Quentin Tarantino

[masterchief]

If you ever wondered whats in the briefcase in "Pulp Fiction" there are some interesting theorys here:

http://pulp.linuxroot.org/case.shtml

I like the "Soul" theory the most.

[Christopher]

The most likely one there is the column headlined "Kiss Me Deadly." I saw Kiss Me Deadly a second time just a few weeks ago in a film class, and the teacher mentioned it as being a film that Tarantino has most likely seen many times.

[Brendan]

It's cool not knowing.  

[dane with no name]

I prefer to be left in the dark about what´s in the briefcase, but i can easily understand why some people wants to know. Tarantino was briefly in scandinavia during the promotion of jackie brown, and a reporter asked him what was in the briefcase. he answered that it could be anything, from uranium, the holy grail, to eastwoods poncho.  

We talked briefly about True Romance, but what about another certain other movie he wrote the script for?
I am (of course) talking about Natural born killers.
In my mind, one of his most provocative scripts ever. Whats your take on it?

[masterchief]

I have seen the for about 50 minutes, and I loved it. I enjoyed the wiredness of the stuff onscreen, and I the start in the cafe, was exelent. I don't really have much to say about the sitcom after the cafe, because I was distracted at that moment in time. I think the last thing I saw was the wedding. I am thinking of getting it on DVD.

[Brendan]

Actually he didn't really write Natural Born Killers. He wrote the original draft but then Oliver Stone had some peeps re-write it almost completely, and since then Tarantino pretty much wants nothing to do with it.

[Doug]

The original screenplay is available by Grove Press and you can compare Tarantino's script to the movie.

[Christopher]

I watched "the fourth film by Quentin Tarantino" ( ) last night. Kill Bill doesn't have a thing on Jackie Brown or Pulp Fiction. It's a huge step down from those films. It might be an okay film, but it certainly isn't great. There were aspects of it that I liked. I certainly (and I don't want to give anything away here, so read on with caution) liked the animated scenes, that was an interesting way of doing those. And there were times when the music obviously had a Leone feel to them, and I thought to myself that the only major saving grace the film has is that it reminds me of Leone's work. But yet, it isn't as fun to watch as a Leone film.

I have to ask about the violence. You know, the blood spurting as it does. Was there a reason for this? Anybody know? Honestly, I saw very similar violence just a few weeks ago when I watched Freddy Vs. Jason. Was it for humor? Are we supposed to laugh?

I remember back when I first watched Jackie Brown. I went to school the next day and raved about it to my friends. Then, I think I was just out of high school by the time I got to watch Pulp Fiction. And again, I really liked it. Tarantino has made some good films, but Kill Bill isn't up there with them. It's not particularly horrible, but it ain't particularly good either. Mediocre is a word that comes to mind to describe it.

I beleive it's Doug who mentioned he didn't care for Volume 1, but liked Volume 2. I hope so, cause I'll most likely watch Volume 2 at some point.

[Brendan]

Well the film was a slight homage to the Anime/Kung-Fu films, and although I don't watch Anime, I have seen pieces of some of the more popular Anime movies and they are pretty violent. I just felt that the violence was to over the top to be taken seriously.

I liked it becuase Tarantino told a great story using a great method, which he does so well. He made good action and he got some good performances as well. And the music, well, Tarantino and Wes Anderson are pretty much the only ones who knows how to use music properly in a film. By that I mean the the rock music stuff, not instrumental scores.

[Matt]

I have to ask about the violence. You know, the blood spurting as it does. Was there a reason for this? Anybody know? Honestly, I saw very similar violence just a few weeks ago when I watched Freddy Vs. Jason. Was it for humor? Are we supposed to laugh?

I think he uses the techniques like the blood hoses that shower the room with a spray of blood when a limb is cut off to actually tone down the violence. It makes it less real, and ultimately less gruesome because it's so obviously just special effects.

I found a lot of humor in Kill Bill Vol 1, and at the same thought the action sequences where fantastic. Lucy Liu... what can you say? She and Uma were out of this world... damn.  I think Lucy only raises her voice twice in the film, and the first time, at the table with the other crime bosses (trying not to reveal a spoiler here, if you've seen it, you remember the scene)  man... when she raised her voice there I just was stunned by how good she was.  

I just saw this film for the first time tonight and really enjoyed it.  I haven't seen Pulp Fiction since it first came out, so I don't remember it enough to compare. Same with From Dusk to Dawn. I have seen Reservoir Dogs fairly recently and I really enjoyed that. But I'd give Kill Bill a slight edge only because when it was over... I felt good... energized. It was a fun experience. Reservoir Dogs, while I enjoyed every minute of it and thought the acting was out of this world... just left me feeling slightly deflated in the end. So, I have to give KB the higher mark just because I liked the way I felt after watching it... not necessarily because it was a better film.

[Christopher]

The violence didn't offend me by any means. I didn't feel anything for it, and that's why I asked. I felt no energy or repulsion for it.

Had it felt more real, and I'd felt repulsed by it, chances are I would have liked it a bit more.

I have to say though, I'd heard about Tarantino's opening credit "The Fourth Film by" before I'd seen it, and that really soured me. How egotistical! Is that a very small thing? You bet! But even after sitting through the movie and seeing things I liked, it never came together for me.

Most martial arts movies have very stylized action scenes, but here I only saw Tarantino being fancy. I thought some of it looked nice, but I never felt anything for the characters or the action.

[allycat]

I think he uses the techniques like the blood hoses that shower the room with a spray of blood when a limb is cut off to actually tone down the violence. It makes it less real, and ultimately less gruesome because it's so obviously just special effects.

I agree. I'm not into gore, but I didn't see this as gory at all. At least, it didn't turn my stomach. It was over the top, almost comical because it wasn't realistic.  

I found a lot of humor in Kill Bill Vol 1, and at the same thought the action sequences where fantastic. Lucy Liu... what can you say? She and Uma were out of this world... damn.  I think Lucy only raises her voice twice in the film, and the first time, at the table with the other crime bosses (trying not to reveal a spoiler here, if you've seen it, you remember the scene)  man... when she raised her voice there I just was stunned by how good she was.

Yeah - I've never considered myself to be a fan of Lucy Liu, though she was fantastic in Ally McBeal. But in this film I thought she was great, and, like Uma Thurman, she played a strong, take-no-crap-from-anyone character. More importantly, another strong woman character.

I just saw this film for the first time tonight and really enjoyed it.  I haven't seen Pulp Fiction since it first came out, so I don't remember it enough to compare. Same with From Dusk to Dawn. I have seen Reservoir Dogs fairly recently and I really enjoyed that. But I'd give Kill Bill a slight edge only because when it was over... I felt good... energized. It was a fun experience. Reservoir Dogs, while I enjoyed every minute of it and thought the acting was out of this world... just left me feeling slightly deflated in the end. So, I have to give KB the higher mark just because I liked the way I felt after watching it... not necessarily because it was a better film.

Yeah, I felt full of beans after seeing Kill Bill as well. After seeing both parts, really. Though I don't want to spoil Vol. 2 for anyone who hasn't seen it, I do feel that Vol. 1 is the better part, but only because Vol. 2 has more depth and character development, so it's a slower-paced film in comparison. Put the two together however, and you have one amazing film...

Finally, I loved the anime sequence. I love Japanese anime and manga anyway, and this was in the same vein. I like unconventional styles of filming, and when directors do something different.

[Christopher]

Vol. 2 has more depth and character development, so it's a slower-paced film in comparison. Put the two together however, and you have one amazing film...

That actually gives me more hope that I might like Volume 2 more. You're probably right, the movie would have probably worked best as one whole film, not broken up in two parts.

[Matt]

The violence didn't offend me by any means. I didn't feel anything for it, and that's why I asked. I felt no energy or repulsion for it.

Had it felt more real, and I'd felt repulsed by it, chances are I would have liked it a bit more.

Christopher, if we agreed on a film more than once every couple of years, I'd have to rethink my evaluation of it.

I don't like horror films, haven't watched one since I was a teenager. So I don't know if the sense of comedy is there or not, as it is in Kill Bill Vol. 1. But for me, this was refreshing because these scenes would be really hard to take if they were filmed to look realistic. For instance, I love Scarface, but the one chainsaw scene is PLENTY for two hours of film. A movie like Kill Bill with all the limbs and heads coming off would be too much for me if it was filmed to look real.

I thought it was a fun movie. I loved the soundtrack too. I only wish I had timed my viewing of it better. Kill Bill Vol. 2 has just left the theaters near me, and it's about two months before it's due to be released on DVD, so I've got to wait.

[Christopher]

Christopher, if we agreed on a film more than once every couple of years, I'd have to rethink my evaluation of it.

I thought that myself! You knew deep down that you'd like it when you saw I didn't care much for it, didn't you?

I'm sure this is another time when it's certainly possible my view of a movie could change. It's happened quite a bit in the past. As I've said, there are elements to this film I liked. It looks good. It's good technically. Honestly, I wish I had enjoyed it as much as some of you who have had such a good time with it.

[Matt]

I thought that myself! You knew deep down that you'd like it when you saw I didn't care much for it, didn't you?

I'm gonna start paying more attention to the films you say you don't like.

P.S., anything you really didn't like that's out in the theaters now? I'll probably be going to the movies this weekend or next.  

[Christopher]

We could run a test, though this thread probably ain't the place for it. I could give you a list of movies I think are awful, and you check them out. (Though I would have to exclude the bad horror movies I've seen - or, I guess those could be the ones that would get you into the genre )

[Matt]

Well, we share similar taste in avatars, anyway!  

[masterchief]

I saw "True Romance" last night, and, Like all the other Tarantino film I've seen, loved it.

I love the Hopper and Walken scene, did any of you find this racist though ? I didn't, but what do the rest of you think ?

Thought the acting was great all round and nice casting.

Plus, I agreed with the GBW reference.

[Gant]

The 5678's are playing in town soon... I might check em out....