Every time Quentin Tarantino was almost cinema’s biggest hypocrite: “I don’t care”
Quentin Tarantino exercises no restraint in sharing his thoughts on everything related to cinema, becoming an unprompted fountain of facts when anything related to 1970s film history comes up and casually revealing his most controversial thoughts on current releases and filmmakers. But while his opinions often land him in hot water, from his impassioned defence of Roman Polanski to his vocal dislike of many David Lynch films, many people feel as though he has earned the right to say as he pleases, with the indie director being responsible for cult classic films like Pulp Fiction, Reservoir Dogs and Kill Bill.
Through his impressive low-budget filmmaking style and unique dialogue style, he re-popularised the qualities associated with exploitation films through his extreme violence and tongue-in-cheek humour, marking him as a once-in-a-generation auteur and redefining an era of independent filmmaking. But while he is revered for his sprawling filmography and often cited as one of the most influential modern directors, he has also slightly damaged any chance at a mysterious aura through his constant spouting of opinions, some of which are highly contradictory.
There are some people who need to write everything they’ve ever said in a little notebook and carry it around with them so they can remember all their thoughts, and Tarantino is one of those people. The director has never been shy about sharing his thoughts on modern cinema, ranging from expressing his love of Ridley Scott to his dismissal of Dune, something that seems to bite him in the ass when he says something that goes against an earlier statement he made.
Tarantino has been attached to many projects over the years, with the director being tied to many ill-fated stories and adaptations that have yet to see the light of day. For a while, it was rumoured that he was making his tenth and final film about the legendary film critic Pauline Kael, a project whose fate is still uncertain. But as well as this, the director has expressed his interest in adapting many popular movies and less well-known films, from the likes of Faster, Pussycat! Kill! Kill!, Westworld and The Man from UNCLE.
However, while he has been linked to many adaptations, the director was also quick to denounce this form of filmmaking entirely, criticising Denis Villeneuve’s version of Dune because of his strong disagreement with remakes, despite having attempted this venture many times himself.
When asked if he would watch Villeneuve’s version of Dune, Tarantino said, “It’s one after another of this remake and that remake. People ask, ‘Have you seen Dune? Have you seen Ripley?’ Have you seen Shōgun?” And I’m like no, no, no, no. There’s six or seven Ripley books. If you do one again, why are you doing the same one that they’ve done twice already? I’ve seen that story twice before, and I didn’t really like it in either version, so I’m not really interested in seeing it a third time. If you did another story, that would be interesting enough to give it a shot anyway.”
While some have argued that he is missing out on great films, Tarantino disagrees and remains firm in his contradictory beliefs about their relevance, once again missing the mark with a hugely sweeping statement.
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