Tarantino lists his favorite 21st century films, chooses Spielberg over Scorsese
Quentin Tarantino’s list of films of the 21st century pits Steven Spielberg against Martin Scorsese, praising Quentin Spielberg’s musical as the most exciting film of the century and expressing surprise at the joy of lead actor Ansel Elgort’s performance.
Filmmaker Quentin Tarantino unveiled his ranking of the 20 best films of the 21st century. He shared his much-awaited, latest list of films that impressed him. Tarantino praised Steven Spielberg’s recent musical, West Side Story as the most exciting film of this century, specifically claiming that Martin Scorsese had not made anything “so exciting” this century
Tarantino greatly praised Steven Spielberg’s music West Side Story But big picture Podcast and said: “This is where Steven shows he still has it. I don’t think Scorsese has made a movie this exciting (this century). This revitalized him. I can’t believe I liked the lead (Ansel Elgort) because I didn’t like him in anything else.”
Inspired by the podcast’s “25 Best Movies of the Century” episode, Tarantino explained how he was inspired to create his ranking simply by “grabbing a pen” and listing the titles that characterized the era for him. They committed to a single, strict criteria: limiting their selection to only one film per director. While the top 10 choices have not been revealed, their preliminary list, covering 11 to 20 spots, shows an eclectic mix, with genres ranging from gritty horror and martial arts to lively music and comedy.
A look at Tarantino’s favorite picks from the podcast:
11. Battle Royale (Kinji Fukasaku)
The 2000 Japanese action-thriller, which was optioned by Tarantino, sets a terrifying backdrop where a totalitarian government kidnaps 42 junior high students, takes them to a remote island, and requires them to fight to the death with personal weapons and explosive collars until only one remains alive.
Tarantino praised the film’s bold concept and compared it to the American adaptation hunger gamesHe publicly criticized the similarities, arguing that the Japanese creator was unfairly harmed: “I don’t understand how the Japanese author hasn’t sued (‘Hunger Games’ author) Susan Collins for every nonsense she says, Stupid book reviewers aren’t going to watch a Japanese movie called Battle Royale, so they never called her into it, As soon as movie critics saw the movie, they said, ‘What the hell, it’s just Battle Royale except, Battle Royale is PG!”
12. Big Bad Wolves (Aharon Keshaless, Navot Papushado)
thriller Big Bad Wolves (2013) The story focuses on the intersecting paths of a father seeking revenge for his daughter’s murder, a detective working on the case, and a teacher identified as the prime suspect.
Tarantino expressed deep admiration for the film’s sheer audacity, saying: “It has a brilliant script and a very similar story to Prisoners…They handle it with guts and courage – you know an American movie wouldn’t do that.”
13. Jackass: The Movie (Jeff Tremaine)
2002 comedy documentary Jackass: The Movie It stars Johnny Knoxville and his anarchic crew of daredevils and misfits, pushing the boundaries of physical comedy with outrageous stunts and public pranks, turning the film into a major pop-culture phenomenon.
Tarantino celebrated the film as an incredibly fun experience, saying: “It was the movie I laughed the most in the last 20 years. I don’t remember laughing like that from beginning to end since Richard Pryor. When I was making Kill Bill, I thought this movie was so funny I had to show it to the crew. So we found a print, watched the movie, and just died.”
14. The School of Rock (Richard Linklater)
The comedy The School of Rock stars Jack Black as Dewey Finn, a struggling musician who takes a job as a substitute teacher at a strict prep school. Instead of following the curriculum, he secretly recruits his students to form a rock band and participate in a Battle of the Bands competition.
Tarantino particularly praised the film for its infectious entertainment: “It was a really fun time in the theater. It was a real fun, fun, fun screening. I think it was Jack Black having a blast with Rick Linklater and Mike White – that’s what made it special () It’s as close to Bad News Bears as we’ve gotten before.”
15. The Passion of the Christ (Mel Gibson)
Mel Gibson’s 2004 biblical epic, passion of christDescribes the brutal last twelve hours of Jesus Christ’s life after he is handed over to the Roman authorities. The film gained notoriety for its controversial and intense depiction of violence, becoming one of the highest-grossing religious films ever released.
Regarding the film’s climax, Tarantino admitted that he had an unexpected reaction: “I was laughing a lot during the movie. Not because we were trying to be perverse, laughing at Jesus being fucked up – excessive violence is absolutely funny to me – and when you go too far beyond the extremes, it becomes even funnier. We were just groaning and laughing at how fucked up it was, Mel did a tremendous job directing. He put me in that time period. I loved Mel. Told Gibson about it, and he looked at me like I was crazy.”
16. The Devil’s Rejects (Rob Zombie)
2005 gritty horror film The Devil’s RejectsWhich serves as a sequel to House of 1000 Corpses, tracking the murderous Jugnu family on the run from the police after a raid. The fugitives unleash a new wave of violence across rural America, blurring the moral divide between villain and victim.
Tarantino considered the film a genre-defining milestone, commenting: “This Ruff Peckinpah – cowboy – Manson thing (from Zombies) – that voice didn’t really exist before (in House of 1000 Corpses), and he refined that voice with this movie. Peckinpah hadn’t been part of a horror movie before. He mixed it with sick hillbillies, and it’s become a thing now.”
17. Chocolate (Oriental Pinkou)
2008 thai martial arts drama Chocolate The story focuses on an autistic girl named Zane, who develops extraordinary fighting abilities by copying movements she sees in movies and television. When Zane’s mother falls ill, he begins collecting the debt he owes, resulting in action sequences that are noted for their high level of inventiveness.
Tarantino was a strong supporter of the film’s physical artistry and underdog spirit, saying: “Here’s a movie you’ve probably never heard of. People are being fucked in the most spectacular ways. He trained this 12-year-old girl for four years to act in this movie. (It’s some of the greatest kung-fu fighting I’ve ever seen in a movie). “
18. Moneyball
the film moneyball Based on the true story of baseball manager Billy Beane, played by Brad Pitt, who improved the game by employing data analytics to assemble a strong team despite budget limitations. Working with Jonah Hill’s character, Peter Brand, Bean defied long-standing baseball tradition, yielding immediate mixed results but a lasting impact.
Tarantino particularly highlighted the lead actor’s contribution, saying: “Brad Pitt’s performance was one of my favorite star performances in the last 20 years – where a movie star comes in and reminds you why he was a movie star and carries the movie on his shoulders.”
19. Cabin Fever (Eli Roth)
The 2002 horror-comedy features a group of college friends whose remote cabin vacation turns disastrous when they become infected with a flesh-eating virus that contaminates the water supply. This film, cabin FeverSuccessfully balanced intense ferocity with dark humor, becoming a cult favorite and serving as a launchpad for Eli Roth’s career.
Tarantino shared his affection for the film, saying: “There’s something very charming there. Ellie’s sense of humor, her sense of fierceness — it really, really works. People forget how tense it is in the first half because in the last 20 minutes it becomes really, really funny. hostel It may be his best film, but it’s my favorite.
The complete list of 20 best films of the century will be revealed soon.
Director David Fincher is set to direct the sequel to Tarantino’s Once Upon a Time in Hollywood. Brad Pitt will be seen reprising his role as Cliff Booth in this project developed for Netflix.