Book Details
| Title: | Cinema Speculation | |
| Author: | Quentin Tarantino | |
| Times Read: | 1 | |
| Last Read: | 11.25.22 |
Other Books Read By This Author (1)
- Once Upon a Time in Hollywood
| Date Read | Note |
| 11.25.22 | Tarantino's second book, this one full of thoughts and criticism of 70s cinema rather than a novelization of his own movie. So to me, this is his first real book since it doesn't read like un-filmed deleted scenes of a movie. Just to say it right at the front, I liked this way better than the first. He writes in a very conversational style to the point where sometimes the prose is awkward and clumsy, but at least he's saying interesting things. I don't totally get the criteria for choosing the films to spotlight that he did (other than those were the movies he wanted to talk about), but it still has a better structure than his previous book. I definitely need to go back through the index and make a list of films to either see or revisit based on his comments. While this isn't a list of his favorite movies (I don't think), he still discusses them with enough comparisons and references that connect dots to other films you might like based on the films he's spotlighting. Same for actors, directors, etc. Mostly, I felt like I was reading an episode of his new podcast (if Roger Avary was out sick) because the nature of discussion as well as the delivery of stories and mixed bag of thoughts plays out exactly as his podcast does. This isn't a problem since I'm a fan of the podcast, but it does give me a vibe that - perhaps unfairly - this book isn't destined to be a classic tome on every film geek's bookshelf. It's good, but it's also just some notes on a somewhat random list of films. The title itself only connects to one chapter where a thought experiment of what if De Palma directed Taxi Driver. That's not the format of the whole book; it just happens once. Also, a pair of more autobiographical chapters (if you count a pages-long footnote as a chapter) bookend the... book, which are great and give some insight into Tarantino's past, but again that only happens twice. But certainly you have to say that he knows a shit ton about movies, both in general and the films he chooses to discuss specifically. I knew of his fondness for Rolling Thunder thanks to when he used to bring films here to Austin for his own festivals but to see it written out plainly is a nice record to the entire world that this somewhat forgotten film should be brought back to the pantheon of great 70s cinema. And, just like his podcast, I find it very interesting to hear him speak informatively on other people's movies. To a movie geek, that IS fun. So I liked it quite a bit, and if he keeps writing books like this then I'll keep reading them. |
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