Playlist Auteurs

Being that both of them are from the same era of independent filmmaking, Spike Lee and Quentin Tarantino have many things in common when it comes to their filmmaking style. However one major thing they both share is their use of pop songs within their movies. Ever since the beginning, both directors have foregone the classic orchestra based soundtrack in order to fill their films with billboard hits. So what does this mean for their films, and filmmaking in general.

To understand this, it is important to go back in time. One of the first films that took use of this same idea was the 1973 film American Graffiti. It used an entire soundtrack based exclusively on hits of the late fifties and early sixties. This helped create the overall feel of the film and bring the viewer into the era it was based. Before this, it was fairly uncommon to use popular songs at all in film, let alone as the base for the entire soundtrack. However this began to change things, and although entirely billboard based soundtracks were still uncommon (mostly due to their cost) ,throughout the 80’s many films would use a few select songs in order to create their environment. Think Back to the Future and its Huey Lewis Soundtrack, as well as the numerous films that used Kenny Loggins songs to present their atmosphere.

But things changed in the nineties, and this moved from being a gimmick into becoming a major part of the story; the thing that many people remember best from the film. One example is the film Dazed and Confused which drew heavy inspiration from American Graffiti, including in the soundtrack, although it was 70s rock this time instead of doo-wop. But then along came Tarantino and Lee. From the beginning both directors chose to use pop songs, even in their earliest work. For Tarantino, it was “Stuck in the Middle (with you)” in Reservoir Dogs, and for Lee it was “Fight The Power” in Do The Right Thing. And this only continued throughout both of their careers. Tarantino made it commonplace in his films to use hits of the 70’s in order to create the grindhouse atmosphere in his films. On the other hand, Lee made it common to have his soundtracks created by popular artists, such as Stevie Wonder in Jungle Fever and Public Enemy in He Got Game.

So what importance does this hold? Well, through the use of popular songs in Auteur films, other directors and studios have taken note. Take for example Guardians of the Galaxy,  which had a soundtrack so good it ended up being the 19th highest selling album of the year, then in 2016 there were many soundtracks that ended up in the billboard top 200.

So both Tarantino and Lee changed the way that soundtracks are made for films, and the future is seeming to hold only more films with soundtracks like this. Studios have realized that good soundtracks can sell well and get them more money on the back end, and fans have realized they prefer hearing their favorite songs in film, as it does a good job of immediately filling in the viewer with the intended feeling. So goodbye orchestra, hello IPOD.

Two and a Half Hours: Not Long Enough

Inglorious Basterds has never been near the top of my list when it comes to Tarantino films, and i never knew why. But upon this most recent viewing of it, i believe i have come to a conclusion; it simply isn’t long enough. Now, i know that may sound crazy for a film that comes close to a 3 hour mark, but this is the truth. In order to help you understand this problem, let me divulge further.

The problem begins with the title characters, the basterds. Quite frankly, they aren’t in very much of the film. out of the entire film, we only truly see the entire group together in about two scenes, those being the beginning when they are rounded up, and the scene in which Donnie kills the German officer. Other than that, they are split up and we only get to really see a few of them at a time. Not to mention, the film goes immediately from introducing these characters to seeing them in action. We aren’t given any context as to what happens between them assembling and landing in Nazi France. This leads to these characters either being mostly forgotten throughout the story, or left out entirely. I just watched the film and i can only name about three of them honestly.

However these aren’t the only characters given unfair screen time. The “main” character of the film, Shosanna Dreyfus is given just as little screen time. She is introduced in the opening scene (which features more characters who are merely in the film for about 20 minutes, i might add), then revisited in the middle of the film, only to be brought back at the end. And at no point are we truly given any character ark for her.

But of course these characters all have it the best. There are many characters throughout the film given even worse treatment; characters who just barely make the cut of being main cast, but are quickly forgotten. Examples would be the aforementioned farmer and his family from the beginning of the film, Michael Fassbenders’ character who quickly gets killed, and Bridget Von Hammersmark whom we are introduced to in the middle of the film only to see her get killed before the final showdown.

So what does this all make for? It makes for a story that seems very condensed. We end up jumping from storyline to storyline before feeling truly concise. We don’t get to know enough about the basterds, we don’t get to know enough about Shosanna, and we don’t get to know enough about Hans Landa and the rest of the Nazis.

Now, don’t get me wrong, i don’t think this is a bad film. It seems nowadays that everyone wants to try their hand at WW2 films, and Inglorious Basterds stands at the top of the heap, next to Saving Private Ryan and Schindlers List. However, it seems that it may have been a good idea to split up the story into multiple films, in the same way Tarantino took the 4-hour-11-minute Kill Bill and split it up into two films. That would have given us a chance to get more in depth with the very interesting story-lines as well as see more characterization. So, how would a 5 hour version sound?