Less than making the tenth film, Quentin Tarantino is willing to do anything to capture our attention. If it’s not picking on actors like Paul Dano in a completely indiscriminate way, it’s announcing that he will do something but in the end doesn’t, and of course, getting involved with a film industry that he used to understand perfectly and now eludes him.
At 63 years old, Tarantino is no longer that young destroyer, but an old man shouting at the clouds. Now he just needs to accept it himself.
The Salchipelis Factory
In a column for Sight & Sound, the director has criticized some movies that no longer represent him: “The flaws, the inconsistencies, the pandering to the audience, the poorly chosen actors, or simply, the nonsensical nonsense often sinks any new movie that comes out of that factory of bland sausages that used to be called Hollywood”. You know, not like before, when all movies without exception were masterpieces.
Going to the movies with Tarantino must be a blast, for sure: “Nowadays, the very concept of what a movie is inspires me more contempt than generosity. Which is understandable, because, in comparison, the films of the last six years make the 80s look like the 30s.” Just in case you don’t review the movies of the last six years, lest the whole thing falls apart.
Of course, there have been movies that he liked, thank goodness. Not many, though: he cites West Side Story and the two parts of Horizon: An American Saga, adding that “nothing that really captivated me and transported me to that magical world of fun that I used to visit frequently and was the reason I loved movies above any other form of art. Nowadays, I prefer to read a book”. Very well, Quentin, but don’t try to make us believe it’s because cinema is worse: it’s because you are older and your tastes have changed. It’s normal.
If there is one movie, among all, that he liked: The Heist, on Netflix, the new one from Ben Affleck and Matt Damon, “an exciting police thriller with a novel premise that manages to deliver everything in really smart ways. Everything worked: Carnahan’s direction, the splendid cast, the cinematography of the film, the sensational script by Carnahan and Michael McGrade“. In short, the things of Quentin.
