The goal of this Tarantino project is to explore the movies that inspired the director. What I quickly realized is that this project could be infinite – given that thousands of movie references color Tarantino’s works. I’m stopping at 15 direct influences – fully knowing that these movies may not even be the best representations. Kill Bill alone likely features over 30 kung fu movie influences.
I think at the least, I represented enough different genres to make the project meaningful.
More importantly, I’m excited that these movies will naturally lead to further discoveries. For instance, I was not a huge fan of Branded to Kill – but I do want to explore more Japanese New Wave movies. Likewise, after watching The Great Silence and Django, I’m fully invested in Spaghetti Westerns. The next phase of this project will ultimately lead to a new writer/director, but for now I want to chase down the movies, directors, actors and genres that stem from this original group.
As for this collection of movies, here are my ratings – which again are based on my own preferences and personal enjoyment. I take into account technical aspects but I am unqualified to judge such things. But I also know that Kowalski is the most boring anti-hero in movie history and the Ecstasy of Gold scene is exhilarating. All fifteen of these movies offer something exceptional and likely shaped some small part of a Tarantino movie.
The Good, The Bad and The Ugly – 4.5/5
Band of Outsiders – 4.5/5
These are two movies that essentially changed movies. The Good, The Bad and The Ugly was the best of a classic Sergio Leone series that proved the traditional American Western could be revitalized under a European lens. Yet in doing so, the movie created an American icon in Clint Eastwood and probably the most copied movie of its genre and time. Leone creates a beautiful, expansive atmosphere to drop his classic, archetypal characters into and they represent a struggle for morality that is brilliant and layered.
Band of Outsiders continues the guerrilla, self-referential ethos Jean-Luc Godard established with 1960’s Breathless. Godard’s story of would be teenage robbers is both an inventive homage to American crime movies and photograph of the existential confusion of youth. It’s a tongue in cheek critique of the narrative form, which gives us beautifully odd sequences such as the dance scene, moment of silence and running through the Louvre.
36th Chamber of Shaolin – 4/5
The Killing – 4/5
Lady Snowblood – 4/5
The 36th Chamber of Shaolin may not be a direct influence on Tarantino’s works, but could be an entry point for the expansive kung fu universe the director often cites. The movie shows the possibilities of the genre, as a terrific story is balanced with expressive acting, precise fighting choreography and a vibrant symmetry of pageantry and color.
Lady Snowblood is probably the most implicit influence on Tarantino, as elements of its plot and several scenes are represented in Kill Bill. The movie is an interesting blend of Samurai sensibility and crime story, featuring a main character who is tragically destined to avenge her family’s honor. Lady Snowblood’s tone is somber and melodic, while its style innovates.
Have you seen this anywhere else?
The Killing is a classic crime story that somehow both represents and deconstructs its genre. The movie tells the story of a tightly executed plan that slowly unravels to the point of absurdity. The characters and acting are impressive – Sterling Hayden is precise and authoritative, Marie Windsor is conniving and Timothy Carey is wonderfully bizarre. The Killing is a nod to classic gangster movies but somehow still appears fresh today.
Deliverance – 4/5
Rolling Thunder – 3.75/5
The uniqueness of these movies is that both could be either exploitation movies or gritty 1970’s character studies. Rolling Thunder can be sold as a revenge movie about a Vietnam vet using his hook hand to go on a kill crazy spree. Deliverance is that movie where Ned Beatty gets raped by toothless mountain men. However, both movies are very layered in their presentations of its characters. Rolling Thunder shows the lingering emotional trauma created by war, while Deliverance presents a similar theme as man struggles to survive against nature. Bonus points have to be given for the wattage of star power found in both movies.
Django – 3.75/5
The Great Silence – 3/5
One of the joys of this project is discovering first that Sergio Leone and Sergio Corbucci are regarded as the two best Italian Western directors of the 1960’s. More significant – and fun – is that Tarantino relates more with Corbucci. Corbucci’s Django is an amazing experiment of a movie. It has threads of Luis Bunuel and John Ford, as the movie grows from moody existential piece into exploitation fluff and grand stage coach adventure. Django’s dynamic anti-hero steadily regresses throughout the movie – he’s essentially a corpse walking into the sunset after a soul-crushing victory.
And that opening song…
The Great Silence is another interesting interpretation of the traditional Western. Featuring a hero that never speaks is intriguing but casting Klaus Kinski as a vicious killer adorned in effeminate garb is fascinating. Kinski flirts with the traditional boundaries of Old West archetypes before destroying them during the movie’s stunning ending. The entire movie is a commentary on the social upheaval of the time – the hero as he’s traditionally known doesn’t stand a chance.
Man Hunt – 3/5
City on Fire – 3/5
These two influences show the growth of Tarantino as a creative force. Man Hunt is not a direct influence on any Tarantino movie, but it offers some interesting hints of revisionist storytelling. Fritz Lang’s movie is essentially a noir spy thriller, yet it drops its main character into the living history of World War II. A fictional character could have changed the course of history – something we repeatedly see in Tarantino’s later movies.
City on Fire is Tarantino’s most direct influence on any of his works. While not a total remake, Tarantino borrows several plot aspects and scenes from the movie to make his debut Reservoir Dogs. It’s unfair to accuse Tarantino of direct theft, as City on Fire is a very different movie in terms of pacing, style and character development.
Vanishing Point – 2.5/5
Foxy Brown – 2.5/5
Branded to Kill – 2.5/5
Vanishing Point is a really cool car chase movie that gets messy when it veers into social commentary. I got the feeling the director wanted to make Billy Jack on wheels but couldn’t maneuver around a stiff, boring lead actor. It’s a technically well-made movie that doesn’t make any sense. Foxy Brown features a solid lead actress and knows exactly what it wants to be, but suffers from technical limits and some legendarily bad supporting acting. Branded to Kill is in its own category – it’s a weird, moody movie that never allows you to invest in its loathsome characters.
The Thing – 2/5
I know it’s a cult classic but The Thing was easily my least favorite movie of this project. John Carpenter does suspense well and the aliens are pretty cool, but his characters are lazily written and pointless. This movie can’t exist without Ridley Scott and is a weak attempt at copying him.
Want to Watch Again
Django and Band of Outsiders
One of the main goals of this project is to learn about movies. I’ve been trying to hold off reading criticism until after I have seen and reviewed movies – since I don’t want others’ views clouding my own initial feelings. After seeing some Godard movies and realizing that he was commenting on movies by making his own, I need to rewatch Band of Outsiders as a critique. As for Django, I’m not going in too deep – it’s just a really fun, outstanding Western I could watch a hundred times.
Need to Watch Again
Branded to Kill
I still need to figure out what this movie is about. I’m slowly working my way back to Branded to Kill but I’m going to watch the more accessible A Colt is my Passport and Tokyo Drifter first. Let’s see if the rice shows up there too.
Never Need to Watch Again
City on Fire
If I started this project thirty years ago and watched City on Fire first, I would probably hold very different opinions. However, I was rewriting City on Fire in my mind as I watched it – then remembered that Tarantino already did it.
Best Actor
Eli Wallach
Best Villain
Klaus Kinski
