Quentin Tarantino

5 things I wasn’t tickled about in Tusk

Posted on by Late Night

Tusk movie poster
Well, that does it for me. Here at Visionary or Hack, I was the lone holdout for iconoclastic director Kevin Smith. I actually ranked him as Visionary, while Mr. Ridley and HakSnider33 both list him as Hack. Our highly scientific (hardly) ranking system requires a uninamimous vote, so Smith languished in the undecided area for a long time. That changes today. as Smith’s latest has made me seen the error of my ways. As far as I’m concerned now, based on this dreadful film, he’s a hack.

Don’t get me wrong, though, I still like the guy and think he’s tremendously funny. I remain interested in seeing what he does next. But following up the immensely entertaining Red State with the half-ass horror show that is Tusk is simply unforgivable.

Remember, hacks are often technically proficient, if not talented even, so don’t be surprised if you feel like seeing this dreck after viewing the trailer. Just don’t. Check out my 5 things after the jump:

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Enter the Trailer: Tarantino presents The RZA’s directorial debut

Posted on by Late Night

The last time visionary director Quentin Tarantino teamed up with Lucy Liu, everyone had big, chopsocky fun. This trailer for the upcoming The Man with the Iron Fists looks like big fun, too:

Directed by Robert Fitzgerald Diggs, who is better known as The RZA (a rapper/producer/composer, founder of hip hop group Wu Tang Clan and reportedly distant cousin of Public Enemy’s Flavor Flav), this film also stars Russell Crowe. Not sure when it is coming out, but IMDB lists a 2013 release date for Sweden…!

Homage vs. Unoriginality Part II

Posted on by HakSnider33

Quentin Tarantino

Tarantino - Visionary or Plagarist?

by HakSnider33
Previously, we explored what happens when a hack director pays homage to a scene from a superior film by clumsily directing a scene that plays like a pale facsimile of the original scene.   However, when done correctly, an homage can breath new life into a cliched or inferior scene.  The man who is obviously known as the master of this is Quentin Tarantino.  Although his detractors label him a poseur without an original bone in his body, his films have exposed many film aficionados to older and forgotten films through his clever homages.

Examples include KILL BILL VOLUME 1 (2003), which introduced many to 70’s cult Asian films such as LADY SNOWBLOOD (1973) and MASTER OF THE FLYING GUILLOTINE (1977), PULP FICTION (1994), which introduced younger viewers to films by French New Wave directors such as Truffaut and Godard and of course, Tarantino’s JACKIE BROWN (1997), which started a revival of interest in Blaxpoitation films such as FOXY BROWN and SUPERFLY.  However, it is the homage that Tarantino’s first feature film, RESERVOIR DOGS (1992), pays to Ringo Lam’s 1987 Hong Kong gangster film CITY ON FIRE that his critics point to as evidence of his originality. Read More