Claudia Peirats
Professor Colkitt
Film Art, FIL3854
March 29th, 2020
Quentin Tarantino, a living legend
“Violence is one of the most fun things to watch” a quote once said by the famous
filmmaker Quentin Tarantino. With a total of 9 written and directed films, Tarantino has become
one of the most influential filmmakers of his generation and has even surpassed filmmakers from
past generations. He once said that all his movies are achingly personal, which express a lot of
compassion, devotion, and passion. His dark personality, and unique sense of humor is
demonstrated thoroughly throughout iconic films like Pulp Fiction, Reservoir Dogs, Kill Bill and
Once Upon a Time. With a unique combination of violence, darkness and comedy, Tarantino’s
film making style falls under noir fiction where right and wrong are not clearly defined and the
protagonists are usually flawed.
The genre film noir, which is a cinematic term that means a dark film is a term adapted
by Quentin Tarantino in all films directed by him. It is when the protagonist of the movie is
clearly disturbed in a way, that is proven throughout the movie. The genre also includes
pessimism, surrealism and a great deal of darkness and violence. It is seen in movies whenever
the scene has dark lighting, dark humor and loads of violence. Tarantino shows his adaptation of
film noir in movies like Pulp Fiction, Reservoir Dogs, and Kill Bill. For example, in Pulp Fiction
he writes a lot about violence and surrealist scenes that one could never imagine would happen in
real life.
Bloodshed and disorder are themes that Tarantino is very well known for. All of that
combined with darkness an underlying reality that no one is able to escape. The settings tend to
be creepy, unsettling, and try to give the audience some sort of discomfort as if something is
bound to happen. Even if the time seems to be in the morning or throughout the day, the feeling
of darkness, and eerie is always present, implying a noir fiction touch all along the dialogues,
sets, and even in the symbolism that is captivated in the movie. In Kill Bill Vol. 1 and Kill Bill
Vol. 2 those themes are shown. “Violence, like every other quality, must have a thematic purpose
within the overall plan of the movie if it is to be useful or meaningful” (Allen, 2020) and that is
shown throughout the movies where violence is the theme. The noir style in Kill Bill Vol. 1 and
Kill Bill Vol. 2 is shown with the darkness within the protagonist, and the lengths she will go for
revenge. Even though violence tends to be easier to be demonstrated on camera, Quentin has
