Many film historians point to Quentin Tarantino as the director who helped revolutionize filmmaking in the 1990s. Thanks to his early movies like Reservoir Dogs and Pulp Fiction, he introduced a new style of movies that people tried to replicate, with crisp, fast dialogue, non-linear storytelling, and, oftentimes, intense violence.
However, some people on Reddit are posting their unpopular opinions about the acclaimed director. In many cases, they are simply trying to rile up the fanbase to get a discord going, but in other cases, it is people who genuinely don't like or understand what everyone else has fallen in love with. When it comes to Quentin Tarantino, there are plenty of opinions on both sides.
Tarantino Has Only Made 2 Good Movies
Quentin Tarantino is widely considered one of the best filmmakers working in Hollywood. He has Oscar nominations and most of his movies are critically acclaimed. However, Redditor bokavitch posted that "Pulp Fiction is his only truly great movie. Reservoir Dogs is decent. Everything else he’s done has mediocre writing and tries to get by on shock value."
But this is a very unpopular opinion, as fans on IMDb voted Reservoir Dogs as his fifth-best movie, and every movie he directed ranks at a seven or higher for total votes. His movies also have 34 Oscar nominations and seven wins.
Kill Bill Is An Immature Homage
In 2003 and 2004, Quentin Tarantino released the Kill Bill movies in two parts. The first movie saw a bride, whose entire wedding party was slaughtered, set out for revenge, and the second saw her finally reach the end of the road. Mattjames 2020 wrote that "Kill Bill Vol. 1 is a film some high school student would make if you gave them a 30 million dollar budget. It's an immature homage."
Most people don't agree with this sentiment, with many fans considering The Bride as Tarantino's greatest hero. The two Kill Bill movies combined for a very high 8.8 on IMDb and top critic A.O. Scott wrote in the New York Times that "he is also an unabashed cinephile, and the sincerity of his enthusiasm gives this messy, uneven spectacle an odd, feverish integrity."
Tarantino Is Too Ultra-Violent
One thing that Quentin Tarantino has in his movies is a lot of dialogue and a lot of violence. However, while it seems like there is a ton of killing in all of his movies, in most cases, there isn't. However, Ydrahs wrote that "I still have no idea why this guy is such a critical darling. Obviously, I'm not a film critic but his films seem to be based around OK dialogue and a sh*t ton of blood and violence."
This is another unpopular opinion, as most critics point out the great dialogue, calling that one of Tarantino's high points. On top of this, Reservoir Dogs had only 12 deaths and Pulp Fiction had 15. While this seems like a lot, many big-budget action movies have more.
Tarantino Movies Had Diminishing Returns
Quentin Tarantino started out on fire with Reservoir Dogs and Pulp Fiction, which gave him a lot to live up to. But as far as Kimantha_Allerdings is concerned, he is only good "when he step[s] out of his comfort zone. Everything else he's done has been Tarantino trying to be as Tarantino as he can, with diminishing returns."
This is not really fair, though, because while Pulp Fiction might be his masterpiece, Tarantino received high critical praise for several movies made after that fact. On top of the critical acclaim, Inglourious Basterds, Django Unchained, and Once Upon a Time in Hollywood were his biggest box office successes.
Tarantino Is Indulgent And Lazy
In one Reddit thread, montypython2000 talks about how they appreciate early Tarantino, but not what came later. They write, "Pulp Fiction was excellent and original and yes, Tarantino is smart. However, after PF he became self-indulgent and lazy."
But most fans would not agree with this. While Tarantino tends to celebrate what he loves about movies by adding them to his own, he is far from a lazy filmmaker. Whether he is adding his love of Spaghetti Westerns into Django Unchained or what he likes best about Kung Fu cinema into Kill Bill, it is obvious he takes every movie he makes seriously.
Pulp Fiction Is Overrated
Most people who talk about not liking Quentin Tarantino say that he made one or two good films and that was it. And the one everyone mentions as his masterpiece is Pulp Fiction. Scarns_Aisle5 writes that "This movie is overrated to hell and back despite being shallow and forgettable."
Among the reasons they hate the movie is because they claim they have no idea what the story was trying to say, that the movie had bad music, and the "pacing sucks." This is a highly contentious opinion, as most people agree that Pulp Fiction is an excellent sophomoric effort from the director and not only Tarantino's best but one of the best movies of the '90s, sitting at an 8.9 rating on IMDb.
Tarantino's Dialogue Doesn't Seem Real
Quentin Tarantino is known for his dialogue, but not everyone likes it. MidichlorianAddict wrote on Reddit that "Tarantino’s writing feels a bit smug at times. It doesn’t necessarily feel “real” and it kinda takes me out."
He mentioned Christopher Walken's memorable scene in Pulp Fiction as something that seemed like he was just talking to the audience and not to another person. But most people praise Tarantino's writing, and while some dialogue does seem like a lot, at times, most conversations feel like people having a real conversation about something interesting.
Inglourious Basterds Was 'Deplorable'
Inglourious Basterds was one of Quentin Tarantino's highest-rated films and a massive box office success. However, Scottland83 wrote, "Basterds takes the deplorable to the point of pornography and dares the audience to call it bad taste so he can bask in his self-declared 'edgy' genius accomplishments."
His main complaint was that the movie was not historically accurate. But most of the replies to his comments point out that it was meant to be entertainment and not something a person might watch on History Channel.
Tarantino's Later Movies Drag On
Quentin Tarantino seemed to make longer and longer films later in his career. Heff228 wrote, "I feel all his movies kind of drag a bit after Kill Bill... the first half of his filmography just feels tighter to me."
This makes a little sense. Kill Bill was two movies, and when combined was a monster epic. After that, his movies seemed longer with Inglourious Basterds at almost three hours, Django Unchained 12 minutes longer, and Hateful Eight at over three hours. However, it is still an unpopular opinion, as those later movies were his most successful.
Kill Bill Is Tarantino's Worst Film
The two Kill Bill movies remain some of Tarantino's most beloved movies, but not everyone was on board. One user wrote on Reddit that Kill Bill was his worst movie, saying, "I think I am not very fond of his revenge movies in general. They feel very immature. Like they are made for 14-year-olds. And I did like them more when I was 14."
Interestingly, he also said he felt Inglourious Basterds and Django Unchained were overrated, but that he liked Death Proof. But many fans think that this movie is highly overrated, as Death Proof ranks as Tarantino's least liked movie on IMDb, and the two Kill Bill movies combined rank only just behind Pulp Fiction.