True Romance (1993)

I just got around to watching this film for the first time, and all I can say is that I feel like I'm missing something. I get that tastes are subjective, but all the reviews on here calling this Tarantino's "best script" are just flat-out wrong. I'd heard that there were parallels between True Romance and Natural Born Killers, and I picked up on some of them at certain points. While they are both indeed 90s-flavored road movies about a newlywed couple on the run, where NBK is edgy, exciting, and unlike anything else before or since, I couldn't believe how utterly generic the plot of TR was. I kept thinking that some unique twist or memorable character was going to crop up that explained the cult status of this movie, but it just didn't happen. Don't get me wrong, it's by no means a terrible movie. There's just nothing that sets it apart from basically any other forgettable 90s movie except for the unmistakably Tarantino dialogue (which is far from his best). The acting was decent, but the characters were completely static and I didn't particularly care about any of them. There wasn't even any interesting antagonist who stuck around for more than a few scenes. The pimp at the beginning and his posse (maybe Tarantino's most problematic depiction of black people/manner of talking ever) was just stupid, Christopher Walken's character shows potential but then inexplicably disappears from the movie, who even cares about the police characters? The protagonists aren't much better: Christian Slater (Clarence) is some boring dude who marries a girl after knowing her for less than 24 hours, for some reason kills her ex-pimp (whom she, it would seem, worked for of her own free-will, and for only 4 days) with gun skills that he inexplicably has. Patricia Arquette's character, Alabama's, only memorable feature is that she's really cute, otherwise she just feels like Mallory Knox but without any of the cool stuff. Oh, and then there's Clarence's best friend, Dick. He isn't particularly funny and only really exists to introduce Clarence to some idiot to sell coke too. And then Brad Pitt is just kinda... there. Haha, weed is funny. I actually might even go as far as to say that this is the worst thing Tarantino has ever been involved with.

This is one of those crazy sort of movies on a high octane level in between destruction and true love that you just absolutely fall in love with. Every character has something to bring to the table in True Romance. Christian Slater and Patricia Arquette's chemistry is out of this world and you fall in love with them the very minute you meet them. Stand out performances from Gary Oldman, Bronson Pinchot, and Brad Pitt. Not a film for everyone, but for the Wild at Heart's, who love a great Quentin Tarantino script meshed with fantastic Tony Scott direction, and outstanding performances from top to bottom, you will fall in love with this crazy, special film!

The ending feels tacked on and tonally troubled, though incidentally it isn't the ending that Tarantino wrote and represents the only major story change that took place during the feature's journey from page to screen - aside from a rejigging of the chronology, which is mostly inconsequential and might even be an improvement on the piece. It punctuates Scott's own romantic, fairy-tale view of a story which should really represent a heightened-reality retelling of 'Bonnie and Clyde' - grim ending and all. 'True Romance (1993)' suffers from the usual problems that plague this writer's work, but is still a highly entertaining and brutal picture that shows off its astute pop-culture sensibilities, excruciatingly long moments of nail-biting tension and brilliantly explosive sequences of violence with pride. Plus, that 'Sicilian' scene really is as fantastic as everyone says. 8/10

Tarantino wrote an outstanding story/script and Tony Scott perfectly captured his vision on screen.True Romance is probably the best romance film I have ever seen, and the fact that Quentin Tarantino had something to do with it gives you the answer as to why. Ultra violent and seedy, you wouldn't expect anything less..., Tarantino seriously sprinkles some hardcore magic dust onto all of his projects creating the quality and style we are used to from him. Clarence Worley (Christian Slater) receives an unexpected gift for his birthday, a prostitute called Alabama Whitman (Patricia Arquette), but Clarence falls in love with Alabama and vows to free and marry her, he does so by confronting her pimp Drexl Spivey (Gary Oldman) and "accidentally" kills him. Clarence breaks the news to his new love and reveals he has succeeded in taking back her possessions from Drexl, but the contents of the suitcase aren't Alabama's possessions, it is a large quantity of cocaine. The couple agree to leave Detroit and travel to California with the drugs as Clarence's contact, Dick Ritchie (Michael Rapaport) can sell the drugs there. High-jinks and classic twists and turns ensue as the mob lead by Vincenzo Coccotti (Christopher Walken) want what they claim to be theirs (the cocaine) back. This leads to a rather hilarious scene between Walken and Dennis Hopper, filmed in vintage Tarantino style, having a comical discussion before Hopper is shot dead. Clarence and Alabama arrive in California where they meet Dick, his roommate Floyd (Brad Pitt) and a guy called Elliot (Bronson Pinchot), Elliot agrees to get rid of the drugs and makes the arrangements with Lee Donowitz (Saul Rubinek).At this stage in the film, there is a very aggressive fight, akin to domestic abuse between one of the mobsters played by the late James Gandolfini and Alabama. This scene can be upsetting to some viewers as Alabama is seriously knocked about and in a critical condition towards the end, her face is a mangled mess and her body is cut, bruised and bleeding; yet in a cinematic sense the scene is quite beautiful and one of the most famous in this very infamous film. True Romance is enjoyable because of the aforementioned "magical Tarantino touch" or MTT for short, the guy can take literally anything and turn it into gold, there's no other way to explain why this film is simply so good, the plot is simple, the whole story is simple, but it's how it's filled that counts, and True Romance fills its story with integrate little details, paying attention and making even its slower points or "filler" meaningful and enjoyable, this is something not a great deal of films bother with. Pop culture runs wild in True Romance, as it does in the equally enjoyable Pulp Fiction, the music, bright colours, tongue in cheek language and dialogue, it pulls no punches and holds nothing back for anyone, a complete and utter politically incorrect film. I was astounded by the amazing performance and work rate put in by Patrica Arquette, who could've guessed that in her younger days she really was a stunner? Perfect for the role of Alabama, her chemistry with Christian Slater was so convincing too, and his performance was one of my favourites of all his films. A cult classic in every sense, and a highly enjoyable film to boot, I could watch True Romance over and over and never grow tired, just brilliant!