Tarantino's Top 20: From Reservoir Dogs to Now

So, during the big promotional push for Inglourious Basterds over in the UK, the crew at Sky Movies asked Quentin Tarantino if he’d just sit there and rattle off his top 20 movies of all time on camera. Naturally, he shot that down—kind of like that old joke where you ask a grandma who her greatest love is and she just says, "sailors"—and offered them this instead: his 20 favorite films released from 1992 onwards, which happens to be the year he actually started directing.



VIDEO (2009-8-16)

Source: Sky Movies

1. Battle Royale
2. Anything Else
3. Audition
4. The Blade
5. Boogie Nights
6. Dazed & Confused
7. Dogville
8. Fight Club
9. Friday
10. The Host
11. The Insider
12. Joint Security Area
13. Lost In Translation
14. The Matrix
15. Memories of Murder
16. Police Story 3
17. Shaun of the Dead
18. Speed
19. Team America
20. Unbreakable

All things considered, I'm pretty stoked—we seem to be on the same page for the most part. It was cool to see him include The Insider, and I loved how much he hyped up Dogville; he was also incredibly upfront about what The Matrix means to him, and gave such a great breakdown of Unbreakable. Honestly, nobody should hold it against him for leaving out Oldboy. Apparently, they cornered him in passing and the interview wasn't even scheduled, so he really only had about ten minutes to pull his thoughts together.
I haven't actually seen Battle Royale yet, which is a bit embarrassing 😵

What about you guys? What's your take?

I’m a little surprised by the absence of Ying Xiong and why Ichii the Killer was swapped out for Audition. Everything else seems fine, though the list is pretty subjective... (I can't forgive him for Oldboy, lol
).

Christian Taylor3 said:So, during the big promotional push for Inglourious Basterds over in the UK, the crew at Sky Movies asked Quentin Tarantino if he’d just sit there and rattle off his top 20 movies of all time on camera. Naturally, he shot that down—kind of like that old joke where you ask a grandma who her greatest love is and she just says, "sailors"—and offered them this instead: his 20 favorite films released from 1992 onwards, which happens to be the year he actually started directing.



VIDEO (2009-8-16)

Source: Sky Movies

1. Battle Royale
2. Anything Else
3. Audition
4. The Blade
5. Boogie Nights
6. Dazed & Confused
7. Dogville
8. Fight Club
9. Friday
10. The Host
11. The Insider
12. Joint Security Area
13. Lost In Translation
14. The Matrix
15. Memories of Murder
16. Police Story 3
17. Shaun of the Dead
18. Speed
19. Team America
20. Unbreakable

All things considered, I'm pretty stoked—we seem to be on the same page for the most part. It was cool to see him include The Insider, and I loved how much he hyped up Dogville; he was also incredibly upfront about what The Matrix means to him, and gave such a great breakdown of Unbreakable. Honestly, nobody should hold it against him for leaving out Oldboy. Apparently, they cornered him in passing and the interview wasn't even scheduled, so he really only had about ten minutes to pull his thoughts together.
I haven't actually seen Battle Royale yet, which is a bit embarrassing 😵

What about you guys? What's your take?

There is no Se7en—only Speed. The list is disqualified, and the mechanic is in the hospital.

northerncrane4 said:There is no Se7en—only Speed. The list is disqualified, and the mechanic is in the hospital.

That was my first thought too... I mean, how can you have "Fight Club" on there but totally miss "Seven"?☕
Maybe he just completely blanked on 🤷
...

Forget The Big Lebowski; we’re talking about Friday here. 🤷

It’s a rather peculiar list, though I suppose Tarantino is a pretty eccentric fellow himself.
Still, there are some truly excellent films tucked in there. For instance, he included Memories of Murder and The Host, yet bypassed Oldboy, which I actually think is a rather astute choice. (I mean, I respect Oldboy, I really do, but I suspect those two might just be the superior films.)

It’s almost like this is some list Tarantino could just whip up by tomorrow morning—honestly...

Christian Taylor3 said:So, during the big promotional push for Inglourious Basterds over in the UK, the crew at Sky Movies asked Quentin Tarantino if he’d just sit there and rattle off his top 20 movies of all time on camera. Naturally, he shot that down—kind of like that old joke where you ask a grandma who her greatest love is and she just says, "sailors"—and offered them this instead: his 20 favorite films released from 1992 onwards, which happens to be the year he actually started directing.



VIDEO (2009-8-16)

Source: Sky Movies

1. Battle Royale
2. Anything Else
3. Audition
4. The Blade
5. Boogie Nights
6. Dazed & Confused
7. Dogville
8. Fight Club
9. Friday
10. The Host
11. The Insider
12. Joint Security Area
13. Lost In Translation
14. The Matrix
15. Memories of Murder
16. Police Story 3
17. Shaun of the Dead
18. Speed
19. Team America
20. Unbreakable

All things considered, I'm pretty stoked—we seem to be on the same page for the most part. It was cool to see him include The Insider, and I loved how much he hyped up Dogville; he was also incredibly upfront about what The Matrix means to him, and gave such a great breakdown of Unbreakable. Honestly, nobody should hold it against him for leaving out Oldboy. Apparently, they cornered him in passing and the interview wasn't even scheduled, so he really only had about ten minutes to pull his thoughts together.
I haven't actually seen Battle Royale yet, which is a bit embarrassing 😵

What about you guys? What's your take?

A complete disaster. Truly dreadful. 😢

It appears my initial assessment was correct; the man possesses remarkably mediocre taste, which is clearly reflected in his cinematic choices. I mean, The Matrix? Speed? Police Story? I simply cannot fathom the appeal of such films. 🙂

It’s an odd choice, yet strangely predictable—the kind of predictable that makes Tarantino’s usual patterns feel a bit stale. A few years back at the Empire State Building, he was swearing by Brian De Palma and "Carlito's Way," waxing poetic about Eastwood, or treating Scorsese’s "Casino" and "Oldboy" as if they were untouchable masterpieces, only to pivot away from them later.
The inclusion of Lost in Translation, Boogie Nights, Dogville, and Fight Club feels less like the intimate selection of an indie cinema guru and more like a template curated by a mid-tier critic hitting all the mainstream marks.
I was anticipating a heavier dose of international cinema, perhaps some deep cuts or those cult classics that true cinephiles live for.
Then again, one can't exactly take Tarantino at his word; one moment he’s crowning "Rio Bravo" as the greatest film ever made, and the next, it’s "Seven Samurai."
Furthermore, if the man truly only had ten minutes to assemble this list, who among us could reasonably be expected to recall every great film in a single sitting?

hiddenhound3 said:A complete disaster. Truly dreadful. 😢

It appears my initial assessment was correct; the man possesses remarkably mediocre taste, which is clearly reflected in his cinematic choices. I mean, The Matrix? Speed? Police Story? I simply cannot fathom the appeal of such films. 🙂

Wait, how does someone even have bad taste?

hiddenhound3 said:A complete disaster. Truly dreadful. 😢

It appears my initial assessment was correct; the man possesses remarkably mediocre taste, which is clearly reflected in his cinematic choices. I mean, The Matrix? Speed? Police Story? I simply cannot fathom the appeal of such films. 🙂

😍 You aren't alone there; there's no middle ground when it comes to QT. People either worship the ground he walks on, throw a fit of rage, or swear they're boycotting his entire future filmography—just looking at some of the comments from major US film forums:

QT is basically the ultimate cool nerd. He sticks to what he loves (even if everyone else thinks it's just geeky stuff) and he isn't afraid to say it to whoever's listening. Thumbs up!

***

I didn't care for the list itself, but you have to respect Tarantino's genuine obsession with film. He included two Keanu Reeves flicks. Maybe they'll team up eventually.

***

Keanu wins 2, Day-Lewis gets 0! Matrix 1, zero LOTR! Where are Kate & Cate?! Shyamalan stays, Spielberg goes! Even Jackie Chan made the cut! This is definitely the kind of list Empire or EW wouldn't touch with a ten-foot pole, lol.

***

Even if his movies can get a little self-indulgent, I actually enjoy hearing him ramble about cinema without someone like Eli Roth hovering in the background. He's got some pretty weird picks (Anything Else, Fridays), but also some solid, deserving ones (The Insider, Shaun of the Dead). He's spot on regarding the script for Dogville, and while I'm not sure Unbreakable is *that* legendary, it's easily M. Night Shyamalan's best work and deserves way more credit.

***

Re-reading the list: "Anything Else" is a pretty gutsy choice. It's interesting that among his fellow American directors, there's no Eastwood, Scorsese, Burton, the Coens... nothing. Again, his passion for film is great, but the list itself let me down. Aside from Woody Allen, there weren't many outliers. No deep cuts or forgotten gems. Still, it's a fun little mental exercise to sit back and wonder what my own Top 20 since '92 would look like.

***

This list really captures why I find Tarantino so frustrating. Look, I consider myself a fan; his early stuff totally captured my imagination and probably did more to turn me into a film buff as a teenager than any other director. He felt fresh, original, and had this undeniable swagger. But lately? He's kind of lost me.

(this sounds like something northerncrane4 👍 would write)

***

Where is Oldboy? I thought he was obsessed with that one.

Quote:>>

wiredbison82 says: And more importantly, if the guy only had about ten minutes to put this whole list together, who in their right mind could possibly remember every single great movie off the top of their head...

That was my takeaway too. Unfortunately, I was wrong. "This is a premier American movie channel, and I assume he was doing some promo for Inglourious Basterds on there and just put this together at the same time.". So, he definitely had plenty of time to get his act together... One thing is for sure: lately, I’ve found it way more entertaining to listen to him ramble on about other people's masterpieces than actually sit through his recent movies, at least if you ask me 😍

p.s. Sorry, I couldn't be bothered to translate this. But hey, if anyone's actually interested (it's all fresh and free):

Tarantino goes off about There Will Be Blood and basically loses his mind over how good it is

His take on McCabe & Mrs. Miller

Talking about Taxi Driver

Regarding that one notorious Scorsese rumor

On Danny Boyle’s ‘Sunshine’

Christian Taylor3 said:So, during the big promotional push for Inglourious Basterds over in the UK, the crew at Sky Movies asked Quentin Tarantino if he’d just sit there and rattle off his top 20 movies of all time on camera. Naturally, he shot that down—kind of like that old joke where you ask a grandma who her greatest love is and she just says, "sailors"—and offered them this instead: his 20 favorite films released from 1992 onwards, which happens to be the year he actually started directing.



VIDEO (2009-8-16)

Source: Sky Movies

1. Battle Royale
2. Anything Else
3. Audition
4. The Blade
5. Boogie Nights
6. Dazed & Confused
7. Dogville
8. Fight Club
9. Friday
10. The Host
11. The Insider
12. Joint Security Area
13. Lost In Translation
14. The Matrix
15. Memories of Murder
16. Police Story 3
17. Shaun of the Dead
18. Speed
19. Team America
20. Unbreakable

All things considered, I'm pretty stoked—we seem to be on the same page for the most part. It was cool to see him include The Insider, and I loved how much he hyped up Dogville; he was also incredibly upfront about what The Matrix means to him, and gave such a great breakdown of Unbreakable. Honestly, nobody should hold it against him for leaving out Oldboy. Apparently, they cornered him in passing and the interview wasn't even scheduled, so he really only had about ten minutes to pull his thoughts together.
I haven't actually seen Battle Royale yet, which is a bit embarrassing 😵

What about you guys? What's your take?

What on earth? 🙏

Emily Thomas3 said:Wait, how does someone even have bad taste?

I wouldn't go so far as to say anyone has "subpar" taste; rather, I think some people simply share the exact same preferences as my ten-year-old nephew (who is quite the little sweetheart 😍), where the only criteria for quality are whether a movie is loud, chaotic, and packed with explosions. Those are really just films designed for the pre-adolescent demographic 🙄

Not a single animated one :-(

It’s weird how *Chungking Express* isn't mentioned, especially since he swears by it. When he started his own distribution company, that was the first film he picked—he even included a ten-minute intro about it on the DVD release. Maybe the guy is just messing with us 😕

Those drugs absolutely wrecked him, man 😢

Christian Taylor3 said:So, during the big promotional push for Inglourious Basterds over in the UK, the crew at Sky Movies asked Quentin Tarantino if he’d just sit there and rattle off his top 20 movies of all time on camera. Naturally, he shot that down—kind of like that old joke where you ask a grandma who her greatest love is and she just says, "sailors"—and offered them this instead: his 20 favorite films released from 1992 onwards, which happens to be the year he actually started directing.



VIDEO (2009-8-16)

Source: Sky Movies

1. Battle Royale
2. Anything Else
3. Audition
4. The Blade
5. Boogie Nights
6. Dazed & Confused
7. Dogville
8. Fight Club
9. Friday
10. The Host
11. The Insider
12. Joint Security Area
13. Lost In Translation
14. The Matrix
15. Memories of Murder
16. Police Story 3
17. Shaun of the Dead
18. Speed
19. Team America
20. Unbreakable

All things considered, I'm pretty stoked—we seem to be on the same page for the most part. It was cool to see him include The Insider, and I loved how much he hyped up Dogville; he was also incredibly upfront about what The Matrix means to him, and gave such a great breakdown of Unbreakable. Honestly, nobody should hold it against him for leaving out Oldboy. Apparently, they cornered him in passing and the interview wasn't even scheduled, so he really only had about ten minutes to pull his thoughts together.
I haven't actually seen Battle Royale yet, which is a bit embarrassing 😵

What about you guys? What's your take?

Everything else mentioned isn't bad—actually, it's pretty good—but who knows why he's so obsessed with these specific ones. Honestly, I don't care that much. In my opinion, Quentin is a "one-hit wonder"; after *Pulp Fiction*, he hasn't made anything truly extraordinary. Sure, they're visually interesting and have cool narration, but that's about it. I've been wondering how long he's going to keep making movies just as homages to other films. Life is short, and while he spends his time recreating everything he loved as a kid, his youth is slipping away.

David Price5 said:Not a single animated one :-(

Team America? 🤷 I mean, they technically move the puppets by hand, so... 🙂

hiddenhound3 said:I wouldn't go so far as to say anyone has "subpar" taste; rather, I think some people simply share the exact same preferences as my ten-year-old nephew (who is quite the little sweetheart 😍), where the only criteria for quality are whether a movie is loud, chaotic, and packed with explosions. Those are really just films designed for the pre-adolescent demographic 🙄

But why even take it personally? Is it because of snobbery? Or some high-brow view on art? Maybe it's because movies shouldn't just be made for those little boys living inside men even when they hit their 20s? You have no idea how many memories can be triggered by that goofy scene where Keanu Reeves is on a skateboard trying to defuse a bomb. Forget Proust and his madeleines! Tarantino has dedicated a huge chunk of his career to chasing lost time, and he does it with a genuine love for his characters that you rarely see from any other director.

I don't mind if you aren't into Tarantino's "pre-teen" action flicks, but don't dismiss them so easily. They actually mean something to people. For some, it's just ninety minutes of mindless fun, but for others, it's a massive connection to their childhood.

Emily Thomas3 said:But why even take it personally? Is it because of snobbery? Or some high-brow view on art? Maybe it's because movies shouldn't just be made for those little boys living inside men even when they hit their 20s? You have no idea how many memories can be triggered by that goofy scene where Keanu Reeves is on a skateboard trying to defuse a bomb. Forget Proust and his madeleines! Tarantino has dedicated a huge chunk of his career to chasing lost time, and he does it with a genuine love for his characters that you rarely see from any other director.

I don't mind if you aren't into Tarantino's "pre-teen" action flicks, but don't dismiss them so easily. They actually mean something to people. For some, it's just ninety minutes of mindless fun, but for others, it's a massive connection to their childhood.

Bravo!👍

Laura Palmer25 said:Everything else mentioned isn't bad—actually, it's pretty good—but who knows why he's so obsessed with these specific ones. Honestly, I don't care that much. In my opinion, Quentin is a "one-hit wonder"; after *Pulp Fiction*, he hasn't made anything truly extraordinary. Sure, they're visually interesting and have cool narration, but that's about it. I've been wondering how long he's going to keep making movies just as homages to other films. Life is short, and while he spends his time recreating everything he loved as a kid, his youth is slipping away.

He will likely keep making them as long as he views himself as a seasoned postmodernist—or perhaps a pop-modernist. It seems to me that without those flashy stylistic flourishes and those constant nods to his favorite cinematic icons, Tarantino wouldn't be the filmmaker we recognize today.
In other words, once he finally attempts to make a film that isn't fundamentally *about* movies, I suspect the result will feel forced, pretentious, and ultimately unwatchable.
The Coen brothers proved along their journey that there is another way to work—one that can be different, if not better, or at least just as good—but that is a separate discussion entirely...