There are various elements found in all ofQuentin Tarantino’s movies that make them stand out, most notably the graphic violence in them, but one theory blames this on one of Tarantino’s most successful works. Quentin Tarantino’s career as a filmmaker began in 1992 with the crime movieReservoir Dogs, through which he introduced the world to his peculiar narrative and visual style. AlthoughReservoir Dogsmade his name known, it wasPulp Fictiontwo years later which made Tarantino a widely known and praised name.
Since then, Tarantino has explored a variety of genres in his movies, always with his trademark style of graphic violence and generous amounts of blood.Tarantino always finds a way to fit graphic violence in his movies, whether it’s a martial arts movie likeKill Bill, a western likeDjango Unchained, or an alternate look at the 1960s likeOnce Upon a Time in Hollywood. Now, a theory gives an in-universe explanation as towhy Tarantino’s movies are so violent, and it’s all due to the events ofInglourious Basterds.
A Theory Blames Inglourious Basterds For The Violence In Quentin Tarantino’s Movies
In 2009, Tarantino explored World War II in an alternate timeline inInglourious Basterds. The movie follows two parallel plans with the same goal: kill as many Nazis as possible, including Adolf Hitler. First is Shosanna Dreyfus’ (Mélanie Laurent) plan, as her family was killed by SS officer Hans Landa (Christoph Waltz), and she plans to kill him, Hitler, and many more at her cinema, where the premiere for Joseph Goebbels’Nation’s Pridewill take place. The second plan is that of the Basterds, led by Aldo Raine (Brad Pitt), who also want to use the premiere to kill Hitler and company.
This world learned about the Basterds’ actions and their involvement in Hitler’s death.
Shosanna’s and the Basterds’ plan end up merging, and together,they manage to kill Hitler, Goebbels, and hundreds of Nazisand supporters during the premiere. According to aReddituser, this might have had a much deeper impact on the world of Tarantino’s movies and is the reason why everyone in it is so desensitized to violence. The author of the theory points out that Donny “The Bear Jew” (Eli Roth) is the father ofTrue Romance’s Lee Donowitz, so this world learned about the Basterds’ actions and their involvement in Hitler’s death.
Hitler dying in a movie theater gunned down by two Basterds (The Bear Jew and Omar) would have had a much bigger and different impact on pop culture than his death in a bunker, leading to an obsession with pop culture in the world of Tarantino’s movies – this is why many characters are so knowledgeable on movies, TV, and music and have full conversations about them, such as the famous “Like a Virgin” speech inReservoir Dogs.
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The “hyperviolent slaughter” at the end ofInglourious Basterdsled people all over the world, but mostly in America, to become desensitized to extreme violence, which is why it’s so common in Tarantino’s movies (to different degrees, but it’s always there) and the characters aren’t really shocked by it.
The Tarantino Movie Universe & Its Two Levels Explained
All Quentin Tarantino Movies Are Connected
The theory aboutInglourious Basterdsbeing the reason for all the violence in Tarantino’s movies makes more sense when looking at the famousTarantino Movie Universe Theory. As confirmed by Tarantino himself,all his movies live in the same universe, but there are two levels. The first level is the “Realer Than Real Universe”, whereReservoir Dogs,Pulp Fiction,Inglourious Basterds,Django Unchained,The Hateful Eight, andOnce Upon a Time in Hollywoodlive. The second level is the “Movie Universe”, formed by the movies that those on the other level watch, and these are bothKill Billmovies andDeath Proof.
Jackie Brownlives in its own universe as it’s an adaption of the novelRum Punch, by Elmore Leonard.
Accompanying these movies in both levels aremovies Tarantino wrote but didn’t direct, such asFrom Dusk till Dawnin the second level andTrue RomanceandNatural Born Killersin the first level. The movies in the second level are pretty violent and graphic, which makes sense as these were made in and for a world where Hitler was gunned down by the Basterds and such violence became not so rare.
What Quentin Tarantino Has Said About Violence In His Movies
Quentin Tarantino Has Openly Spoken About The Violence In His Movies
Perhaps the most asked question Tarantino gets is why his movies are so violent. Tarantino has made it clear that he doesn’t support violence in the real world, but in movies, it’s “cool” and “fun”, as he makes the separation between real-life violence and fictional one. During an appearance at the British Academy of Film and Television Arts in 2012, Tarantino said that violence in movies affects audiences “in a big way” andhe feels like a conductor and the audience’s feelings are his instruments(viaThe Standard).
It’s unlikely thatQuentin Tarantinowill confirm or debunk the theory aboutInglourious Basterdsbeing the reason for the violence in his movies, but it makes sense when looking at the entire Tarantino movie universe – and even if it’s not true, it’s worth taking the time to think about how Hitler’s alternate death could have affected history and the world.
Sources:Reddit,The Standard.
Inglourious Basterds
Inglourious Basterds is a film set during World War II in Nazi-occupied France. It follows a group of Jewish-American soldiers, known as “The Basterds,” led by Lt. Aldo Raine, who engage in ruthless anti-Nazi efforts. Their actions intersect with a French-Jewish theater owner in a plot against the regime.
