As a film enthusiast with over three decades of industry experience, I must say that the tumultuous relationship between Oliver Stone and Quentin Tarantino is as intriguing as their respective masterpieces. While I admire Tarantino’s unapologetic approach to cinema and his knack for crafting iconic stories, it’s hard not to feel a tinge of sympathy for Oliver Stone when he recounts the public trashing of his film by a fellow filmmaker who hadn’t even seen it!
Since I first watched “Natural Born Killers” at a friend’s place during high school, I’ve consistently ranked it among the top ’90s movies and one of Oliver Stone’s finest directorial efforts. The portrayal of Mickey and Mallory Knox, superbly acted by Woody Harrelson and Juliette Lewis, embarking on a chaotic cross-country journey filled with murder and chaos to express their love is an unparalleled, captivating experience that leaves you spellbound.
Back then, I was taken aback when I learned that Quentin Tarantino, known for films like “Pulp Fiction,” “Reservoir Dogs,” and “Once Upon a Time in Hollywood,” wasn’t exactly enamored with “Natural Born Killers.” Over time, he has openly expressed his dissatisfaction with the movie due to changes made by its director. While it may not be a major Hollywood feud, the history behind this is still quite intriguing.
Quentin Tarantino Wrote Natural Born Killers, But Moved On To Reservoir Dogs
Prior to becoming well-known as a prominent filmmaker in Hollywood, Quentin Tarantino began his career by writing screenplays. Two of his earliest works, “True Romance” (directed by Tony Scott in 1993) and “Natural Born Killers”, were particularly noteworthy. Interestingly enough, before directing his debut film, “Reservoir Dogs”, Tarantino wrote the screenplay for “Natural Born Killers”. This likely explains the presence of many Tarantino-inspired references scattered throughout the movie.
During a conversation with Roger Ebert in 1994, Oliver Stone discussed several aspects of the film, including Quentin Tarantino’s choice to forgo the project and sell it to another person instead. Stone described the script as “clever,” but Tarantino opted out of directing it and went on to work on Dogs instead. However, as we now understand, this wasn’t the final chapter. In reality, it was merely the start of a new story.
Oliver Stone Thought His Massive Changes To Natural Born Killers’ Story Upset Tarantino
Initially, Quentin Tarantino’s early draft of “Natural Born Killers” was a more subdued and less exaggerated version compared to the final movie. This transformation was due to Oliver Stone making substantial alterations to the storyline and central message. Although many key characters remained consistent across both versions, Stone primarily emphasized criticizing American popular culture and the societal context of the era in his revisions – a point he discussed with IndieWire in 2019 as one of the reasons why Tarantino felt frustrated: Stone’s changes were aimed at critiquing American pop culture and contemporary society.
1. The original script was penned by him, which we subsequently purchased. It was a legal transaction, involving quite a sum of money. Regarding his feelings towards it, I’m unsure if he ever got to see it, but he made negative comments about it nonetheless. I believe those remarks were inappropriate. This was just one of the numerous challenges we faced. Despite all these issues, we managed to excel.
Those alterations transformed “Natural Born Killers” from feeling like a conventional movie to resembling a two-hour analytical piece on America’s fascination with figures such as O.J. Simpson, the Menendez Brothers, sensationalist journalism that focuses on violence, and anticipating the surge of reality TV that would come a few years afterwards.
Though Natural Born Killers Is Now Considered A Cult Classic, It Was Considered One Of 1994’s Worst Movies
1994’s “Natural Born Killers” is a movie that has since gained iconic status, but back then, it wasn’t widely appreciated by critics. In contrast, Quentin Tarantino’s masterpiece, “Pulp Fiction,” released the same year, was a global phenomenon, revolutionized Hollywood, and was praised as the best film by Rolling Stone critic Peter Travers. Unfortunately, Oliver Stone’s genre-blending endeavor didn’t fare as well.
In his reviews, Travers noted that the film seemed to take pleasure in the very violence it claimed to criticize. This sentiment was shared by many critics at the time, as the movie received largely negative reviews. However, it’s not uncommon for exceptional films to receive unduly harsh criticism.
In 1994, Stone Said He Understood Tarantino’s Point Of View, But Didn’t Care For Him Trashing The Film Publicly
In 1994, when asked about the reactions to his film and Quentin Tarantino’s comments on it, Stone shared with MovieMaker Magazine that as a fellow screenwriter, he could understand why Tarantino was upset. However, he didn’t agree with the extent to which things had been taken.
It’s clear that I comprehend his criticism as a screenwriter, but tearing apart the film across various media outlets worldwide seems unprofessional and disheartening, especially since he hadn’t watched the movie yet. In our filmmaking community, I don’t believe it’s appropriate for one filmmaker to criticize another. It feels wrong to me.
In the comments, Stone explained the changes his team made to the script including expanding the Knox couple, and even complimented Tarantino’s story. He also added that several of his screenplays were changed by directors in his early days but he never “went out with a hatchet for the director.”
There Was A Legal Fight After Tarantino Made Plans To Publish His Original Screenplay In 1995
25 years prior to publishing the comprehensive novelization of “Once Upon a Time In Hollywood,” Tarantino initially intended to release a paperback version of his original “Natural Born Killers” screenplay. Although the script eventually became available in 1995, Stone and the film’s producers engaged in a legal battle to prevent its publication.
The Independent reports that Stone’s team asserted that since Tarantino sold the rights to his screenplay in the past, he also relinquished his publishing rights. Eventually, when the script was published, it became part of Tarantino’s other works such as Reservoir Dogs, Pulp Fiction, and True Romance, all of which were made available as books following the release of their respective films.
Tarantino Claims To Have Never Seen Natural Born Killers From Start To Finish
Despite the numerous occasions Tarantino has been associated with Stone and his team, you’d expect he would have watched “Natural Born Killers” multiple times given their history. However, contrary to this assumption, as he admitted in a 2007 interview with Opie & Anthony, he hasn’t actually watched the entire movie.
I’ve only caught glimpses of the movie here and there, but I walked out of the theater during my one and only attempt to watch it from start to finish because a particular scene was just terrible.
Tarantino mentioned a specific part of the movie – the comedic “I Love Mallory” segment at Juliette Lewis’s character’s home featuring Rodney Dangerfield. He stated that this scene was so poorly executed and enraging for him, that he chose to remove his name as the screenwriter and only retained the “story by” credit instead. This decision cost him a significant amount of income.
2024 marks the 30th anniversary since the debut of “Natural Born Killers.” This milestone offers a perfect opportunity for viewers to re-examine this film, which has been both admired and criticized. Regardless of personal opinions, I’m ready to assert that it’s currently one of the top movies available on Netflix. In fact, I’ve already made plans to watch it again in the near future.
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2024-08-18 03:07