Let's rank Tarantino films, for no reason whatsoever...

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Wizard Of Odd
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Let's rank Tarantino films, for no reason whatsoever...

Post by Wizard Of Odd » Mon Nov 12, 2018 4:55 pm

Ok, so including only Tarantino directed full length feature films, how would you rank them?

Unfortunately films like True Romance and Dusk Till Dawn cannot be included because he didn't direct them (although both would be high on my list)

The films to include are as follows (and correct me if I miss any!), and I rank them thusly:

1. Inglorious Basterds
I think this one has the best narrative, and as Ksub mentions, there are two exceptional scenes in the opening and the tavern. I'll be honest, 4 or 5 of these films could easily take the number one spot, but right now I'm going with this one. Waltz is incredible, and plays a far more interesting character than in Django.

2. Kill Bill
When I think of Tarantino I think of two things - sharp lines and ultraviolence, and Kill Bill seems like a laboratory distillation of those. The ultimate revenge flick, some brilliant characters and more blood than Dracula's wine celler. I'm counting this as one film. Feel free to split it if you so wish.


3. The Hateful Eight
I never got around to watching this until it came on Netflix, despite being hyped about it for years prior to release, so I was very aware of a lot of negative chatter before I saw it. When I watched it, I honestly couldn't understand where that had come from. A brilliantly tense, claustrophobic, paranoid masterpiece. I love films where you're second guessing everyone, and the script, characters and cinematography blew me away.

4. Pulp Fiction
I saw this aged around 15 when it was first released on the home video rental market. People at school had already been bigging it up, and I got my dad to rent it for me. The first viewing left me confused. I think this may have been the first film I'd ever seen in which the story was told in a non linear fashion. It made very little sense, and it wasn't until the final scene that I realised what was going on. I watched it twice more on that rental, and over the last 25 years have come to appreciate it for the absolute genius it is.

5. Reservoir Dogs
I honestly can't remember whether I saw this after or before Pulp Fiction, but I bloody loved it. Still do. Such a tight piece of work, from the opening scene in the diner to the Mexican standoff, just amazing writing, and such a great film. For a long time I preferred it to Pulp.

6. Django Unchained
I really liked this when it first came out - I still do - but I don't think it's a film that stands up to repeated viewings as well as some of his others. Some brilliant characters, but at times it seems to veer towards almost being a pastiche of a Tarantino film. Not to take anything away from it though, it's still excellent.

7. Death Proof
I like this movie a whole lot more than almost anyone else I know, I thought it was great. Probably the closest he's come to making a traditional thriller, I thought Kurt Russel was incredible.

8. Jackie Brown
I've not watched this film in a long time, but I remember never really enjoying it as much as his other stuff. I need to watch it again soon.

I'm looking forward to his new film, Once Upon A Time In Hollywood, due out next summer. A film based on the Manson murders with Leo DeCaprio and Bradley Pitts. Should be good.

Making this list has made me want to go and watch them all again now!

What say you?

EDIT: Added some thoughts on the films.
Last edited by Wizard Of Odd on Mon Nov 12, 2018 8:23 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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Maturin
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Re: Let's rank Tarantino films, for no reason whatsoever...

Post by Maturin » Mon Nov 12, 2018 5:26 pm

His first 3 films are still his best 3 for me. Pulp Fiction is his one film which blows me away no matter how many times I see it. The Hateful Eight felt like a return to form. Inglorious was a frustrating film; scattered with great scenes but also full of silly stuff that just got on my nerves. I never really 'got' Kill Bill.

1. Pulp Fiction
2. Jackie Brown
3. Reservoir Dogs

4. The Hateful Eight
5. Django Unchained
6. Inglorious Basterds
7. Kill Bill

8. Death Proof (his one stinker)

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Re: Let's rank Tarantino films, for no reason whatsoever...

Post by Jez » Mon Nov 12, 2018 5:48 pm

From the ones I've seen.

Inglourious
Django
Reservoir
Pulp fiction
Hateful eight
Jackie Brown
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Re: Let's rank Tarantino films, for no reason whatsoever...

Post by Medicine Man » Mon Nov 12, 2018 6:26 pm

Just recently watched through all the Tarantino films again and the order changes every time I finish a film, but I think I'm happy with this order for the time being. :)

1. Inglorious Basterds
2. Django Unchained
3. The Hateful Eight
4. Pulp Fiction
5. Kill Bill I & II
6. Jackie Brown
7. Reservoir Dogs
8. Death Proof

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Re: Let's rank Tarantino films, for no reason whatsoever...

Post by Wrathbone » Mon Nov 12, 2018 7:57 pm

I do like a good Tarantino film, although I’ve not seen them all. Of the ones I have seen, I’d rank them as follows:

1. Kill Bill 1 & 2
2. Inglorious Basterds
3. Pulp Fiction
4. The Hateful Eight
5. Django Unchained
6. Reservoir Dogs

Dogs has never worked for me. The unrepentant criminal culture that is woven throughout most of Tarantino’s films is the least interesting part of them to me, and Dogs lives or dies on that. I rewatched Hateful Eight this weekend and enjoyed it much more the second time - there’s a hell of a good western in there. But Kill Bill is the one that speaks most to me, being the most mythic and most unapologetically stylised. It’s almost a caricature of itself to the point where it rides the fine line between drama and farce, but I’ve always come out of it on the right side.

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Re: Let's rank Tarantino films, for no reason whatsoever...

Post by DjchunKfunK » Tue Nov 13, 2018 9:21 am

It always puzzles me that people can rate the Kill Bill films so highly. They were peak Tarrantino in all the worst ways.

I'd probably put them like this.

1. Reservoir Dogs
2. Pulp Fiction
3. Hateful Eight
4. Jackie Brown
5. Inglorious Bastards
6. Django Unchained
7. Death Proof
8. Kill Bill 1

Never bothered to finish Kill Bill 2 after the first 20 minutes.

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Re: Let's rank Tarantino films, for no reason whatsoever...

Post by Snowy » Tue Nov 13, 2018 9:30 am

I also never 'got' Kill Bill.

I also never understood the fuss over the Hateful Eight - the journey to the house/store was overlong and added little to the story overall. For me as a brit, having Tim Roth's character drop the upper class English accent to yell to "Shut the farkin' door" as a broad cockney immediately gave away that the villains were indeed villains. The rest of the film played out pretty much as I expected.

So then, that said:
1. Pulp Fiction
2. Reservoir Dogs
3. Inglorious Bastards
4. Django Unchained
5. Jackie Brown
6. Hateful Eight
7. Death Proof
8. Kill Bill 1 & 2
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Re: Let's rank Tarantino films, for no reason whatsoever...

Post by Sly Boots » Tue Nov 13, 2018 9:32 am

I've only seen the first three films on Snowy's list, would switch RD (it's been a long time since I saw it but for some reason I suspect it hasn't aged well) and IB and still have Pulp Fiction on top.

I keep meaning to watch Django, but never really had any interest in watching Kill Bill.

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Re: Let's rank Tarantino films, for no reason whatsoever...

Post by Maturin » Tue Nov 13, 2018 9:43 am

It's worth mentioning why I rate Jackie Brown so highly; it's his one film (for me) which is truly focused on real characters, as in people who you can really believe in, as opposed to stylised caricatures. Probably his most conventional film in that sense, and it really, really works.

I kinda wish he'd made more films like JB.

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Re: Let's rank Tarantino films, for no reason whatsoever...

Post by DjchunKfunK » Tue Nov 13, 2018 9:48 am

I watched Reservoir Dogs not that long ago Sly, it holds up.

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Re: Let's rank Tarantino films, for no reason whatsoever...

Post by Sly Boots » Tue Nov 13, 2018 9:52 am

DjchunKfunK wrote:
Tue Nov 13, 2018 9:48 am
I watched Reservoir Dogs not that long ago Sly, it holds up.
Fair enough, in my memory I thought it might feel a bit 'of its time', but like I say it's probably been well over a decade since I last saw it.

I'd probably still rate it third even so, I really enjoyed Pulp Fiction and Basterds, whereas RD was a bit rougher round the edges (not surprisingly as it was his first(?) major film).

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Re: Let's rank Tarantino films, for no reason whatsoever...

Post by Wrathbone » Tue Nov 13, 2018 10:25 am

DjchunKfunK wrote:
Tue Nov 13, 2018 9:21 am
It always puzzles me that people can rate the Kill Bill films so highly. They were peak Tarrantino in all the worst ways.

Never bothered to finish Kill Bill 2 after the first 20 minutes.
But... you didn't even get to Pai Mei. #-o

I guess if you didn't like it by that point, though, you weren't going to enjoy the rest.

I understand why some people really dislike Kill Bill, and I think I probably love it for the same reasons they don't.

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Re: Let's rank Tarantino films, for no reason whatsoever...

Post by Mantis » Tue Nov 13, 2018 3:54 pm

1. Inglorious Bastards
2. Pulp Fiction
3. Hateful Eight
4. Jackie Brown
5. Reservoir Dogs
6. Kill Bill 1 & 2
7. Django Unchained

I just love Inglorious Bastards, such a great mix of pure tension in some scenes with nonsense and dark comedy in others. Waltz is particularly excellent in it.

This list is skewed heavily by the fact that I've seen some of these movies only once (Hateful Eight and Django) and others I haven't seen in many years (Reservoir Dogs and Kill Bill). Putting Kill Bill near the bottom isn't to say that I think they're bad movies either, I actually think they're great; but being quite a big fan of Tarantino's movies I found it tough to really rank any of them. Likewise with Django, I did enjoy it a lot but I honestly struggle to remember much about it.

On rewatch I think Hateful Eight would likely be bumped down a bit, but I did like it a lot on my first viewing; I enjoyed the pacing and general claustrophobic atmosphere. The only thing that really irked me was the fact that Sam Jackson doesn't really seem to play many character roles other than himself anymore.

I haven't seen Death Proof, it has always managed to somehow sneak under my radar.

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Re: Let's rank Tarantino films, for no reason whatsoever...

Post by Snowy » Tue Nov 13, 2018 6:34 pm

You're not missing much. Purest style over substance, OTT sassy lassies spouting ridiculous dialogue, and Kurt Russell wondering how he landed a part that wasn't a career lifeline like Travolta's. Garbage start to end.
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Re: Let's rank Tarantino films, for no reason whatsoever...

Post by Strudel » Sat Nov 17, 2018 11:47 pm

Every Tarantino film with Christoph Waltz is great whenever he's on scene and mediocre at best when he's not. My incredibly subjective list is:

1. Reservoir Dogs
2. Inglorious Bastards
3. Django Unchained
4. Pulp Fiction
5. Hateful Eight
6. Jackie Brown
99. Kill Bill 1 & 2

RD was definitely the first film of his I saw and that will probably be because I saw it on Film4 when I was about 10 years old. I'm not sure I've seen it again in the last 20 years but I remember thinking it was a fantastic film.

Other than that I've never really been a fan of his films. I think Christoph Waltz is a fantastic presence in whatever he does, but as soon as he's out of the picture the films become a bit rubbish. Pulp Fiction just never really appealed to me, and similarly I remember almost nothing of Jackie Brown. The Hateful Eight didn't really do much for me but I don't think it was a bad film.

Unlike Kill Bill which I though was the most tedious pile of dicknipples ever. The pacing is horrendous, the dialog stilted and dull, and the whole thing is just an adolescent wankathon. I just don't get what anyone with a mental age over 15 would like about it.

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