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tion is more comical and enables peo- ple to see what I wanted to achieve”. He had a similar psychological and analytical approach for the Kill Bill film series, with his filmmaking muse Uma Thurman, in which he combined the style of Westerns with Japanese cul- ture to bring to the big screen an inter- play of genres the likes of which no one had previously dared to attempt. From modern hits like Inglourious Bastards and Django Unchained, to The Hateful Eight and Once Upon a Time in Holly- wood, Tarantino is too ambitiously ag- gressive for some, but has an artistic leaning towards depicting tragedy, sat- ire and comedy. If we consider his brilliant mind, upbringing in the ‘60s and the current threat to the life of film due to hyper-pro- duction on television and the streaming industry, this is a directorial response to popular culture that changes accord- ing to the political, social and economic climate. Every period has its own idols, desired patterns of behaviour and de- sired form of success, but Tarantino has an answer to each of them, because he knew what to do when he was just 15 years old. He knows how to tell us a sto- ry, and for us not to feel like that story is about us and that which we want to hear and see.
and find distributors to push the film in cinemas. A cinematic hit and critics’favourite, 1992’s Reservoir Dogs placed a target on Tarantino’s forehead with its explo- sive success. Shortly after the premiere, the director was accused of plagiarising Stanley Kubrick’s films City on Fire and The Killing. Instead of these negative rumours ruining him as an emerging director and screenwriter, the contro- versial story of stealing only raised the bar in the career of this director. How- ever, his next film, which he worked on as both the director and screenwriter, would see him inscribed in the film book of examples of unusual narratives and disregard for the pre-existing rules of narratives in the film making process. Tarantino described 1994’s Pulp Fic- tion by saying: “Prior to the premiere in the UK, the idea that this film would be better than Reservoir Dogs was cra- zy. Nothing could achieve the success and quality of that film. Then it won the Palme d’Or award and people were like – OK, maybe it’s as good as they say, but it’s not better, just more ambitious. People remember Reservoir Dogs for its tension, so they think of it as being more violent than it really is. Pulp Fic-
l i ve s of families that were rep-
licas of those in detergent commer- cials, he shaped his craft in rebellion against the social construct of perfec- tion, mowed lawns, subtly painted sub- urban houses and smiling families. At the height of his teen hormones period, at the age of 15, he said “no” to high school. He left school to enrol in theatre acting studies with Hollywood veteran James Best. By the age of 22 he hadn’t amassed many open opportuni- ties or encountered open doors in Hol- lywood, so a job at a video club was a perfect fit. He watched films passion- ately and analytically, using every free moment to devote himself to writing scripts for his own films. Tarantino uti- lised his job, knowledge and time to de- velop an understanding of what peo- ple watch and why. A detailed approach to commercial film that intrigued the masses opened the door to Hollywood when a close friend of his showed the script for the film Reservoir Dogs to actor and pro- ducer Harvey Keitel. Impressed, Kei- tel helped the then-unknown director and screenwriter to secure funding for filming, put together an acting team
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