Oh Lordy, you've got me (again) Quentin! This is a REMARKABLE non-fiction debut, hard on the back of the brilliant novelisation of his latest and equally brilliant movie. I literally couldn't put this thing down and devoured it in just a few days. It's a treasure trove of insight, observation, reflection and... well, yes, 'speculation' on the greatest decade of commercial cinema EVER - the 1970s. I learned SO MUCH here about what I thought I knew quite a bit about. There are a bunch of pictures here that I hadn't even heard of let alone seen. I was forever reaching for a notepad to harness the details and now have a serious (back) catalogue to contend with.
Tarantino is nothing if not opinionated and he doesn't hold back here. It's written in that breathless, quick-witted, archly intelligent chit-chat he comes out with whenever a microphone is shoved in his face, with the liberal deployment of expletives used to good effect. He's literally falling over his words to get his points across. He digresses and disappears down various rabbit holes as his references distract him in the most charming way. These 'speculations' head out to explore a particular film but work up a head of steam on any number of areas before he arrives! You cannot help but be carried along by the man's massive appetite and enthusiasm for his subject matter. At times he gets bogged down in his own obsessions (how Scorsese's pimp in Taxi Driver is white and not black, for example, an argument which spills out across the whole book in various forms) but invariably he makes a good case and it only adds to the charm and force of these speculations.
I think it has all the hallmarks of a dyed-in-the-wool classic. But then I must confess to being a massive fan of the man's work. Reading it actually helped me appreciate that (current) body work as a 'genre director' a lot more because that's very much reflected in his own enjoyment of the work of the great genre directors of the 70s (Don Siegel, Sam Peckinpah, John Flynn et al). As he discussed these films and directors, I could see how he's been mining this particular decade of film-making for ideas, inspiration, and impetus these past 30-odd years and doing so in such an original and arresting fashion.
If I had one slight reservation about the book it would be the relative paucity of 'technical' insights it offered around the art of film-making. Tarantino is (I think) a great film director in complete control of the medium and yet he rarely refers to the science and technology of the art form. Instead he is more concerned with narrative, casting, characterisation, conflict, and drama which though undeniably important (and infinitely accessible) leaves his speculations lacking in some way, for me at least. Just a bit more on what defines the technical style and approach of some of these film-makers might've been nice but hey, that's really a small criticism and we hope this is only the prelude for a number of contributions which might address this in the future.
And I can see him moving on from this in any number of ways. He might focus in on specific genres, directors, even actors and do so with a more technical focus. Anything he writes about, technical or otherwise, is sure to be entertaining. All us Tarantino fans eagerly await a work on his own filmography as he now openly 'speculates' wrapping that up with his next picture. I would even love to read a book of his focused entirely on the various cinemas/movie theatres that have featured in his life, for example. He refers to many of them in these pages and it made me reflect on how important they are in our own personal film-going history and the influence they have on our consumption of films. They have clearly had a massive influence on him and his work.
This is a great contribution, thanks for the ride Quentin, and do keep it coming!
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Arrived Dirty and worn !!!
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Top reviews from other countries
Studio Creations
A great insight into one of the most iconic American Film Directors of the late 20th century.
Reviewed in the United States on 23 March 2024
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Imperdível, especialmente para fãs do cinema dos anos 70
Reviewed in Brazil on 6 December 2023