Quentin Tarantino: The Best, The Faves, & The Films He Was Born To Make!

Since his directorial debut in 1992, Quentin Tarantino has been one of, if not the top name in prestige filmmaking. An auteur in every sense of the word, Tarantino’s 9 feature films that make up his astounding filmography boast his pop culture-infused writing, gory sense of humor, and modes of moviemaking that he adored growing up. In a recent interview on “The Church of Tarantino” podcast, the California native named his best film as Inglourious Basterds, his personal favorite as Once Upon A Time... in Hollywood, and Kill Bill as the movie he was born to make. Taking all 9 films into consideration, here is my own personal categorization of his excellent resume!

THE BEST

Inglourious Basterds(2009)

Once Upon a Time... in Hollywood(2019)

Pulp Fiction(1994)

Delineating Tarantino’s best work is a debate that has been active for years now, as each film has something different to offer. However, I think Tarantino is right on the money in naming Inglourious Basterds as his finest production. The first 20 minutes alone, a sequence featuring Christoph Waltz as the Nazi Hans Landa pressing a French farmer about hiding Jewish refugees in his house, might be enough to prove that this is number one for QT.

PERSONAL FAVORITES

Kill Bill: Vol. 1 (2003), Vol. 2 (2004)

Django Unchained (2012)

Reservoir Dogs (1992)

Moving over to some personal favorites, I see these 3 films as runner-ups to those mentioned above. Though I completely agree with QT that Kill Bill was indeed the movie he was born to make, it also happens to be my favorite work of his, so here we are. It feels as if Tarantino’s whole childhood was a study for this film, as he is known to be a massive fan of samurai and martial arts films, most of which were popular during his upbringing. Kill Bill is most definitely a “Bloody Affair”, including some of the goriest scenes in his portfolio.

BORN TO MAKE:

Jackie Brown (1997)

Death Proof (2007)

The Hateful Eight (2015)

Tarantino, as mentioned, truly has an beyond recognizable style and tone, something that only a handful of working directors can claim today. To me, there are 3 films that only he could have made (outside of Kill Bill) that encapsulate not only his visual style, but provide insight on his personal taste in cinema. Similar to Kill Bill, Jackie Brown is a film that is incredibly informed by his childhood and the movies he watched growing up. In this character-driven crime drama, Tarantino pays major homage to the "Blaxploitation" wave of the 1970s, most notably casting Pam Grier as the lead in the film, who had been the top name in said genre.

Once again being informed by his cinematic consumption as a kid, Death Proof is another movie that pays homage to a lost 1970s genre. In this case, QT is using the influence of Grindhouse films and capturing the tone of these films, making the footage seem beat-up, low-budget, and somewhat sleazy.

Lastly, The Hateful Eight is a film that is clearly a Tarantino. Akin to Basterds and Dogs, this piece heavily utilizes dialogue to push the story forward and create tension, while it once again portrays QT’s usage of classic genres with a twist. Of course, in Hateful Eight, Tarantino takes the Western aesthetic and mashes it up with that of “locked-room mysteries” or “chamber plays”. It’s also gory, darkly comedic, and includes the director’s love for non-linear structure.

Where will Tarantino's 10th and final picture fall within these categories? Only time will tell, but we can't wait to find out!