Quentin Tarantino’s Reflections on Modern Cinema

Quentin Tarantino, the iconic director of ‘Pulp Fiction,’ has expressed dissatisfaction with the current state of cinema. In an essay for Sight & Sound magazine, he lamented the rarity of finding new films he can fully appreciate. Flaws, implausibilities, audience pandering, miscast performers or plain stupid stuff usually torpedoes every new movie coming out of the flavorless sausage factory that used to call itself Hollywood, Tarantino wrote, as reported by Variety.

Tarantino’s criticism extends to the broader concept of what constitutes a movie today. He argues that compared to recent films, even the 1980s look favorable, which he previously described as one of cinema’s worst eras.

Despite his disappointment, Tarantino acknowledges some films that have caught his attention since then. ‘West Side Story’ (2021), ‘Horizon: An American Saga’ Chapter 1 and 2 (both 2024), are among the few he enjoyed, yet none swept him away like in the past. His preference has shifted toward reading books in place of watching movies, with one notable exception.

A suspenseful new movie has come out that did grab me and held me for its entire duration,

Tarantino praised ‘The Rip,’ a 2026 Netflix film starring Matt Damon and Ben Affleck, as an engaging cop thriller with a unique premise. He commended the direction, cast, cinematography, and screenplay, affirming the film delivered excellently.

Tarantino’s career began with 1992’s ‘Reservoir Dogs,’ but he hasn’t released a new movie since ‘Once Upon a Time in Hollywood’ in 2019. He’s announced plans for only one more directorial project before retiring, though the current state of the industry and home viewing conditions after brief theater runs disillusion him.

While attending the 2025 Sundance Film Festival, Tarantino pondered the essence of what a movie is today, questioning its reduced theatrical presence. He marked 2019 as the last great year of movies.

Though Tarantino remains critical, he has noted other recent films he enjoyed, such as ‘Top Gun: Maverick,’ describing it as a cinematic spectacle he feared might disappear.

On the ‘Bret Easton Ellis Podcast,’ he shared his top 20 favorite films of the 21st century, and aside from Spielberg’s ‘West Side Story,’ none from the 2020s made the list.

Looking ahead, Tarantino plans a ‘swashbuckling comedy’ play titled ‘The Popinjay Cavalier’ for the West End. His 10th and final film remains undecided after canceling ‘The Movie Critic.’ However, he wrote the screenplay for a Netflix follow-up to ‘Once Upon a Time in Hollywood,’ directed by David Fincher, featuring Brad Pitt as Cliff Booth.