“Cinema Speculation” Review
After writing his first novel in 2021, filmmaker Quentin Tarantino has written his second book and his first non-fiction work with “Cinema Speculation,” a dive into films of the 1970s.
I have a massive respect for Quentin Tarantino because he has made nine films the way he’s wanted without compromising himself. Despite controversy for his depiction of violence, Tarantino doesn’t let it phase him and continues to make great film after great film. While he’s intending to retire after his next film, Tarantino has been very busy with his podcast and career as a writer. After writing a novelization of “Once Upon a Time in Hollywood” and revealing that his next book was going to be a nonfiction history book, I anticipated its release. After reading it twice, “Cinema Speculation” is now one of my favorite books about film and a thrilling read about cinema of the 1970s.
In “Cinema Speculation,” Tarantino takes us on a journey of film appreciation, film criticism, film history and how all of that impacted Tarantino’s life. While I want him to write a memoir one day, this is a pretty good substitute. Each chapter essentially functions as its own essay with some focusing on film criticism, others on one film in particular and others being more focused on Tarantino’s personal life. What they all have in common is that they’re related to films of the 1970s when the New Hollywood was flourishing and when Tarantino was growing up.
The first chapter was an amazing introduction to Quentin’s psyche. In it, he describes being taken by his mother and stepfather to see a lot of films that were geared more towards adults like “The Godfather” and “MASH.” In particular, Tarantino writes about one experience that changed him forever when he was taken by a boyfriend of his mom’s to see “Black Gunn” starring Jim Brown. The crowd loved that film so much and Tarantino makes it clear that his entire life as a filmmaker has been dedicated to reliving that feeling of seeing Jim Brown kicking ass in front of a cheering crowd in a packed theater.
The chapters where Tarantino talks about particular films are fantastic as he gives you the history and an excellent analysis of the film. Films like “Dirty Harry,” “Taxi Driver,” “Bullitt” and “Rolling Thunder” are given their due and Tarantino discusses just as many lesser known films as well as iconic works. I have never seen “Paradise Alley” starring Sylvester Stallone but I want to now after reading Tarantino’s praise for the film. Also, he hit the nail right on the head when he said that if you like “Rocky” the movie then the first film is your favorite but, if you love Rocky the character, the second film is your favorite. Thanks for giving voice to the minority opinion that “Rocky II” is superior to the original.
Tarantino’s analysis of the films is interesting and, sometimes, it feels like Tarantino is finally making known certain things that I’ve always suspected. For example, I had a strong feeling that Travis Bickle in “Taxi Driver” was racist given his attitude to black men. There are times where he just stares at some of the black customers of a lunch counter that I always took to be a look of animosity. Tarantino essentially confirms this when he tells us that screenwriter Paul Schrader wrote the characters Travis kills in the film’s iconic final shootout (the pimp Sport and the hotel owner) to be black. In fact, when Harvey Keitel was cast as Sport, he tried to find a white pimp to better understand his role and couldn’t find one. I guess white pimps were essentially unicorns in 1970s New York.
One of the most entertaining chapters of “Cinema Speculation” involves Tarantino writing about what would “Taxi Driver” have looked like if Brian De Palma (right) had been the director instead of Martin Scorsese.
The history chapters are also well written as Tarantino guides us through the insane time that was the 1970s. One chapter compares the more iconoclastic Auteurs with the more commercially viable Movie Brats showcasing their strengths and their weaknesses. When the Movie Brats wanted to remake ideas, they were from films by John Ford or monster movies. The auteurs preferred to refashion ideas from filmmakers like Fellini and Godard. The New Hollywood was essentially a war between these two groups fighting for domination with sometimes the conflict being friendly. Other times it got nasty. What both groups had in common was that they caused American cinema to grow up and try to catch up with the mature direction foreign cinema was taking.
Another chapter is a full appreciation for film critic Kevin Thomas where Tarantino praises his championing of more niche genres that other critics wouldn’t touch. In fact, Tarantino really makes “Cinema Speculation” out to be a love letter to the critics that got him to think about film in a more analytical manner including Thomas, Pauline Kael and Roger Ebert.
One of my favorite sections of “Cinema Speculation” is where Tarantino plays the “what if” game by writing a whole chapter about how Brian De Palma almost directed “Taxi Driver” instead of Martin Scorsese. When Tarantino describes what a DePalmized “Taxi Driver” might have looked like, two things are clear. One: that Tarantino has thought about this for a while. Two: he understands film history to the point where his fanfiction feels like it could have actually happened.
But it’s when the Oscar-winning filmmaker writes about himself where the book becomes most interesting. Other than the first chapter, where Tarantino writes about his introduction to film, the last one also contains an intimate look into Tarantino’s life that is unmistakably powerful and that I dare not spoil.
If you love movies or film history, definitely read this book and if you love Tarantino, this is a powerful look at how movies really impact someone. While I am excited to see what Quentin Tarantino will do for his final film, if he keeps writing more books, I can wait a while.
