Quentin Tarantino has been saying for years that he would direct ten movies in total, then retire. Well, he’s reportedly found his tenth and final project – entitled The Movie Critic. Tarantino has written the script and is prepping to direct in the Autumn of 2023, according to The Hollywood Reporter’s sources.
Logline details are being kept under wraps but sources describe the story as being set in late 1970s Los Angeles with a woman at its centre. This has led to immediate speculation that the subject of the film will be Pauline Kael – a critic, essayist and author. She was also a consultant to Paramount Studios in the late 70s, which could possibly be covered in the film.
Tarantino’s period movies tend to take an alt-history approach – most famously in Inglourious Basterds, when a character sets fire to a cinema containing high-ranking Nazis. Also in Once Upon a Time in Hollywood, when the Manson murders are thwarted by fictional characters played by Brad Pitt and Leonardo DiCaprio. Therefore, it’s unlikely that this will be a straight-forward movie based on a true story.
Quentin Tarantino’s nine movies began with the groundbreaking Reservoir Dogs (1992) and Pulp Fiction (1994) – which kickstarted a 90s indie cinema boom. He followed these up with the 70s-set Jackie Brown (1997), and the Kill Bill movies (2003-2004), which are very much inspired by 70s kung-fu films. He then directed Death Proof (2007), and Inglourious Basterds (2009). Tarantino’s next two movies were the westerns Django Unchained (2012) and The Hateful Eight (2015). His most recent movie was Once Upon a Time in Hollywood (2019), which won two Oscars.
In 2012, Tarantino told Playboy, “I want to stop at a certain point. Directors don’t get better as they get older. Usually the worst films in their filmography are those last four at the end. I am all about my filmography, and one bad film fucks up three good ones. I don’t want that bad, out-of-touch comedy in my filmography, the movie that makes people think, ‘Oh man, he still thinks it’s 20 years ago.’ When directors get out-of-date, it’s not pretty.” Tarantino turns 60 this year, which he has mentioned before as being the age he wants to retire at.
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