It takes no great stretch of the imagination to consider Quentin Tarantino the most influential director of the last 30 years.
Transcending the age of comic book movies and previously-existing intellectual properties, Tarantino has carved a lane for himself and his art in a way that few directors have before him.
In celebration of the director’s ninth — and potentially second-to-last feature film — we’ve ranked Quentin Tarantino’s entire filmography.
(Editor’s Note: True Romance, From Dusk Till Dawn, and Death Proof are not on this list)
The Hateful Eight
Fun fact about The Hateful Eight: it almost got never got made. And given the end result, it probably shouldn’t have been.
Prior to the release of Tarantino’s eighth original film, the script was leaked online, leading the director to consider abandoning the project entirely.
Tarantino eventually had a change of heart, though, as he rewrote the ending and went forward with the film.
Yet, despite the reworked ending, The Hateful Eight is a film with all the quintessential Tarantino bells and whistles but none of the meat and potatoes. While the dialogue is excellent and the style is palpable, the movie ultimately suffers from its lack of intriguing plot and limited locale.
Jackie Brown
Following the release of Reservoir Dogs and Pulp Fiction, Tarantino was the hottest commodity in Hollywood with the rare ability to make any project he wanted. So what did he decide to do? Adapt Elmore Leonard’s 1992 novel Rum Punch, of course.
A vehicle for 1970’s actress Pam Grier, Jackie Brown is simultaneously Tarantino’s least recognizable, but also most underrated film. It also may be the director’s most rewatchable film as it’s just a generally good time that breezes through its two-and-a-half-hour runtime.
Featuring an out-of-character wicked turn from Samuel L. Jackson and a tender performance from Robert Forster, Jackie Brown also boasts as of a fine cast as you’ll see in a Tarantino flick, as Robert De Niro (who’s equally hilarious and terrifying as an essentially thoughtless stoner bank robber) and Michael Keaton also star.
Once Upon A Time… In Hollywood
First things first: seeing Leonardo DiCaprio and Brad Pitt share a big screen is a truly surreal experience and is an utter joy for any movie lover, especially those born after the year 1985.
Unfortunately for these two generational stars, they’re stuck in the Quentin Tarantino movie with the most toothless plot.
While the two actors are given enough to do, the characters themselves spend a majority of the runtime just meandering through their lives, which is ultimately a detriment to the film. That said, both DiCaprio and Pitt put forth performances that’s worth the price of admission alone.
Let’s Talk About The Ending Of ‘Once Upon A Time In Hollywood’
Django Unchained
Tarantino’s most violent film (which is really saying something), Django Unchained sees Tarantino return to the past as he did with Inglorious Basterds. Only this time, instead of a film about Jews getting revenge against the Nazis, it’s slaves uprising against their owners.
Assisted by Leonardo DiCaprio in a rare villainous role and Christoph Waltz turning in yet another Academy Award-winning performance, Django Unchained rests comfortably at the median of Tarantino films.
Kill Bill Vol. 1 & Kill Vol. 2
If there was a movie that best encapsulates who Quentin Tarantino is as a director, it’s the Kill Bill series.
A chaotic blend of the Western and the Samuari genres, Kill Bill is truly just one movie split into to and should be consumed as such.
Reservoir Dogs
The one that started it all, Reservoir Dogs is Tarantino’s smallest, and subsequently, most intimate film. Still, almost thirty years later, Reservoir Dogs remains a gripping crime drama, especially if you’ve never seen it before and don’t see the twist coming.
Inglourious Basterds
Let’s just make one thing clear: Quentin Tarantino has never made a bad movie. Fuck it, he’s never made an average movie, either.
But what he has done is make a bunch of good movies: Django Unchained, The Hateful Eight, Jackie Brown, etc. are all good movies.
Inglourious Basterds is a great movie.
Featuring Christoph Waltz’s breakout stateside performance, Inglourious Basterds is Tarantino’s finest film of the 21st century, as it not only serves as an action-packed, revenge-filled World War II film but features Tarantino’s patented bizarre, yet bitingly funny sense of humor and cold-as-ice dialogue from beginning to end.
Pulp Fiction
Could it have been anything else? A generation-defining film, Pulp Fiction is, in my opinion, the perfect movie.
The movie that turned Quentin Tarantino into an international star, Pulp Fiction remains as excellent today as it did when it first came out a quarter of a century ago.
Of the last 25 years, there are few — if any — American movies as beloved and impactful as Pulp Fiction.