Hangin' Out In 100b

His genres may range from World War II westerns to martial-arts, revenge epics to Grindhouse, exploitation-inspired, slasher flicks, but Quentin Tarantino’s signature directing style is like a blinking, whooping, neon sign. From the first scene, he transports us to another world that is very much his own. From the dialogue to his personal tastes in movies, music, comics and random stuff like cars and outfits to the teeniest props, not one of the meticulous details is an accident. There always seems to be a story behind something as seemingly trivial as a strategically placed styrofoam cup or the hairstyle a minor character might be sporting or even the color of a car. That is why his movies are so captivating; once the initial shock and awe dies down, the minute attention to detail has only just started to register. And we can’t help but keep coming back to try take it all in. Here are some random facts for your viewing pleasure. So ramblers, let’s get ramblin’!

1. Tarantino was thanked in the liner notes of Nirvana’s final studio album In Utero, though his name was spelled differently. In response, he thanked Nirvana on the Pulp Fiction soundtrack and added RIP Kurt. There’s a rumor Kurt & Courtney turned down an offer to act in Pulp Fiction as Lance & Jody. QT says this isn’t true, Kurt just really loved Reservoir Dogs.

2. His movies are known to always contain at least one scene that focus on women’s feet. He is, as Jules boasts in Pulp Fiction, “the foot fucking master”. He admitted that he does have an appreciation for feet in an interview. Check out this post on RopeOfSilicon.com that talks about his fetish with clips of the scenes in question.

3. He has acted in TV shows and movies. On the small screen, he has been on The Golden Girls as an Elvis impersonator, All American Girl, and Alias. He has had several roles in his own and other directors such as his BFF Robert Rodriquez projects. Sometimes he gives himself tiny sneaky cameos like the electronic voice on Jackie Browne’s answering machine, the very first scalping shown in Inglourious Basterds on a dead Nazi is a dummy made in his likeness and when Uma Thurman’s Bride stands over the remains of the Crazy 88s, a masked Quentin Tarantino is among them.

4. He hates product placement and makes up his own brands instead, which adds to his movies’ surreal feel. On a different note, has anybody else ever craved a Kahuna Burger?? I do everytime it pops up on screen – and yes I know how crazy that sounds. Oo and maybe I could wash away my Kahuna burger with a nice refreshing glass of butterbeer from The Three Broomsticks. Yum.

Fictional product placement:
Kahuna burger
Red apple cigarettes
Fruit Brute and Kabooom! (both cereal brands really existed in the seventies)
G.O. Juice
Teriyaki Donuts
Jack Rabbit Slims

5. Quentin Tarantino wrote the character Mr. Pink from Reservoir Dogs for himself and told Steve Buscemi the only way he would give away the role was if he blew him away in the audition. And the rest is history.

6. Some movies Quentin Tarantino will supposedly be working on:
Kill Bill 3 is said will be ready for the public in 2014.
Remakes of cult hits:
Faster, Pussycat! Kill! Kill!
Come Drink With Me

7. QT movie stats:
Reservoir Dogs:
How many times did the word “fuck” feature in the film – 272
Body count – 16

From Dusk Till Dawn:
Body count – 122

Kill Bill:
Body count – 95
At a measly 17, this is the first movie that features less than a 100 “fucks”.
Over 450 gallons of fake blood were used on the two movies.

Deathproof:
Fucks – 144
Body count – (gasp) only 6!

Inglourious Basterds:
Body Count – 76

OK, so I don’t have all the stats from all his movies, but the powers that be (movie dorks/accountants) have not revealed the stats of the other movies and I sure as hell am not going to count them …

8. The Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA) is not fond of red blood. It’s OK if it’s grey though, which is supposedly why the big Crazy 88 fight scene is shot in black and white. And also why the blood stains on Uma’s clothes in the trailer are poopie brown (much better) or black. In fact, Kill Bill was the first movie to be subjected to the MPAA’s no blood policy for trailers – a policy they came up with after watching the original Kill Bill trailer …

9. Tarantino’s movies are often linked together in the oddest ways. Sometimes by a certain line, sometimes through a specific outfit (the suit that Jackie Brown buys is the same that Mia Wallace wears in Pulp Fiction). In Deathproof one of the characters’ ringtone is the whisteled tune from Twisted Nerve, also used in Kill Bill. I really love it when he links the different worlds through family bonds. Mr. Blonde from Reservoir Dogs real name is Vic Vega. This is the same surname as Vince from Pulp Fiction. Tarantino has revealed that Vic and Vince are brothers. He also had plans to do a prequel to both films called Double V Vega, which would have starred the Michael Madsen and John Travolta, but last we heard he has abandoned the project altogether.

10. He is known for making oddball agreements with his friends in da biz: Robert Rodriguez scored Kill Bill for one dollar. Quentin Tarantino repaid him by directing a scene in Rodriguez’s movie Sin City for one dollar. Robert Kurtzman did the special make-up effects for Reservoir Dogs, on the condition that Quentin Tarantino write a script for From Dusk Till Dawn based on a story by Kurtzman.