'I'm shutting your butt down!'

The red mist descends

Quentin Tarantino is, without question, one of the most naturally talented film directors in all of cinematic history. Audiences and critics alike were mesmerised by the sheer brilliance of his debut film, Reservoir Dogs, in late 1991.

The film is essentially about an ensemble of criminals who plan a diamond heist only for it to spiral out of control and lead to a indelibly bloody conclusion.
It is still held in the highest regard today and was deservedly labelled "The Greatest Independent Film of all Time" by EMPIRE Magazine.

Some felt that the bar was set at too high a standard, and his directorial career would inevitably decline from there. How wrong they were. Tarantino has gone on to make the highest caliber of films, a list which includes the likes of Pulp Fiction, Jackie Brown, Inglourious Basterds and, of course, Django Unchained.

Tarantino was participating in an interview for the latter on Channel 4, the week before last.
The man tasked with interviewing the legendary director was Krishnan Guru-Murthy, and he was doing a pretty good job until he raised the issue of a possible link between violence in cinema and real violence.

It all went downhill from there.

Guru-Murphy asked:

                "...why are you so sure there's no link between enjoying movie violence and enjoying real                                 violence?"

Tarantino didn't like that question. In fact, he took offence.

NOTE: I'm not going to provide a full transcript of the interview and everything that was said but I will highlight the 'best bits' of Tarantino's flurry of responses.

        "Don't ask me a question like that, I'm not biting. I refuse             your question"

Guru-Murphy was not expecting a reaction, and made the mistake of persisting.


        "I'm not your slave and you're not my master. You can't                make me dance to your tune, I'm not a monkey"

        "I don't want to (explore my views on violence) because I'm          here to sell my movie. This is a commercial for my movie,             make no mistake"

Tarantino goes on to explain why he doesn't want to discuss the implications of violence. He states that he's already talked about it for 20 years and has nothing more to add as his opinion hasn't changed. Guru-Murphy, who at this stage has made his death wish clear to everyone, continues to try and get something out of him. "But you haven't fleshed it out".

Even before the words finish coming out of his mouth Tarantino, at his most tempestuous, is ready with a response, and an oddly funny one at that:

         "It's not my job to flesh it out...I'm shutting your butt              down!"

He then lets off a psychotic laugh and stares his interviewer down, making sure nothing happens to the uncomfortable atmosphere that has brewed for the past few moments. Thankfully, Guru-Murphy takes his foot off the gas and stops himself just short of the end of the cliff he was so speedily driving towards. 

Was the way in which Tarantino reacted to the question reasonable?

I can understand his frustration about being asked the same question regarding a matter which he openly feels to be irrelevant. However, he could have perhaps dealt with it in a nicer way. Nevertheless, it made for great viewing!

I'll leave you with my two favourite comments, taken from this article in The Guardian.