Quentin Tarantino is a one of a kind filmmaker. He burst on the scene with his unique style and riveting dialogue, and from then on he has been regarded as one of the most influential voices in the film industry. His movies are all different though they all carry that same Tarantino feel that is unmistakable.
With his latest film Once Upon a Time in Hollywood being one of the Best Picture nominees at this year’s Oscars, now feels like the time to revisit his work up until now. Which of his movies rank the highest in the minds of fans? For that, we’ll look at how the users of IMDb rank the works of Quentin Tarantino.
Death Proof (7.0)
Death Proof was part of a very ambitious film experiment with Tarantino and Robert Rodriguez. The two men sought to recreate the old-school exploitation double features with Grindhouse, featuring back-to-back horror movies.
Tarantino wrote and directed the second feature, Death Proof which starred Kurt Russell as a psycho serial killer who uses his supped-up car to terrorize his victims. Some fans seemed to think the movie lacked some of the impact of his other films, but it is still backed with amazing sequences, hilarious moments and an insanely satisfying ending.
Jackie Brown (7.5)
Tarantino has long talked about his love of the “hang-out” movies and Jackie Brown was his attempt to make his own entry into that specific subgenre. Based on the novel by Elmore Leonard, is stars Pam Grier as a flight attendant working for a gun runner who develops a risky scheme to make a big score for herself.
The movie is slower-paced than some of Tarantino’s wilder films, and it really does let you hang out with the characters. While the small-scale story might not work for everyone, it is considered by some to be his unrecognized masterpiece.
The Hateful Eight (7.8)
Tarantino’s love of Westerns is evident in pretty much any film he makes. After making a wild and explosive Western adventure, he decided to take a simpler approach to the genre he loves so much with The Hateful Eight. The movie centers around a group of deadly strangers who find themselves trapped in a cabin together during a blizzard as tensions rise.
Tarantino again assembled a group of outstanding actors to bring his amazing dialogue to life. He also makes great use of claustrophobic setting which adds to the suspense. The acting and characters helped keep the momentum of the story going, even if the mystery wasn’t too compelling.
Once Upon A Time In Hollywood (7.8)
Tarantino revisited the Hollywood he grew up in with his latest film. It is the story of aging Hollywood leading man Rick Dalton and his best friend and stunt double Cliff Booth as they try to deal with the next stage of their journey while living next door to Sharon Tate.
The movie is a love letter to this era in Hollywood and Tarantino does an incredible job bringing it to life. Leonardo DiCaprio and Brad Pitt make for an amazing duo and the feel of the film is intoxicating. Though a slower ride than some might expect, many fans found it one worth taking.
Kill Bill: Vol. 2 (8.0)
Tarantino’s kung-fu influenced revenge tale came to a bloody end with Kill Bill: Vol 2. The follow-up finds Uma Thurman’s The Bride still on the hunt for those who wronged her as she gets closer to finding the mysterious, Bill.
While the first film was certainly an homage to the samurai and martial arts movies Tarantino has loved so much, the sequel is a mix of Spaghetti Westerns and hard-boiled thrillers. It makes for a more deliberately paced yet still exciting end to this wild epic.
Kill Bill: Vol. 1 (8.1)
Tarantino reunited with his Pulp Fiction leading lady for the first Kill Bill film which found him embracing the movies he loves without any shame. Uma Thurman makes for an amazing action star as the skilled assassin who will stop at nothing to bring justice to those on her “kill list”.
It is a wild and bloody adventure that is also totally different from what Tarantino made previous to this. He swings for the fences with the action and outrageous humor and it makes for a brilliantly enjoyable adventure.
Reservoir Dogs (8.3)
Few filmmakers have managed to create such an iconic film with their directorial debut. Reservoir Dogs followed a group of deadly criminals who meet up at a hideout after their heist of a diamond shop goes wrong. While hiding out, they discover they might have a rat in the crew.
The movie introduced the world to Tarantino’s unique voice. Though a low-budget film, he managed to make it feel like a sprawling and exciting saga that kept the audience hooked from beginning to end.
Inglourious Basterds (8.3)
Tarantino jumped into another exciting genre with this throwback to the “men on a mission” war films like The Dirty Dozen. Inglorious Basterds stars Brad Pitt as the leader of a group of Jewish soldiers in World War II who use brutal tactics for fighting their Nazi enemies.
While the movie did make for a fun war adventure story, it was also surprisingly hilarious. Christoph Waltz gave an iconic performance as a charismatic yet deadly Nazi while the film’s ending proved that Tarantino was not afraid to make exactly the kind of story he wanted to make.
Django Unchained (8.4)
Tarantino finally got the chance to do a full-blown Western with Django Unchained. Jamie Foxx stars as a runaway slave who is taught to be a bounty hunter by a new companion before embarking on a journey across the American South to rescue his wife from a cruel plantation owner.
Tarantino clearly enjoyed playing in this genre and did not hold back on the blood and violence. He creates an epic adventure that can be funny and entertaining one moment before turning gruesome and disturbing the next moment. The tonal shifts worked for many fans who regarded it as one of his best.
Pulp Fiction (8.9)
Given how popular Tarantino’s films are now and how identifiable his style of filmmaking is, it’s easy to forget just how game-changing Pulp Fiction was when it was released. The movie is a surreal and engrossing crime saga about the interconnected stories of several individuals involved in the criminal underbelly of Los Angeles.
The movie’s look, feel and sound were like a breath of fresh air for film fans in the 90s. It was the movie that cemented Tarantino as the most exciting new voice in the business and it inspired countless ripoffs while also influencing films to this day. To many, this remains Tarantino’s undisputed masterpiece.
