QT8: The First Eight

The documentary takes Quentin Tarantino's first eight films in order. The speakers are actors and crew: Samuel L. Jackson, Tim Roth, Kurt Russell, Jamie Foxx, Diane Kruger, Michael Madsen and many others. Tara Wood directed. The director himself is not in it; the film was made without Tarantino's participation. That is both the documentary's limit and its subject. The account is assembled entirely from the memories of those around him and becomes a set story rather than film analysis. Its most contested section is the one on Harvey Weinstein. Uma Thurman's car crash on the Kill Bill set and the producer's behaviour are discussed directly; that section was added later. The title carries a history too: the project had been assembled before under a different name and re-cut over the years. It never quite escapes the tone of a fan documentary. Who it is for: viewers who like Tarantino's filmography and set stories. Who it is not for: anyone expecting critical examination; the film mostly gathers praise.