Weekly Cinemeh

Hello, and welcome back to Weekly Cinemeh. This week we were in the mood for some classic Tarantino. Tarantino has a very unique style, blending from many different schools of film that Tarantino enjoys. His movies are witty, violent, and very entertaining. This was a good week, so to the list!

1: Pulp Fiction
We tend to try to avoid spoilers if possible on this blog, at least during weekly cinemeh, but in this case I don't feel like it is to much of a spoiler to say that this movie is one of the best movies ever made. It is shot well, it is funny, and it has one of the best ending monologues I have ever seen. Pulp Fiction is a story told from three different perspectives. The entire cast is great, but the standout for me is Samuel L. Jackson. Jackson is always a powerhouse and this movie makes great use of him, especially in the aforementioned monologue. It has a bit of everything; violence, mystery, comedy, and romance (though with one of the least sexy penetrations imaginable) but feels tight and well told. Its a great movie that you should watch if you haven't seen it (if only for the experience of a cultural phenomenon) and if you have seen it, you should watch it again.

Eshi: I almost feel bad for Quentin Tarantino; Pulp Fiction is a masterpiece and I feel like he made it too early in his career. He even manages to make a good character out of John Travolta, I mean, his over all personality still feels of a parasitic squid covered in anal lube, but under Tarantino's direction it works. Fuck yeah Harvey Keitel and also fuck yeah Tim Roth. Uma Therman is tragically unlikable as Mia Wallace, but I agree with Matt Sloan from Blame Society Films that it seems more an issue of writing than anything to do with her. I have to admit I'm starting to have weird feelings about Bruce Willis, and this performance contributes to that. I'm not entirely sure how to describe it, he just always seems like he's doing a Donald Trump impression but keeps smelling a fart he can't mention. Still, Pulp Fiction is easily in my top ten and I recommend it highly.

Honorable mentions:

This week we only watched one movie (sorry about that~), but I still wanted to release some other stuff on this list. So here are a few of my favorites that Tarantino has made.

1: Reservoir Dogs
This is a heist movie that takes place after the heist goes down poorly. It is a fantastic drama about criminals trying to figure out who the mole is in their crew. The cast is great and the movie is full of tension. While not as strong as Pulp Fiction, it is still a good movie and worth the watch.

Eshi: One of my favorite Tim Roth rolls, after the delightful Four Rooms of course. Reservoir Dogs is just tight enough to be super engaging and just loose enough to feel genuine. I agree with Brian that it isn't as good as Pulp Fiction but its still a great example of Tarantino's work.

2: Django Unchained
Django Unchained is Tarantino's version of a western. The movie follows Django, a former slave, and his bounty hunter friend on a quest to find and free Django's wife. There are a lot of people who complain about the n word's "overuse" in the movie but considering it is a pre-civil war version of the south, it makes sense that a bunch of people who thought slavery was ok might speak poorly of the people they own. Another well cast film, I love Jamie Foxx and Christoph Waltz's patter. You really get the sense that they have come to trust one another. Its got some more of the violence and wit you expect from Tarantino. Well worth the watch.

Eshi: Quentin Tarantino likes to make people say "nigger". I find that both somewhat amusing and more progressive than anyone who feels like damning someone who uses a certain word because of their race. Brian has covered the problems with language policing in some depth, so thats all I'm gonna say about that. I have never hated Leonardo DeCaprio more than I do in this movie, and its great. Pretty much all of the characters in Django Unchained are grand in their own (often aggressively over-the-top) way. The chemistry throughout the film is phenomenal, sadly only fumbled between Jamie Fox and Kerry Washington, the woman playing his wife. Still not enough to take away from the movie but enough to be a little disappointing.

3: Inglorious Bastards
Tarantino's version of a war movie, Inglorious Bastards tells the story of an operation to destroy a large portion of the Nazi leadership during a movie premiere in Paris. This movie was my first experience with Christoph Waltz, and I instantly fell in love with him. His character is terrifying and charming all at once, just the kind of villain I like. Watch it.

Eshi: While I enjoy Bastards, I feel like it starts to come apart a bit in the final act. It runs a little long, tries to tell a bit to much story all at once. It's still pretty cathartic, and fun as hell, but it definitely isn't Tarantino's strongest work. Christoph Waltz is amazing as usual as the most charismatic Nazi you've ever seen and the Bastards as a whole are a joy to watch. Certainly give this one a shot, just maybe don't buy it right out of the gate, especially because it streams free.