The legendary director, Quentin Tarantino, recently appeared on Howard Stern’s SiriusXM radio show, and he shared his thoughts on his best work.
In his opinion, Tarantino has named Once Upon a Time in Hollywood his best film ever made. He said people used to ask him stuff like this for years. I would answer them something like, “Oh, they’re all my children.” I believe that “Once Upon a Time in Hollywood is my best movie.” The 2019 film, which stars Leonardo DiCaprio, Brad Pitt, and Margot Robbie, is Tarantino’s most recent directorial effort. It was at that time that the movie crossed the $374 million USD mark at the global box office and was nominated for ten Oscars in 2020. Many people may find Tarantino’s belief that Once Upon a Time in Hollywood is his best film to be a surprise, especially considering his disdain for the modern era of film.
During a recent episode of his and Roger Avary’s podcast The Video Archives Podcast, NME reported that Quentin Tarantino took aim at both contemporary films, as well as those from the 1980s and 1950s. He said:
“Even though the ‘80s was the time that I probably saw more movies in my life than ever – at least as far as going out to the movies was concerned – I do feel that ‘80s cinema is, along with the ‘50s, the worst era in Hollywood history. Matched only by now, matched only by the current era!”
Tarantino went on to say that the spate of poor material is giving a boost to “the films that don’t conform, the ones that stand out from the pack”.
Earlier this month, the director expressed his thoughts on Marvel films in particular and explained in detail why he would never direct one.
“You have to be a hired hand to do those things. I’m not a hired hand. I’m not looking for a job,” he told the Los Angeles Times then.
In a recent interview on Jimmy Kimmel Live to promote the release of his new book Cinema Speculation, Quentin Tarantino was asked by the host what other films he considers to be “perfect”, Tarantino responded by saying,
“Well, there’s not many of them – that just bemoans that the film art form is hard.”
“And look, when you say perfect movies you’re talking about any individual person’s aesthetic but even trying to account for all aesthetics, perfect movies kind of crosses all aesthetics to one degree or another. It might not be your cup of tea but there’s nothing you can say to bring it down.
As he continued, he listed Jaws, The Exorcist, Annie Hall, Young Frankenstein, Back to the Future, Texas Chainsaw Massacre, and The Wild Bunch as “unassailable” movies — invincible movies.
