i have and will watch
Pulp Fiction
Jackie Brown
Sin City
From Dusk Til Dawn
Four Rooms
Kill Bill Vol 1
Kill Bill Vol 2
True Romance(Directors Cut)
Natural Born Killers(Directors Cut)
Reservoir Dogs
Death Proof



As you can see i have taken a few Liberties,for example Sin City where he was guest director and similar stuff with a few other titles

I have not got Inglourious Basterds 

I heard once that Tarantino was pissed with Oliver Stone over Natural Born Killers,i also heard that NBK was supposed to be a film that was Alabama from True Romance and Mr Blonde from Reservoir Dogs and the three films being an arc...but then again,there was that rumour about The Vega Brothers also being the arc to Pulp Fiction and Reservoir Dogs,being a prequel to both

I just saw on IMDB that Kill Bill Volume 3 is still on,i thought that idea was rubbished ages ago by QT?


If i was to guess i would say that people's favourite Tarantino film would be Pulp Fiction,am i right?

[Isgrimnur]

Four Rooms: The Man from Hollywood

[Blackjack]

metal, fwiw, Basterds is in heavy rotation on TNT on cable, albeit in mutilated (censored) form. Pulp Fiction on basic cable is hilarious in terns of the language censoring 

[CeeKay]

If I had to pick a QT only film it'd be Kill Bill, but to me Natural Born Killers trumps everything on that list, followed by Sin City.

[PR_GMR]

'Inglorious Bastards' was on TNT last night and I sat down and watched it a bit. It's good stuff. But my favorite Tarantino will always be 'Pulp Fiction' (which I watch as least every other year) and 'Kill Bill Vol 1 and 2'.

[whiteboyskim]

Reservoir Dogs stands, for me, as his best. I think Tarantino has gone to his own head with self indulgent fare, and I genuinely do not like Basterds. At. All. Liked Death Proof at the time I saw it, not so much a fan of it now (save the last half hour during the chase). In my opinion, he's so in love with his own voice that he's lost any sense of pacing that he had in Dogs and Fiction. He just goes on and on and on as though he's seeing just how long he can stretch something out to where it becomes unbearable, a fact he admitted to in an interview regarding the lunch scene in Basterds (where the evil Nazi and the girl meet and the Nazi prattles on for like 15 minutes solid). The scene did become unbearable, but not due to tension.

Anyway, that's my take on the man.

[metallicorphan]

I didn't mind 'Basterds',but i think i was disappointed,i did like the beginning when they are talking about Squirrels,that was kind of Tarantino that we know,Death Proof i was also disappointed in(this will be the second time i watch it in this run,so perhaps i will like it this time around)

We haven't had TNT in the UK for years,I think it was replaced by TCM and TCM2

[JCC]

My wife and I are basically Quentin whores. I only really consider "his" movies to be the ones he wrote and directed (the same way he enumerates them).

My least favorites in this category are Jackie brown and death proof, though I still enjoy both of them, with Jackie brown being my least favorite. My favorites are the kill bill movies (dreading the third). Pulp fiction also obviously rates very highly. I did love inglorious bastards. I watched that the other night on TNT too and found it holds up better than most of his movies to the censor stick.

I can't wait for Django unchained, I think it looks fantastic.

[rshetts2]

While I myself like Tarantino generally, Im in the minority of fans when it comes to Pulp Fiction.  It definitely has some interesting bits but taken as a whole I found it to be a ridiculously pretentious piece of crap.  I know a lot of people totally revere Pulp Fiction and its chock full of actors that I really like but it just didnt click for me at all.  On the other hand I love Reservoir Dogs and the Kill Bill movies. 

[Bullwinkle]

While I myself like Tarantino generally, Im in the minority of fans when it comes to Pulp Fiction.  It definitely has some interesting bits but taken as a whole I found it to be a ridiculously pretentious piece of crap.  I know a lot of people totally revere Pulp Fiction and its chock full of actors that I really like but it just didnt click for me at all.  On the other hand I love Reservoir Dogs and the Kill Bill movies. 

You realize that calling Pulp Fiction pretentious makes you sound pretentious.   

Seriously, though, when was the last time you tried to watch it?

[hepcat]

Reservoir Dogs stands, for me, as his best. I think Tarantino has gone to his own head with self indulgent fare, and I genuinely do not like Basterds. At. All. Liked Death Proof at the time I saw it, not so much a fan of it now (save the last half hour during the chase). In my opinion, he's so in love with his own voice that he's lost any sense of pacing that he had in Dogs and Fiction. He just goes on and on and on as though he's seeing just how long he can stretch something out to where it becomes unbearable, a fact he admitted to in an interview regarding the lunch scene in Basterds (where the evil Nazi and the girl meet and the Nazi prattles on for like 15 minutes solid). The scene did become unbearable, but not due to tension.

Anyway, that's my take on the man.

I wanna disagree...but I find myself nodding in agreement to some of these assertions. 

[Bullwinkle]

Reservoir Dogs stands, for me, as his best. I think Tarantino has gone to his own head with self indulgent fare, and I genuinely do not like Basterds. At. All. Liked Death Proof at the time I saw it, not so much a fan of it now (save the last half hour during the chase). In my opinion, he's so in love with his own voice that he's lost any sense of pacing that he had in Dogs and Fiction. He just goes on and on and on as though he's seeing just how long he can stretch something out to where it becomes unbearable, a fact he admitted to in an interview regarding the lunch scene in Basterds (where the evil Nazi and the girl meet and the Nazi prattles on for like 15 minutes solid). The scene did become unbearable, but not due to tension.

Anyway, that's my take on the man.

I wanna disagree...but I find myself nodding in agreement to some of these assertions. 

I think the stretching out was clearly intentional in Basterds, but I don't think it's an "in love with his own voice" thing so much as a challenge to himself.  The opening sequence goes on for a really long time, for example, but to me it's an expert milking of the inherent tension.  It also sets the pacing for the rest of the film.  And he's consistent with it.  Frankly, it's a master of his craft playing with limits of the medium.

And I was entirely ready to write him off after Death Proof (though I should really say it was Grindhouse that put me off.  I was so disappointed with his segment that I never bothered with the extended cut).  Sometimes playing with what you can do doesn't work.  But that doesn't mean that doing so isn't an important part of growing as an artist.

[rshetts2]

While I myself like Tarantino generally, Im in the minority of fans when it comes to Pulp Fiction.  It definitely has some interesting bits but taken as a whole I found it to be a ridiculously pretentious piece of crap.  I know a lot of people totally revere Pulp Fiction and its chock full of actors that I really like but it just didnt click for me at all.  On the other hand I love Reservoir Dogs and the Kill Bill movies. 

You realize that calling Pulp Fiction pretentious makes you sound pretentious.   

Seriously, though, when was the last time you tried to watch it?

Its been years to be honest, I probably should give it another viewing.  

[hepcat]

But that doesn't mean that doing so isn't an important part of growing as an artist.

That would be true if I actually could see him growing as an artist.  If anything, I see him retreating more into his safety zone with each new film.

I also get this feeling that he's as equally in love with being a celebrity at times than he is with making films.  He's an absolutely horrid actor and yet he forces himself into speaking roles in most (if not all) of his films.  He also was just really awful in Sukiyaki Western Django.

Now, that being said...I actually DID enjoy Basterds and look forward to Django.  I may not think he's growing as an artist, but I do enjoy his films on a purely visceral level for what they are:  numerous takes on and homages to exploitation (and action films) of the late '60's and early '70's.

[Soulchilde]

I’m a huge fan of Tarantino and my top 5

1.   Kill Bill Vol.1  - love this movie and the characters
2.   Reservoir Dogs -  Was No.1 for me till Kill Bill Vol.1
3.   Pulp Fiction
4.   Jackie Brown
5.   Inglorious Basterds

[ATB]

The opening scene in Inglorious is just amazing.  The Farm. The father. The Nazi. The Milk.  My favorite Tarantino scene ever.

I also love the scene in the basement. Long? yes. Brilliant? Yes!

That said, IG is my favorite Tarantino easily. 

Over the years, I have lost any and all like for Pulp Fiction.

I think Kill Bill is fine.  Didn't love, didn't hate. WAY. TOO. LONG.

Jackie Brown I hated in the theater. Re-watched about 4 months ago. Really enjoyed it.

Reservoir Dogs is torture porn. No thanks...but it has been YEARS since I've seen it.

Dusk Til Dawn was REALLY fun...

[hepcat]

Reservoir Dogs is torture porn. No thanks...but it has been YEARS since I've seen it.

I think that's a little unfair.  That particular scene is hardly the focus of the film.  The meat of the movie is far more palatable.  It still ranks in my top 20 crime films even after all these years.

[Bullwinkle]

Reservoir Dogs is torture porn. No thanks...but it has been YEARS since I've seen it.

I think that's a little unfair.  That particular scene is hardly the focus of the film.  The meat of the movie is far more palatable.  It still ranks in my top 20 crime films even after all these years.

And that particualar scene isn't even on screen.  So, really, your mind is torture porn.

[ATB]

Maybe I'm mis-remembering. But isn't there some pretty graphic stuff on screen?  I remember coming away from that movie quite disturbed.... Don't they cut his ear off or something? <SPOILZ!>

[Bullwinkle]

Maybe I'm mis-remembering. But isn't there some pretty graphic stuff on screen?  I remember coming away from that movie quite disturbed.... Don't they cut his ear off or something? <SPOILZ!>

Yes, but not on screen.  The camera slyly pulls to the side.  You still hear it, but it's all in your imagination, which is much worse.

[PR_GMR]

While I myself like Tarantino generally, Im in the minority of fans when it comes to Pulp Fiction.  It definitely has some interesting bits but taken as a whole I found it to be a ridiculously pretentious piece of crap.  I know a lot of people totally revere Pulp Fiction and its chock full of actors that I really like but it just didnt click for me at all.  On the other hand I love Reservoir Dogs and the Kill Bill movies. 

Don't feed the troll! Do not feed it!

(PR puts on a muzzle, straps it tightly, and walks out of the thread)

[CeeKay]

While I myself like Tarantino generally, Im in the minority of fans when it comes to Pulp Fiction.  It definitely has some interesting bits but taken as a whole I found it to be a ridiculously pretentious piece of crap.  I know a lot of people totally revere Pulp Fiction and its chock full of actors that I really like but it just didnt click for me at all.  On the other hand I love Reservoir Dogs and the Kill Bill movies. 

Don't feed the troll! Do not feed it!

(PR puts on a ball gag, straps it tightly, and walks out of the thread into the basement)

FTFY

[Arclight]

Not a huge fan. But I did enjoy inglorious basterds. And isn't funny that the scene in the restaurant with the Nazi Jew hunter and Shoshona was one of my favorites of the movie. The way he gushes over the German Strudel with fresh creme makes me want some as well. And the question you're asking yourself throughout the scene, does he know it's Shoshona or is he just on the make?
Loved the over the top performance of Pitt.

[kronovan]

Never cared much for his films and always viewed him as unoriginal and an imitator. Jackie Brown and Kill Bill 2 are his only films I've been impressed with and that has more to do with some of the actors in them. I like pulp, exploitation and violence as much as the next person, but IMO you have to bring something original to that mix.

[metallicorphan]

Four Rooms: The Man from Hollywood

I watched Four Rooms last night,not seen it for years,at first i was really hating Tim Roth's performance but it grew on me,in the end he reminded me of a Rowan Atkinson mix of Mr Bean/Blackadder


I think you are right that The Man From Hollywood was the best,i wasn't expecting Bruce Willis to appear(his name is not on the Front Cover),i also liked Antonio Banderas' bratty kids but Seeing Ione Skye topless in the first story was not a bad thing either

[Purge]

RD taught me to hate Tim Roth - he is fantastic at being bad. Once I've watched a performance from him, I generally never go back to them simply because I want to punch him in the face.

If I were to pick my favorite QT movies, it would probably be ... I dunno. None of them?

Pulp Fiction - watched: liked
Jackie Brown - unwatched
Sin City - watched, liked
From Dusk Til Dawn - unwatched
Four Rooms - unwatched
Kill Bill Vol 1 - watched, liked
Kill Bill Vol 2 - watched, liked
True Romance(Directors Cut) - unwatched
Natural Born Killers(Directors Cut) - watched, was meh for me. Loved some performances though, and OST was fantastic.
Reservoir Dogs - watched many times due to a friends' obsession with him at that time. Never want to watch again.
Death Proof - unwatched.


I'd say probably Sin City was my favorite, though there are some fantastic scenes in most of the films I've watched. It's just that, like Unbreakable, Usual Suspects or even Sixth Sense. There is a ... flavor? in QT films that allows me to appreciate the memory of some of those performances, but I recoil at the idea of watching them again.

IMHO, QT is pretentious and overblown as a director, and worse as an actor. His appearances are generally wooden and not at all inspired. Much like Dumb and Dumber, there are scenes in his movie that I enjoy, but given a choice, I'd rather remember the actors' standout performances in those moments than the movies themselves. There is some brilliant acting, directing and writing in QTs work - but with a smug, overpowering musk of self-adulation it cheapens the experience.

[PeteRock]

Maybe I'm mis-remembering. But isn't there some pretty graphic stuff on screen?  I remember coming away from that movie quite disturbed.... Don't they cut his ear off or something? <SPOILZ!>

Yes, but not on screen.  The camera slyly pulls to the side.  You still hear it, but it's all in your imagination, which is much worse.

The choice of song in that scene is priceless.  To this day whenever I hear it on the radio I can't help but start doing the Mr. Blonde dance.   

[TiLT]

I've always been a bit indifferent about Tarantino's movies. Many of them are quite enjoyable, but to me they aren't necessarily classics. I'd say my favorites are Pulp Fiction and Kill Bill (both parts).

Two weeks ago I watched Death Proof however, and it made me appreciate Tarantino much, much less. Where Rodriguez managed to successfully make a grindhouse movie with Planet Terror, Death Proof is simply Tarantino celebrating himself for way too long. That movie is about 85% irrelevant bullshit, 10% car chase, and 5% plot. If that. The thing is, it's becoming quite obvious to me that Tarantino's talent isn't his ability to write dialogue (read it on paper and you'll see it can be pretty bad. Nobody talks the way they do in his movies) or his ability to shape a plot (what IS the plot in Pulp Fiction anyway?), but it's his ability to select a good musical score and make the actors appear natural in their roles. It's the delivery that makes his dialogue enjoyable, not the writing.

(Spoiler warning: I'm going to spoil some plot points from Death Proof below)

So in Death Proof you've got irrelevant but well-acted characters talking about irrelevant (and boring) things for almost the entire running length of the movie. You keep watching this because you expect there to be some payoff. Perhaps that mysterious text message on the phone turns into an interesting side plot, or perhaps one or more of the girls ends up saving the day. Maybe a few of the inane things they talk about turns out to be foreshadowing that will all make sense with some later plot development.

But no. Halfway through the movie they're all killed unceremoniously and everything is turned back to square one. Cue another way-too-lengthy segment of new, irrelevant and boring characters talking about inane things, followed by a car chase segment that makes no sense at all ("our friend is stuck outside the car. Let's speed up as much as we can to save her!"). The only payoff comes within the last 5 minutes where the bad guy's personality flips around as he becomes the hunted, which is satisfying, but not at all worth the time it took to get there.

Pretty much the entirety of the movie is spent watching people talk. About nothing. At all. The discussion in the beginning of Reservoir Dogs about tipping works so well because it's relatively short (for Tarantino) and introduces us to a group of important characters while being entertaining and somewhat thought-provoking. Death Proof is none of that. It not only doesn't work, it's also deeply uninteresting to watch.

I like most movies I see, but Death Proof left me with a sour taste in my mouth. I was much more pleased with the cheesiness of Machete, a movie that at least didn't take itself or the director too seriously (or at all).

[pr0ner]

If you all are going to consider Sin City a Quentin Tarantino film (which is laughable to say the least), where's Crimson Tide?

[PR_GMR]

'Death Proof' is the one Tarantino entry I didn't like, for the reasons Tilt posted above. It's over-long. The dialogue endless and too chatty. It's only saving graces are Kurt Russell, the hot girls and the one car chase at the end. Tarantino missed the point of exploitation in 'Grindhouse' with this entry. He talked in interviews how some of his favorite grindhouse movies were the boring, chatty ones. 'Death Proof' left me befuddled. Tarantino hasn't been the same since 'Death Proof' and I'm actually a bit concerned that 'Django Unchained' will be a dissapointment.

[PR_GMR]

If you all are going to consider Sin City a Quentin Tarantino film (which is laughable to say the least), where's Crimson Tide?

He only gave it a passing 'coat' of a dialogue re-write. It's not a true Tarantino film.

[pr0ner]

If you all are going to consider Sin City a Quentin Tarantino film (which is laughable to say the least), where's Crimson Tide?

He only gave it a passing 'coat' of a dialogue re-write. It's not a true Tarantino film.

Neither is Sin City.  That's my point.

[hepcat]

While not a "Tarantino film", Sin City still had a segment that was directed and written by Tarantino. 

[pr0ner]

While not a "Tarantino film", Sin City still had a segment that was directed and written by Tarantino. 

Tarantino wrote none of Sin City.  That was all Frank Miller.

Tarantino directed one scene because Robert Rodriguez wanted to convince Tarantino that shooting digitally was a good thing.

Sin City does not belong in a discussion of Tarantino movies.  If it does belong, then Crimson Tide belongs.

[hepcat]

Sorry then, he directed a segment in Sin City.  Still enough to include it as a list of Tarantino films in my opinion.  He isn't even listed in the credits on imdb.com for Crimson Tide.

[CeeKay]

Be nice guys, it's that time of the month and pr0ner's Crimson Tide has come

[pr0ner]

Sorry then, he directed a segment in Sin City.  Still enough to include it as a list of Tarantino films in my opinion.  He isn't even listed in the credits on imdb.com for Crimson Tide.

You should do more research than simply relying on the IMDB.  Tarantino's contribution to Crimson Tide is uncredited.  This fact doesn't make it any less real (ZOMG SILVER SURFER).

Accordingly, if you want to say that Sin City counts in a Tarantino discussion, then Crimson Tide has to be there as well.

[metallicorphan]

If you all are going to consider Sin City a Quentin Tarantino film (which is laughable to say the least), where's Crimson Tide?

As i said in my first post i have taken a few liberties,and i don't have Crimson Tide on DVD, ...I may however add Desperado onto the original list though,just to piss you off  

[ATB]

Why does it matter?

[metallicorphan]

Watched True Romance last night,and like i said in the Tony Scott R.I.P. thread,its a great film still,great cast...would liked to of known what happened to Christopher Walkens character though,he just came in and had that great scene with Dennis Hopper and then we never saw him again

The beginning Xylophone tune is also in Badlands or is a homage to Badlands,The White Stripes-The Nurse reminds me a little of that tune as well