Quentin Tarantino's Favorite Quentin Tarantino Movie

Yes! We now know the answer to one of the culture world’s most important questions: what is Quentin Tarantino’ favorite Quentin Tarantino movie?

As broken down by The Guardian, Tarantino paid a visit to the Church of Tarantino podcast and answered some tough questions… including ones about his oeuvre. And as you might expect from a filmmaker known for loquaciousness in dialogue, he did not have a simple answer.

He said that he thought Inglourious Basterds is his BEST film. He said that he thought Kill Bill. is the CLASSIC Tarantino film (he didn’t specify which volume, so I think he meant the whole thing).

And he said that Once Upon a Time… in Hollywood is his favorite.

“I think Kill Bill is the movie I was born to make, I think Inglourious Basterds is my masterpiece but Once Upon a Time … in Hollywood is my favourite.”

Fascinating.

Once Upon a Time … in Hollywood is also my favorite, but I also think it’s his best, tied with Inglourious Basterds. The two films fit together, beautifully, with their dovetailing themes. Both films are about the empowering power of movies to address injustice and provide empowering catharsis about such injustices in the cultural imagination. Both films are, in a way, how a child would rewrite history, if that were possible. 

Tarantino went on to discuss his screenwriting career.

“I think Inglourious Basterds is my best script, and I think Hateful Eight and Once Upon a Time … in Hollywood are right behind,” he said. You might be surprised to see him give The Hateful Eight that much love. And he goes on! “But, there’s an aspect of Hateful Eight that I actually think is probably my best directing of my material.”

I don’t know if I agree with this, but it’s interesting to re-conceptualize Tarantino’s career through his own cinematic preferences. He seems drawn to the grander genre epics than the precise pulp examinations of his early career.