Tarantino's Must-Watch List of 20 Movies from 1992 to 2009
Some are movies Tarantino would love to direct himself, and some he would love even more if there were no sequels.
Quentin Tarantino is undoubtedly one of the finest filmmakers of our time. But as much as he is a passionate filmmaker, he is also a passionate cinephile: having absorbed the best that contemporary cinema has to offer since childhood, Tarantino bases his work on the most recognizable tropes and directorial styles, creating a refined pop culture mishmash. And as a huge film buff, Tarantino shared a list of the 20 films he 'admires the most' in a conversation with Sky Movies in 2009.
20 Must-Watch Movies According to Tarantino
Before we get to the list itself, it's important to note that it's not in order of importance, but in alphabetical order. Except for the number one, because for Tarantino it is 'favorite movie that has come out in the last 17 years.' Besides, as he pointed out, this is one of the few movies he would personally dream of directing.
But without further ado, let's take a look at the list of the 20 best movies according to Tarantino.
1. Battle Royale (Dir. Kinji Fukasaku, 2000) — IMDb rating: 7.5/10
2. Anything Else (Dir. Wood Allen, 2003) — IMDb rating: 6.3/10
3. Audition (Dir. Takashi Miike, 1999) — IMDb rating: 7.1/10
4. The Blade (Dir. Hark Tsui, 1995) — IMDb rating: 7/10
5. Boogie Nights (Dir. Paul Thomas Anderson, 1997) — IMDb rating: 7.9/10
6. Dazed & Confused (Dir. Richard Linklater, 1993) — IMDb rating: 7.6/10
7. Dogville (Dir. Lars von Trier, 2003) — IMDb rating: 8/10
8. Fight Club (Dir. David Fincher, 1999) — IMDb rating: 8.8/10
9. Friday (Dir. F. Gary Gray, 1995) — IMDb rating: 7.2/10
10. The Host (Dir. Joon-ho Bong, 2006) — IMDb rating: 7.1/10
11. The Insider (Dir. Michael Mann, 1999) — IMDb rating: 7.8/10
12. Joint Security Area (Dir. Chan-wook Park, 2000) — IMDb rating: 7.7/10
13. Lost In Translation (Dir. Sofia Coppola, 2003) — IMDb rating: 7.7/10
14. The Matrix (Dir. Lilly Wachowski & Lana Wachowski, 1999) — IMDb rating: 8.7/10
15. Memories of Murder (Dir. Joon-ho Bong, 2003) — IMDb rating: 8.1/10
16. Police Story 3: Super Cop (Dir. Stanley Tong, 1992) — IMDb rating: 6.9/10
17. Shaun of the Dead (Dir. Edgar Wright, 2004) — IMDb rating: 7.9/10
18. Speed (Dir. Jan de Bont, 1994) — IMDb rating: 7.3/10
19. Team America (Dir. Trey Parker, 2004) — IMDb rating: 7.2/10
20. Unbreakable (Dir. M. Night Shyamalan, 2000) — IMDb rating: 7.3/10
Although the filmmaker tried to place the remaining 19 films on the same bar without creating a hierarchy between them, some of them clearly stand out for Tarantino: while he simply listed some of them along with the names of their directors, he discussed others in detail.
The Wachowski sisters' The Matrix, for example, may have been Tarantino's second favorite film after Battle Royale. If it weren't for the sequels.
'Now, there was a time that I would have considered Matrix actually the official number two after Battle Royale. However, I have to say that time was before Matrix 2 and 3 came out and actually ruined the mythology for me, but even though it did ruin the mythology for me and actually moved the original Matrix down on my list,' he shared. 'Frankly, I just can't think about it the same way, as I did before. It didn't obliterate it entirely, it's still has to be on the Top 20.'
However, all the criticism does not change the fact that The Matrix and other movies on the list are absolute favorites even for such a fastidious filmmaker as Tarantino, and if one day you do not know what to watch, we certainly recommend you to turn to the list compiled by Quentin Tarantino.