1 00:00:02,961 --> 00:00:06,047 {\an8}[♪ upbeat music] 2 00:00:09,134 --> 00:00:11,094 {\an8}[Narrator] The cinema, a canvas painted on 3 00:00:11,261 --> 00:00:14,180 {\an8}by thousands of directors, and while only a few 4 00:00:14,180 --> 00:00:17,141 can claim to be true auteurs, there's only one. 5 00:00:17,267 --> 00:00:18,643 - Quentin. - Quentin. 6 00:00:18,768 --> 00:00:19,769 - Quentin. - Quentin Tarantino. 7 00:00:19,894 --> 00:00:20,979 Quentin Taran-- I mean... 8 00:00:21,146 --> 00:00:22,689 Yeah, Quentin Tarantino. 9 00:00:22,856 --> 00:00:23,815 Don't tell me your fucking name, man. 10 00:00:23,940 --> 00:00:25,650 My name is the law! 11 00:00:25,775 --> 00:00:27,068 [gun firing] 12 00:00:27,193 --> 00:00:28,528 [Narrator] An unlikely outsider... 13 00:00:28,653 --> 00:00:29,529 Far out. 14 00:00:29,696 --> 00:00:31,072 I'd quit school 15 00:00:31,281 --> 00:00:32,115 and my mom said, you have to get a job. 16 00:00:32,115 --> 00:00:33,491 He worked at a video store. 17 00:00:33,616 --> 00:00:35,034 [Narrator] ...that overcame the odds. 18 00:00:35,243 --> 00:00:36,744 And we're all like, "Sure, you're gonna make 19 00:00:36,870 --> 00:00:37,787 your own movie someday. Sounds great." 20 00:00:38,121 --> 00:00:39,289 I got bloody, man. 21 00:00:39,289 --> 00:00:40,498 Who is Quentin Tarantino? 22 00:00:40,623 --> 00:00:41,666 Who is this kid? 23 00:00:41,833 --> 00:00:43,126 There's really no one like him. 24 00:00:43,251 --> 00:00:45,044 - [monster roars] - [Narrator] The triple threat. 25 00:00:45,044 --> 00:00:46,629 - He's such a good writer. - A great director. 26 00:00:46,629 --> 00:00:48,715 Not the best actor in the world. [chuckles] 27 00:00:49,174 --> 00:00:50,383 They look like a couple of dorks. 28 00:00:50,508 --> 00:00:51,968 [Narrator] The writer/director 29 00:00:52,135 --> 00:00:53,553 that rewrote the rules. 30 00:00:53,553 --> 00:00:55,430 Like, no, no, no, no, no, you can't do that. 31 00:00:56,723 --> 00:00:58,516 He's not from film school. 32 00:00:58,683 --> 00:01:00,977 His vision was insane. 33 00:01:01,102 --> 00:01:03,313 Moving one direction and then another and another. 34 00:01:03,313 --> 00:01:04,981 [Narrator] For the first time, 35 00:01:04,981 --> 00:01:06,941 hear the story of Quentin Tarantino. 36 00:01:07,066 --> 00:01:08,943 The very best day. 37 00:01:09,068 --> 00:01:10,445 [Narrator] Blow... 38 00:01:10,570 --> 00:01:11,654 Lawrence Tierney took a big swing at me. 39 00:01:11,780 --> 00:01:13,865 [Narrator] ...for blow. 40 00:01:14,032 --> 00:01:15,950 Quentin dropped him on the floor. 41 00:01:16,075 --> 00:01:17,035 [Narrator] From early triumphs... 42 00:01:17,202 --> 00:01:18,203 You wanna fuck with me? 43 00:01:18,203 --> 00:01:20,121 Yes, make that movie! 44 00:01:20,246 --> 00:01:21,539 [Phil] He was their Mickey Mouse. 45 00:01:21,706 --> 00:01:22,624 And then he got an Oscar. 46 00:01:22,749 --> 00:01:24,167 Thanks. 47 00:01:24,292 --> 00:01:25,919 [Narrator] To courting controversy... 48 00:01:26,044 --> 00:01:27,712 Wes Craven, who actually left the theater. 49 00:01:27,879 --> 00:01:30,924 She's taking her index fingers and just barbecuing my junk. 50 00:01:30,924 --> 00:01:32,050 Bring out the gimp. 51 00:01:32,175 --> 00:01:33,676 It was a different era. 52 00:01:33,676 --> 00:01:35,345 [Narrator] After controversy... 53 00:01:35,470 --> 00:01:37,764 Amateurs imitate, professionals steal. 54 00:01:37,889 --> 00:01:39,182 They hang horse thieves. 55 00:01:39,349 --> 00:01:40,808 [Narrator] After controversy... 56 00:01:40,975 --> 00:01:42,685 A movie directed by a white guy 57 00:01:42,811 --> 00:01:46,022 that has the N word in it like 572 times or whatever it is. 58 00:01:46,022 --> 00:01:47,816 [Narrator] To controversial associations. 59 00:01:47,941 --> 00:01:49,442 {\an8}Quentin pulls out the best 60 00:01:49,567 --> 00:01:51,444 in Harvey Weinstein, professionally speaking. 61 00:01:51,569 --> 00:01:53,488 [Michael] Whatever they did together, woed. 62 00:01:53,613 --> 00:01:55,907 This happened to a lot of women and it happened to me. 63 00:01:56,866 --> 00:02:00,078 [Narrator] As his collaborators pull back the curtain. 64 00:02:00,203 --> 00:02:01,913 And he cared about his actors. 65 00:02:02,080 --> 00:02:04,082 He wasn't throwing them to the wolves. 66 00:02:04,207 --> 00:02:05,708 I was like, are we doing anything right? 67 00:02:05,834 --> 00:02:06,918 Telling the truth. 68 00:02:07,043 --> 00:02:08,753 Sorry, Quentin. 69 00:02:08,753 --> 00:02:10,296 Oh my God, don't show this with Quentin. [chuckles] 70 00:02:10,296 --> 00:02:11,714 [Narrator] From meltdowns... 71 00:02:11,840 --> 00:02:13,091 Quentin just lost it. 72 00:02:13,258 --> 00:02:14,968 [Zoe] I think it broke his heart. 73 00:02:14,968 --> 00:02:17,303 Quentin's a very moody person. 74 00:02:17,428 --> 00:02:20,056 And the viewfinder was full of his tears. 75 00:02:20,181 --> 00:02:22,100 [Narrator] To on-set disasters... 76 00:02:22,225 --> 00:02:23,810 [interviewee] Right into a palm tree, head on. 77 00:02:23,935 --> 00:02:25,562 It should have been a stunt double driving the car. 78 00:02:25,687 --> 00:02:27,272 Everything's on fire. 79 00:02:28,148 --> 00:02:29,607 And I may explode. 80 00:02:29,774 --> 00:02:30,900 [gun booms] 81 00:02:31,025 --> 00:02:32,443 Fuck, I might actually die. 82 00:02:32,443 --> 00:02:33,945 - Action. - [Narrator] To reveal 83 00:02:34,112 --> 00:02:35,738 how a video store clerk 84 00:02:35,864 --> 00:02:37,907 "What's in that's good?" 85 00:02:38,032 --> 00:02:39,200 [Narrator] Became... 86 00:02:39,325 --> 00:02:40,785 The legendary Quentin Tarantino. 87 00:02:43,079 --> 00:02:45,874 [♪ dramatic music] 88 00:03:16,321 --> 00:03:18,323 [Narrator] Quentin Tarantino's filmography 89 00:03:18,448 --> 00:03:20,825 is packed with sharp-tongued characters 90 00:03:20,992 --> 00:03:22,535 trading barbs in a diner. 91 00:03:22,660 --> 00:03:24,245 Did you just order a five dollar shake? 92 00:03:24,245 --> 00:03:26,206 - You want a bite of my pie? - Key lime pie. 93 00:03:26,206 --> 00:03:27,916 [Narrator] Irreverent banter that would turn on a dime. 94 00:03:27,916 --> 00:03:29,542 No, man, I don't eat pork. 95 00:03:29,542 --> 00:03:31,753 I do believe Marsellus, my husband, your boss, 96 00:03:31,920 --> 00:03:35,340 told you to take me out and do whatever I wanted. 97 00:03:35,507 --> 00:03:38,134 [Narrator] Tarantino's diner discography traces back 98 00:03:38,259 --> 00:03:40,345 to the first scene of his first film. 99 00:03:40,512 --> 00:03:42,138 What was I talking about? 100 00:03:42,388 --> 00:03:44,516 [Narrator] But to get there, we need to step back. 101 00:03:45,391 --> 00:03:47,185 March of 1963. 102 00:03:47,310 --> 00:03:48,728 Tarantino had a single mother. 103 00:03:48,728 --> 00:03:51,356 {\an8}She gave birth to him when she was very young. 104 00:03:51,523 --> 00:03:53,399 [Narrator] Connie McHugh was in fact, 105 00:03:53,399 --> 00:03:55,026 only 16 when she gave birth 106 00:03:55,026 --> 00:03:57,403 to Quentin Jerome Tarantino. 107 00:03:57,403 --> 00:04:01,032 Connie is a terrific woman, very friendly, very smart, 108 00:04:01,157 --> 00:04:03,034 and she can be strong. 109 00:04:03,201 --> 00:04:04,869 [Narrator] But being strong wasn't an option. 110 00:04:05,036 --> 00:04:08,540 {\an8}Quentin's dad Tony really disappeared from his life. 111 00:04:08,665 --> 00:04:11,126 [Narrator] In the 1960s, Tony Tarantino 112 00:04:11,251 --> 00:04:12,585 was an actor playing bit parts 113 00:04:12,585 --> 00:04:15,046 in films like Where the Boys Are. 114 00:04:15,171 --> 00:04:16,798 According to this, it's across the street. 115 00:04:16,965 --> 00:04:19,425 [Narrator] One place the boys weren't was at home. 116 00:04:19,425 --> 00:04:23,012 Quentin Tarantino, he didn't have his dad in his life. 117 00:04:23,012 --> 00:04:25,890 He was not interested in his dad. 118 00:04:26,057 --> 00:04:27,559 [Narrator] Wanting a fresh start, 119 00:04:27,684 --> 00:04:30,061 Connie packed up her life in Knoxville, Tennessee. 120 00:04:30,061 --> 00:04:32,564 The family moved out to LA. 121 00:04:32,689 --> 00:04:34,357 [Narrator] Here, Connie would get married, 122 00:04:34,482 --> 00:04:36,234 giving Quentin a stepdad 123 00:04:36,401 --> 00:04:39,529 who would forego playing catch in favor of-- 124 00:04:39,654 --> 00:04:41,865 Taking him to the cinema and usually 125 00:04:41,990 --> 00:04:45,702 to see movies that he was far too young to see. 126 00:04:45,827 --> 00:04:48,079 Such as "Deliverance." 127 00:04:48,538 --> 00:04:51,249 It's a movie featuring a scene 128 00:04:51,416 --> 00:04:53,501 that made him scared of going camping for many years. 129 00:04:53,501 --> 00:04:56,588 But that planted the seeds for his love of cinema. 130 00:04:56,963 --> 00:04:58,339 You wanna get high? 131 00:04:58,548 --> 00:05:00,425 [Narrator] Love, obsession. 132 00:05:00,550 --> 00:05:03,011 Either way, Quentin was hooked. 133 00:05:04,095 --> 00:05:05,388 He was a latchkey child. 134 00:05:05,513 --> 00:05:07,724 {\an8}He watched TV all day, 135 00:05:07,724 --> 00:05:10,101 {\an8}and I don't know how much school he went to. 136 00:05:10,268 --> 00:05:12,228 [Narrator] By all accounts, not much. 137 00:05:12,353 --> 00:05:14,439 He wasn't really doing well at school at all. 138 00:05:14,606 --> 00:05:17,525 He was writing scripts and wanting to make movies 139 00:05:17,650 --> 00:05:19,277 and dreamed of being an actor. 140 00:05:19,444 --> 00:05:20,904 [Narrator] Rather than bring up his grades, 141 00:05:21,029 --> 00:05:24,032 Quentin decided to remove them from the equation. 142 00:05:24,157 --> 00:05:26,951 I'd quit school and my mom said, "You have to get a job." 143 00:05:27,118 --> 00:05:28,995 And so I got a job at 16. 144 00:05:28,995 --> 00:05:30,497 [Narrator] In a way, 145 00:05:30,622 --> 00:05:32,540 it was Tarantino's first industry job. 146 00:05:32,540 --> 00:05:34,542 I finally get a job as an usher in a movie theater. 147 00:05:34,667 --> 00:05:36,419 [Narrator] Not bad for a 16-year-old. 148 00:05:36,544 --> 00:05:38,546 The irony is, I don't like porno films. 149 00:05:38,671 --> 00:05:41,925 [Narrator] Bad, very bad for a 16-year-old. 150 00:05:42,050 --> 00:05:45,220 Luckily, Quentin's next job only featured a little porno. 151 00:05:45,345 --> 00:05:47,680 {\an8}Video archives was a small 152 00:05:47,680 --> 00:05:50,350 mom and pop feeling, little store. 153 00:05:50,350 --> 00:05:54,979 This guy that was there, kind of a boisterous, 154 00:05:55,105 --> 00:05:56,481 energetic young man was like, "Yeah, which one did you like? 155 00:05:56,606 --> 00:05:58,108 This one? Oh, the writer of this one 156 00:05:58,233 --> 00:05:59,567 is the director of this one. 157 00:05:59,692 --> 00:06:01,152 So you really like this and the actor 158 00:06:01,277 --> 00:06:04,572 and that one and the..." And I was, whoa. 159 00:06:04,697 --> 00:06:08,743 {\an8}He had an encyclopedic knowledge of movies. 160 00:06:08,868 --> 00:06:13,206 There's not a single genre of movie 161 00:06:13,206 --> 00:06:15,834 that that guy doesn't know about. 162 00:06:16,000 --> 00:06:17,627 [gun firing] 163 00:06:17,752 --> 00:06:19,587 He says, you gotta watch this and this and this. 164 00:06:19,712 --> 00:06:21,005 I need you and the paper needs-- 165 00:06:21,172 --> 00:06:22,924 Sold to the American. 166 00:06:23,049 --> 00:06:25,718 I said, "Look, I'm coming here to get two more movies." 167 00:06:25,844 --> 00:06:28,429 [Narrator] Overwhelmed by the clerk's enthusiasm, 168 00:06:28,555 --> 00:06:30,598 Ian made for the door before Tarantino 169 00:06:30,723 --> 00:06:32,600 could lay out his master plan. 170 00:06:32,725 --> 00:06:34,602 Tarantino thought he was gonna be an actor. 171 00:06:34,727 --> 00:06:36,437 Going through acting school, learning to act. 172 00:06:36,563 --> 00:06:38,022 At the James Best Theater Center. 173 00:06:38,189 --> 00:06:40,483 [Narrator] Located in the heart of Toluca Lake. 174 00:06:40,650 --> 00:06:42,610 Where's Toluca Lake? 175 00:06:42,610 --> 00:06:44,195 It's just over the hill here, over by Burbank Studios. 176 00:06:44,362 --> 00:06:45,905 [Narrator] Quentin grew up nearly an hour 177 00:06:45,905 --> 00:06:48,616 from Toluca Lake, but it was on that bus ride 178 00:06:48,741 --> 00:06:52,745 Tarantino would pass by no shortage of iconic studio gates. 179 00:06:52,871 --> 00:06:55,456 It was there, Quentin would find a kindred spirit. 180 00:06:55,456 --> 00:06:56,875 Craig Hammond. 181 00:06:57,000 --> 00:06:58,668 It was 1981. 182 00:06:58,793 --> 00:07:02,672 First day I met Quentin and we hit it off immediately. 183 00:07:02,797 --> 00:07:07,051 In my opinion, he was the best actor in that acting school. 184 00:07:07,177 --> 00:07:09,345 I told him about an idea I had, 185 00:07:09,471 --> 00:07:11,431 and we had been talking for a while 186 00:07:11,431 --> 00:07:13,892 about holding our noses and taking the plunge 187 00:07:14,058 --> 00:07:15,518 and just shoot something. 188 00:07:15,643 --> 00:07:18,104 This is gonna be a happy birthday after all. 189 00:07:18,104 --> 00:07:19,731 I don't know that I had a title for it at that point, 190 00:07:19,898 --> 00:07:22,317 but it was "My Best Friend's Birthday." 191 00:07:22,442 --> 00:07:23,693 He loved the idea. 192 00:07:23,818 --> 00:07:25,570 I actually wrote the first draft. 193 00:07:25,695 --> 00:07:27,197 Getting a whore for, for Mickey. 194 00:07:27,322 --> 00:07:28,740 'cause he's the best thing. 195 00:07:28,865 --> 00:07:30,283 [Narrator] The plot was simple enough. 196 00:07:30,283 --> 00:07:31,534 A man tries to give his best friend 197 00:07:31,534 --> 00:07:34,621 the best possible birthday. 198 00:07:34,746 --> 00:07:36,748 Hi Mickey, I'm Misty Night, your birthday surprise. 199 00:07:36,915 --> 00:07:38,333 It was a kind of a Martin Lewis 200 00:07:38,458 --> 00:07:41,795 buddy comedy kind of tribute. 201 00:07:41,795 --> 00:07:44,422 [Craig] We co-produced, co-wrote, co-starred. 202 00:07:44,589 --> 00:07:45,715 Wear any old thing, as long as it's nice. 203 00:07:45,882 --> 00:07:48,176 And Quentin was the director. 204 00:07:48,176 --> 00:07:49,302 That's a shitty movie. 205 00:07:49,427 --> 00:07:50,762 Never made a shitty movie. 206 00:07:50,929 --> 00:07:51,930 And it expanded and just decided, 207 00:07:52,096 --> 00:07:53,223 let's make this a feature. 208 00:07:53,348 --> 00:07:54,766 [Narrator] Shooting a feature 209 00:07:54,766 --> 00:07:57,810 on a 16-millimeter Bolex camera had its issues. 210 00:07:57,810 --> 00:07:59,687 We only shot a hundred feet of film. 211 00:07:59,813 --> 00:08:01,981 That means three minutes you have to reload. 212 00:08:01,981 --> 00:08:04,442 [Narrator] Was expensive and very time consuming 213 00:08:04,567 --> 00:08:06,903 compared to modern digital workflows. 214 00:08:07,028 --> 00:08:09,447 When you're doing films like that and you have no money, 215 00:08:09,614 --> 00:08:12,158 you have to shoot when you have money. 216 00:08:12,325 --> 00:08:14,244 [Narrator] Quentin and Craig would work on the film 217 00:08:14,244 --> 00:08:15,620 over the course of three years. 218 00:08:15,787 --> 00:08:17,372 You call it low budget, 219 00:08:17,497 --> 00:08:18,957 it was kind of a no budget film, really. 220 00:08:19,124 --> 00:08:21,251 [Narrator] But rather than take a second day job, 221 00:08:21,251 --> 00:08:24,587 Quentin was about to earn his first payday as an artist. 222 00:08:24,712 --> 00:08:26,506 I wanna be him so bad. 223 00:08:26,631 --> 00:08:28,383 I mean, Elvis looked good. 224 00:08:28,508 --> 00:08:29,968 He wanted to be an actor, so he tries out 225 00:08:30,134 --> 00:08:32,637 and you know, it's no secret that he's an Elvis man. 226 00:08:32,762 --> 00:08:33,763 ♪ Thank you for being ♪ 227 00:08:33,888 --> 00:08:35,473 [Narrator] As it turned out, 228 00:08:35,640 --> 00:08:37,267 one show was looking for a few Elvis men. 229 00:08:37,433 --> 00:08:39,310 His first thing was a Golden Girls, 230 00:08:39,435 --> 00:08:41,229 playing an Elvis impersonator. 231 00:08:44,065 --> 00:08:45,108 There he is. 232 00:08:45,233 --> 00:08:46,484 He's got the pompadour hair, 233 00:08:46,609 --> 00:08:47,527 and he's got the white outfit on and... 234 00:08:47,652 --> 00:08:49,320 Yeah, well, it was like me 235 00:08:49,320 --> 00:08:51,489 and like 11 other Elvis impersonators. 236 00:08:51,614 --> 00:08:53,491 I was kind of like a glorified extra. 237 00:08:53,491 --> 00:08:57,495 [Narrator] Even in a group of Elvis impersonators. 238 00:08:57,662 --> 00:08:59,706 Quentin found a way to be an outsider. 239 00:08:59,706 --> 00:09:01,791 Tarantino liked young Elvis. 240 00:09:01,916 --> 00:09:04,794 He was not a fan of fat Elvis, so to speak, or Vegas Elvis. 241 00:09:04,919 --> 00:09:09,340 If you watch that, he's the only 1950s Elvis. 242 00:09:10,925 --> 00:09:12,510 [Narrator] Even though Tarantino's role 243 00:09:12,635 --> 00:09:14,637 wouldn't be ongoing, his paycheck would. 244 00:09:14,762 --> 00:09:16,514 They liked it so much, 245 00:09:16,681 --> 00:09:17,807 they put it on a Best of the Golden Girls episode. 246 00:09:17,807 --> 00:09:19,851 So I was getting residuals from both. 247 00:09:19,976 --> 00:09:21,728 I mean, that was like one of my only acting jobs I ever got, 248 00:09:21,853 --> 00:09:23,980 and I like made like thousands of dollars off of it 249 00:09:24,105 --> 00:09:25,231 just from the residuals. 250 00:09:25,231 --> 00:09:26,316 And the Golden Girls helping 251 00:09:26,483 --> 00:09:28,276 to keep him alive for a while. 252 00:09:29,652 --> 00:09:30,987 [Narrator] It was a gift 253 00:09:30,987 --> 00:09:34,199 from actor Quentin to writer Quentin. 254 00:09:34,365 --> 00:09:36,075 He started writing "True Romance" 255 00:09:36,075 --> 00:09:38,828 not that long after "My Best Friend's Birthday." 256 00:09:38,953 --> 00:09:40,705 [Narrator] Each of Tarantino's scripts 257 00:09:40,830 --> 00:09:42,791 appeared to have been written for the same actor. 258 00:09:42,957 --> 00:09:45,627 He actually said, "Clarence is me." 259 00:09:45,752 --> 00:09:48,087 "That guy up there. It's Sony, Sony Chiba." 260 00:09:48,087 --> 00:09:50,673 From his love of Elvis to the fact that he sort 261 00:09:50,798 --> 00:09:53,843 of had a geeky workplace with a boss called Lance. 262 00:09:53,968 --> 00:09:56,262 I mean literally Tarantino's boss at the video store was-- 263 00:09:56,387 --> 00:09:57,263 Hey, what's his name? 264 00:09:57,388 --> 00:09:58,890 Lance. 265 00:09:59,015 --> 00:10:00,558 [Narrator] The most obvious self nod. 266 00:10:00,725 --> 00:10:02,685 The lead character was writing a script. 267 00:10:02,811 --> 00:10:05,563 [Narrator] The name of that fictitious script. 268 00:10:05,688 --> 00:10:07,398 [Craig] Natural Born Killers. 269 00:10:07,524 --> 00:10:09,901 [Narrator] The thing about writing a script in the script. 270 00:10:10,026 --> 00:10:11,736 It got too long. 271 00:10:11,861 --> 00:10:13,488 He was gonna end up with like a 300 page screenplay. 272 00:10:13,613 --> 00:10:14,697 [Narrator] That's when Quentin 273 00:10:14,864 --> 00:10:16,407 decided to break out the scalpel. 274 00:10:17,116 --> 00:10:20,245 He plucked "Natural Born Killers" out of "True Romance." 275 00:10:20,370 --> 00:10:22,580 One thing drifted into another. 276 00:10:22,705 --> 00:10:23,915 [Narrator] But not everyone was ready 277 00:10:24,040 --> 00:10:27,001 for Tarantino's gratuitous anti-heroes. 278 00:10:27,126 --> 00:10:29,796 In the 80's, that was a very repressive time. 279 00:10:29,963 --> 00:10:31,589 Quentin was writing about things-- 280 00:10:31,589 --> 00:10:35,343 Sicilians were spawned by niggers. 281 00:10:35,468 --> 00:10:37,095 People dropping F-bombs and-- 282 00:10:37,220 --> 00:10:38,221 [gun firing] 283 00:10:38,346 --> 00:10:39,806 [people screaming] 284 00:10:39,931 --> 00:10:41,891 Blood splattering and things like that. 285 00:10:42,016 --> 00:10:43,601 [gun firing] 286 00:10:43,768 --> 00:10:45,395 [Narrator] Craig had connected his partner 287 00:10:45,395 --> 00:10:47,605 with his manager, Cathryn Jaymes, 288 00:10:47,730 --> 00:10:50,775 who began to spread the gospel of Quentin Tarantino. 289 00:10:50,775 --> 00:10:53,278 Someone that she sent one of Quentin's scripts 290 00:10:53,278 --> 00:10:55,196 called Cathryn up. 291 00:10:55,321 --> 00:10:56,322 Hey, hi, Cathryn I was just-- 292 00:10:56,322 --> 00:10:58,283 And said, "This is horrible. 293 00:10:58,450 --> 00:10:59,784 This is, you know, shit." 294 00:11:01,953 --> 00:11:03,997 [Narrator] Impressed by Taranti's script, 295 00:11:03,997 --> 00:11:07,208 manager Cathryn Jaymes sent it out to test the waters 296 00:11:07,208 --> 00:11:09,627 and feelings were caught. 297 00:11:09,794 --> 00:11:11,462 Dear fucking Cathryn, 298 00:11:11,588 --> 00:11:13,590 how dare you send me this piece of shit? 299 00:11:13,715 --> 00:11:15,550 You must be out of your fucking mind. 300 00:11:15,675 --> 00:11:17,469 You wanna know how I feel about it? 301 00:11:17,635 --> 00:11:19,387 Here's your fucking piece of shit back. 302 00:11:19,512 --> 00:11:20,763 Fuck you. 303 00:11:20,763 --> 00:11:22,348 They were telling Cathryn, 304 00:11:22,348 --> 00:11:23,766 we're not gonna take scripts from you 305 00:11:23,892 --> 00:11:25,768 if you're gonna send us junk like this. 306 00:11:25,894 --> 00:11:27,854 [Narrator] Her reputation and livelihood were on the line. 307 00:11:27,854 --> 00:11:30,648 Yet Cathryn's faith was unflappable. 308 00:11:30,774 --> 00:11:32,484 Cathryn would call them up and just tell them, 309 00:11:32,484 --> 00:11:35,153 "You're wrong. You watch and see." 310 00:11:35,320 --> 00:11:37,322 {\an8}[Narrator] Tarantino was also developing a heist story, 311 00:11:37,489 --> 00:11:38,990 {\an8}sans the heist. 312 00:11:39,115 --> 00:11:40,658 What if you just, say, set up the heist... 313 00:11:40,825 --> 00:11:42,368 fall out from the heist and miss everything else. 314 00:11:42,368 --> 00:11:43,995 And he would change the linear story 315 00:11:44,120 --> 00:11:45,663 so that we would go back in time 316 00:11:45,788 --> 00:11:47,332 and learn people's backstories, 317 00:11:47,457 --> 00:11:48,958 find out things that other characters didn't know. 318 00:11:48,958 --> 00:11:51,878 Completely different way of telling a movie. 319 00:11:51,878 --> 00:11:54,297 It was called ""Reservoir Dogs"." 320 00:11:54,297 --> 00:11:55,757 Tarantino made a very important 321 00:11:55,882 --> 00:11:57,967 friendship with Lawrence Bender. 322 00:11:58,092 --> 00:12:00,970 They were introduced by a mutual friend at a barbecue. 323 00:12:01,095 --> 00:12:02,847 Lawrence Bender, when he was introduced to Quentin, 324 00:12:02,972 --> 00:12:05,767 he thought, "You know, I've heard that last name before. 325 00:12:05,767 --> 00:12:07,977 Just recently read a script called 'True Romance.'" 326 00:12:08,102 --> 00:12:09,604 And Tarantino had to kinda be like, 'No, that's me. 327 00:12:09,604 --> 00:12:10,814 I'm that guy." 328 00:12:10,939 --> 00:12:12,690 [Narrator] As it turns out, 329 00:12:12,857 --> 00:12:15,360 Tarantino was aware of Bender's admittedly obscure work. 330 00:12:15,527 --> 00:12:17,445 A slasher movie called "Intruder." 331 00:12:17,445 --> 00:12:19,197 He was a fan of that. 332 00:12:19,364 --> 00:12:21,658 [Narrator] Soon, Bender would become a fan of Tarantino 333 00:12:21,825 --> 00:12:24,619 as the two began to discuss "Reservoir Dogs". 334 00:12:24,619 --> 00:12:26,204 - He loved it. - Lawrence Bender 335 00:12:26,371 --> 00:12:29,999 would go on to produce a majority of Tarantino's films. 336 00:12:30,166 --> 00:12:32,544 [Narrator] Their relationship was off to a running start 337 00:12:32,544 --> 00:12:36,047 as Bender pushed Quentin to put pen to paper and write it. 338 00:12:36,172 --> 00:12:40,218 Tarantino wrote "Reservoir Dogs" in three, not years, but-- 339 00:12:40,385 --> 00:12:43,054 He turned it around in about three weeks. 340 00:12:43,221 --> 00:12:44,764 What is this? 341 00:12:44,889 --> 00:12:46,808 Bender read it. It was full of spelling mistakes 342 00:12:46,933 --> 00:12:49,978 and formatting errors, but he realized it was brilliant. 343 00:12:50,103 --> 00:12:52,397 [Narrator] Yet Tarantino couldn't make it past page one 344 00:12:52,397 --> 00:12:53,731 without breaking the biggest 345 00:12:53,857 --> 00:12:56,067 unwritten rule in screenwriting. 346 00:12:56,192 --> 00:12:59,404 It said, written and directed by Quentin Tarantino, 347 00:12:59,529 --> 00:13:00,905 which was quite a ballsy move. 348 00:13:01,072 --> 00:13:03,575 [Narrator] Despite having never sold a screenplay, 349 00:13:03,700 --> 00:13:05,410 Tarantino was steadfast. 350 00:13:05,535 --> 00:13:08,246 It was something he was very keen on making himself. 351 00:13:08,246 --> 00:13:11,040 He said, if we don't show the heist, that'll save money. 352 00:13:11,166 --> 00:13:12,333 I'm gonna make it insulated. 353 00:13:12,333 --> 00:13:13,877 We'll put in one location. 354 00:13:13,877 --> 00:13:15,670 Lawrence Bender said to Tarantino, 355 00:13:15,795 --> 00:13:17,255 I think I can get you more money. 356 00:13:17,422 --> 00:13:18,631 It doesn't have to be shot 357 00:13:18,756 --> 00:13:21,050 on 16 millimeter with your friends. 358 00:13:21,217 --> 00:13:22,760 [Narrator] Quentin Tarantino was on his way 359 00:13:22,886 --> 00:13:24,929 to becoming an accomplished screenwriter, 360 00:13:25,054 --> 00:13:27,849 but one accomplishment had eluded him 361 00:13:27,849 --> 00:13:29,100 getting paid. 362 00:13:29,392 --> 00:13:30,685 People did realize he was a wordsmith 363 00:13:30,852 --> 00:13:32,729 {\an8}because they started hiring him 364 00:13:32,854 --> 00:13:35,690 {\an8}to do some polishes on some low budget movies. 365 00:13:35,815 --> 00:13:37,650 Was it called "Past Midnight?" 366 00:13:37,775 --> 00:13:39,444 [Narrator] It was indeed. 367 00:13:39,444 --> 00:13:41,779 The Rutger Hauer crime thriller had noir elements 368 00:13:41,946 --> 00:13:43,364 right up Quentin's Alley. 369 00:13:43,490 --> 00:13:45,033 I don't need to go through all this again, 370 00:13:45,158 --> 00:13:47,160 so you can feel like the angel of fucking mercy. 371 00:13:47,285 --> 00:13:49,954 {\an8}[Narrator] But Tarantino remained merely a contributor. 372 00:13:50,079 --> 00:13:51,956 {\an8}When he is working for someone else, 373 00:13:52,081 --> 00:13:54,709 there's bits and pieces and it's not his work entirely. 374 00:13:54,834 --> 00:13:56,419 [Narrator] The funny thing about opportunities, 375 00:13:56,544 --> 00:14:00,757 you never quite know where they're going to come from, 376 00:14:00,882 --> 00:14:03,676 and Quentin was about to roll into a big one. 377 00:14:03,843 --> 00:14:04,802 I'm Robert Kurtzman. 378 00:14:04,969 --> 00:14:06,513 My name's Howard Berger. 379 00:14:06,638 --> 00:14:08,807 [Narrator] And in 1990 they owned the fledgling. 380 00:14:08,973 --> 00:14:10,517 [Howard] K.N.B. EFX Group. 381 00:14:10,517 --> 00:14:11,935 [Narrator] But Robert's aspirations 382 00:14:11,935 --> 00:14:13,603 went beyond effects work. 383 00:14:13,728 --> 00:14:15,813 I wrote a story "From Dusk till Dawn." 384 00:14:15,813 --> 00:14:17,440 It was like a 20 page outline. 385 00:14:17,565 --> 00:14:18,983 {\an8}Bob's not a writer, really. 386 00:14:18,983 --> 00:14:21,778 {\an8}I thought Bob's outline was not that wonderful. 387 00:14:21,903 --> 00:14:24,155 And so we decided to just find someone 388 00:14:24,322 --> 00:14:26,616 to do a draft of the film for us. 389 00:14:26,616 --> 00:14:28,535 So he is like, I need to hire a writer. 390 00:14:28,660 --> 00:14:30,703 I wonder who we can get. 391 00:14:30,829 --> 00:14:32,372 [Narrator] Robert and Howard launched 392 00:14:32,372 --> 00:14:35,166 an exhaustive search for the perfect writing candidate. 393 00:14:35,333 --> 00:14:36,876 We thought we'd just find some kid 394 00:14:37,043 --> 00:14:38,753 that's done some writing that wouldn't mind 395 00:14:38,878 --> 00:14:40,296 knocking out a first draft. 396 00:14:40,296 --> 00:14:41,339 [Narrator] Or that. 397 00:14:41,464 --> 00:14:42,674 A friend of ours said, 398 00:14:42,841 --> 00:14:44,384 "This kid, he's a really good writer. 399 00:14:44,384 --> 00:14:46,261 He works at a video store." 400 00:14:46,261 --> 00:14:47,637 [Narrator] Meanwhile, Robert checked out 401 00:14:47,762 --> 00:14:49,389 some of Quentin's spec scripts. 402 00:14:49,389 --> 00:14:50,849 It was natural Born Killers, 403 00:14:50,974 --> 00:14:53,351 "True Romance" and "Reservoir Dogs". 404 00:14:53,351 --> 00:14:55,061 [Narrator] The verdict. 405 00:14:55,061 --> 00:14:57,188 God damn, that was intense. 406 00:14:57,355 --> 00:14:59,774 Yeah, let's, let's do this movie with him. 407 00:14:59,899 --> 00:15:01,359 The deal was, Quentin said, 408 00:15:01,526 --> 00:15:04,070 "If I do this, you guys pay me 1500 bucks." 409 00:15:04,070 --> 00:15:06,781 [Narrator] Quentin went on to add a very savvy addendum. 410 00:15:06,906 --> 00:15:08,158 "If I get my first movie going, 411 00:15:08,158 --> 00:15:09,909 you guys do the effects for free." 412 00:15:09,909 --> 00:15:11,995 And we're like, "Okay, sure. 413 00:15:12,120 --> 00:15:15,540 You're gonna make your own movie someday. Sounds great." 414 00:15:15,665 --> 00:15:17,917 [Narrator] Quentin had no shortage of scripts in the fire. 415 00:15:17,917 --> 00:15:20,044 Cathryn Jaymes, she knew it. 416 00:15:20,170 --> 00:15:22,547 Something was going to hit and eventually something did. 417 00:15:24,215 --> 00:15:25,717 [Narrator] Tarantino's Script was acquired 418 00:15:25,884 --> 00:15:29,053 by Jane Hamsher and Don Murphy for $10,000. 419 00:15:29,179 --> 00:15:32,682 {\an8}Tarantino had a buddy who works in the industry as a PA, 420 00:15:32,807 --> 00:15:34,392 and that PA happens to be working 421 00:15:34,392 --> 00:15:38,438 on the set of "The Last Boy Scout" for Tony Scott. 422 00:15:38,438 --> 00:15:42,025 And as good friends do, he gets Tarantino onto the set 423 00:15:42,150 --> 00:15:44,611 who somehow finds the fortuitous event 424 00:15:44,778 --> 00:15:46,613 of being able to speak with Tony Scott 425 00:15:46,613 --> 00:15:49,616 and hand him two scripts, "Reservoir Dogs" and "True Romance." 426 00:15:49,741 --> 00:15:50,992 [Narrator] In doing so, 427 00:15:51,117 --> 00:15:52,577 Quentin broke countless unwritten 428 00:15:52,702 --> 00:15:55,413 Hollywood laws. Fortunately... 429 00:15:55,538 --> 00:15:58,082 Tony Scott was like, "You know what, I feel for this guy. 430 00:15:58,249 --> 00:15:59,709 He's a struggling writer. 431 00:15:59,834 --> 00:16:01,544 I'm gonna give these scripts a read." 432 00:16:01,544 --> 00:16:04,297 [Narrator] Tony Scott did not like Tarantino's scripts. 433 00:16:04,297 --> 00:16:07,926 He tells Tarantino he would like to make both of them. 434 00:16:08,092 --> 00:16:09,093 [Narrator] He loved them. 435 00:16:09,219 --> 00:16:10,803 But I think I love you. 436 00:16:10,929 --> 00:16:13,139 Tony really wants to do "Reservoir Dogs." 437 00:16:13,264 --> 00:16:16,309 Tarantino says, "Sorry, but I'm gonna do 'Reservoir Dogs.'" 438 00:16:17,185 --> 00:16:19,437 [Narrator] Tony Scott, the director of "Top Gun," 439 00:16:19,604 --> 00:16:22,106 just offered to make Quentin Tarantino, 440 00:16:22,232 --> 00:16:26,402 recent video store clerk's script, and he said no. 441 00:16:26,528 --> 00:16:27,862 I can't hear you. 442 00:16:27,987 --> 00:16:29,114 Tarantino felt that he could make 443 00:16:29,239 --> 00:16:30,824 that movie without financing. 444 00:16:30,949 --> 00:16:32,075 He could do it on his own. 445 00:16:32,075 --> 00:16:33,618 Uh-uh, I don't tip. 446 00:16:33,785 --> 00:16:35,328 He could do it with his buddies. 447 00:16:35,453 --> 00:16:37,455 But the big bravado of what "True Romance" would be, 448 00:16:37,622 --> 00:16:39,290 he knew that he didn't have that financing. 449 00:16:39,457 --> 00:16:41,668 [Narrator] But would Tony Scott accept scraps 450 00:16:41,668 --> 00:16:43,461 from a guy that just crashed his set? 451 00:16:43,586 --> 00:16:46,130 Tony said, "You know what, I'm not missing an opportunity. 452 00:16:46,256 --> 00:16:48,466 I'm going to do 'True Romance.'" 453 00:16:48,466 --> 00:16:51,594 [Narrator] The sale would give Tarantino $30,000. 454 00:16:51,719 --> 00:16:54,347 But more importantly, buzz. 455 00:16:54,347 --> 00:16:56,891 Lawrence Bender would land the "Reservoir Dogs" script 456 00:16:57,016 --> 00:16:58,977 in the hands of an indie film icon. 457 00:16:59,102 --> 00:17:00,895 Harvey Keitel. 458 00:17:01,020 --> 00:17:04,649 Keitel made his name in the 70's. 459 00:17:04,649 --> 00:17:06,025 Mostly in independent films, 460 00:17:06,151 --> 00:17:07,402 {\an8}like the films of Martin Scorsese. 461 00:17:07,402 --> 00:17:08,987 [Narrator] Keitel felt a unique 462 00:17:09,112 --> 00:17:11,156 connection to Quentin's screenplay. 463 00:17:11,156 --> 00:17:12,991 How do you like that? 464 00:17:13,116 --> 00:17:15,034 I think we are in the presence of a unique talent. 465 00:17:15,034 --> 00:17:17,162 Quentin Tarantino. 466 00:17:17,287 --> 00:17:18,746 He said, "Well, look, I'll, I'll help you produce this." 467 00:17:18,872 --> 00:17:20,331 Harvey Keitel got involved 468 00:17:20,457 --> 00:17:22,792 with "Reservoir Dogs" and that took off. 469 00:17:22,917 --> 00:17:24,335 I'm hungry, let's get a taco. 470 00:17:24,461 --> 00:17:25,837 [Narrator] Because aside from producing, 471 00:17:26,004 --> 00:17:27,463 Keitel agreed to play. 472 00:17:27,463 --> 00:17:28,923 [Blonde] Mr. White. 473 00:17:29,048 --> 00:17:30,216 [Narrator] The conversation shifted from-- 474 00:17:30,216 --> 00:17:31,593 "Who are these people shooting it?" 475 00:17:31,759 --> 00:17:33,094 {\an8}"Who is Quentin Tarantino?" 476 00:17:34,846 --> 00:17:36,389 {\an8}[Mary] Okay, Harvey - Keitel's in it... 477 00:17:36,514 --> 00:17:38,016 {\an8}Okay, okay. 478 00:17:38,016 --> 00:17:40,393 That got the interest of Live Entertainment. 479 00:17:40,393 --> 00:17:42,228 [Narrator] Were responsible for the home video 480 00:17:42,353 --> 00:17:44,355 distribution of Arnold Schwartzenegger hits 481 00:17:44,481 --> 00:17:46,900 like "Total Recall" and "Terminator 2." 482 00:17:46,900 --> 00:17:49,944 And while home video was Live's bread and butter. 483 00:17:50,069 --> 00:17:51,696 They did see this as a theatrical release. 484 00:17:51,821 --> 00:17:53,531 Real juicy. 485 00:17:53,656 --> 00:17:55,992 What Tarantino was planning to make for, you know, 486 00:17:56,117 --> 00:17:57,869 a few tens of thousands of dollars 487 00:17:57,994 --> 00:18:00,205 suddenly had a budget of 1.3 million. 488 00:18:00,330 --> 00:18:01,831 [cash register dings] 489 00:18:01,831 --> 00:18:03,333 Nevermind what you would normally do. 490 00:18:03,458 --> 00:18:05,084 [Narrator] With financing in place, 491 00:18:05,210 --> 00:18:07,796 casting for "Reservoir Dogs" began in New York City. 492 00:18:07,921 --> 00:18:10,215 A key casting was Steve Buscemi. 493 00:18:10,381 --> 00:18:12,967 And at this time, Buscemi wasn't that well known. 494 00:18:13,092 --> 00:18:15,178 He was just an independent actor. 495 00:18:15,303 --> 00:18:17,222 {\an8}[Narrator] Well, primarily indie. 496 00:18:17,347 --> 00:18:18,348 Keaton did that. It's not me. 497 00:18:18,348 --> 00:18:19,891 I don't make hits, I make deals. 498 00:18:20,141 --> 00:18:21,643 [Narrator] Aside from "Miami Vice..." 499 00:18:21,643 --> 00:18:23,269 A man's gotta make a living, you know what I mean? 500 00:18:23,520 --> 00:18:25,188 [Narrator] ...Buscemi was building a reputation 501 00:18:25,313 --> 00:18:26,898 as a character actor. 502 00:18:27,023 --> 00:18:28,566 Started working with the Cohen Brothers. 503 00:18:28,733 --> 00:18:30,401 Like that was a really big thing for him. 504 00:18:30,527 --> 00:18:31,736 Fink, Barton. 505 00:18:31,861 --> 00:18:33,279 That must be you, huh? 506 00:18:33,404 --> 00:18:34,531 [Narrator] As to whom Buscemi would play. 507 00:18:34,697 --> 00:18:35,698 Mr. Pink. 508 00:18:35,824 --> 00:18:37,158 Why am I Mr. Pink? 509 00:18:37,283 --> 00:18:38,785 Originally Tarantino wanted to play Mr. Pink. 510 00:18:38,910 --> 00:18:40,245 It was great for me to know that 511 00:18:40,411 --> 00:18:42,122 because I had Quentin as my role model. 512 00:18:42,247 --> 00:18:44,165 Mr. Brown, that's a little too close to Mr. Shit. 513 00:18:44,290 --> 00:18:45,875 But gave the role to Steve Buscemi. 514 00:18:46,000 --> 00:18:47,460 How about if I'm Mr. Purple? 515 00:18:47,585 --> 00:18:49,128 You're Mr. Pink. 516 00:18:49,254 --> 00:18:50,130 [Narrator] Quentin wasn't the only one 517 00:18:50,130 --> 00:18:51,840 eyeing the role of Mr. Pink. 518 00:18:51,965 --> 00:18:53,258 Why can't we pick our own colors? 519 00:18:53,383 --> 00:18:54,968 I had done "Thelma and Louise." 520 00:18:54,968 --> 00:18:56,761 Were you just gonna leave for fucking ever? 521 00:18:58,513 --> 00:19:00,098 And I had done "The Natural." 522 00:19:00,098 --> 00:19:01,474 Sit down and shut up, your mouthy prima donna. 523 00:19:01,474 --> 00:19:03,434 What do you want from me, an apology? 524 00:19:03,643 --> 00:19:06,229 I wanted to play roles where I was kind of a good guy. 525 00:19:06,563 --> 00:19:08,398 We're gonna give you one more chance to shape up. 526 00:19:08,523 --> 00:19:11,025 {\an8}I said, "Quentin, I would rather play Mr. Pink." 527 00:19:11,025 --> 00:19:13,987 {\an8}But he said, "No, no, Michael. I have somebody for Mr. Pink." 528 00:19:13,987 --> 00:19:15,280 Okay, let's talk. 529 00:19:15,446 --> 00:19:17,031 I have something for you to try. 530 00:19:17,198 --> 00:19:20,410 So he actually let me audition for Mr. Pink. 531 00:19:20,535 --> 00:19:23,580 I went in there and there's Quentin, no shoes. 532 00:19:23,705 --> 00:19:24,747 He had bare feet. 533 00:19:24,873 --> 00:19:26,875 I'm sorry, I didn't catch it. 534 00:19:27,000 --> 00:19:28,001 Would you repeat it? 535 00:19:28,126 --> 00:19:29,502 Quentin, he had bare feet. 536 00:19:29,627 --> 00:19:31,796 [Narrator] Keitel was probably mortified. 537 00:19:31,921 --> 00:19:33,339 Harvey was in there too. 538 00:19:33,715 --> 00:19:35,467 He had bare feet. 539 00:19:35,467 --> 00:19:37,093 [Narrator] Well, at least Tarantino and Keitel 540 00:19:37,218 --> 00:19:38,470 were on the same page. 541 00:19:38,595 --> 00:19:40,138 Jesus Christ. 542 00:19:40,263 --> 00:19:41,639 And he got up and he played the scene with me. 543 00:19:41,764 --> 00:19:42,974 About halfway through it, Quentin goes, 544 00:19:43,099 --> 00:19:46,227 you are not Mr. Pink. 545 00:19:46,352 --> 00:19:48,313 I said, "Wow, I guess I'm not in the picture." 546 00:19:51,107 --> 00:19:52,692 [Narr] Michael Madsen had high hopes 547 00:19:52,692 --> 00:19:54,527 {\an8}of landing the role of Mr. Pink. 548 00:19:54,652 --> 00:19:58,281 But the only pink Quentin and Harvey saw was on the floor. 549 00:19:58,406 --> 00:20:00,950 {\an8}Quentin goes, you are not Mr. Pink. 550 00:20:01,075 --> 00:20:02,660 You're Mr. Blonde. 551 00:20:02,786 --> 00:20:04,245 He's a fucking asshole. 552 00:20:05,455 --> 00:20:08,208 I said I didn't wanna play Mr. Blonde. 553 00:20:08,208 --> 00:20:09,959 [Narrator] It was the one role Michael Madsen 554 00:20:09,959 --> 00:20:11,461 was trying to avoid. 555 00:20:11,586 --> 00:20:14,339 And he said, "Listen, Mike, you're Mr. Blonde, 556 00:20:14,464 --> 00:20:17,425 and if you're not, then you're not gonna be in the film." 557 00:20:17,425 --> 00:20:19,761 "No! Okay, okay, okay, okay, I'll do it." 558 00:20:19,886 --> 00:20:21,346 I don't feel great about it. 559 00:20:21,346 --> 00:20:22,680 [Narrator] For the role of Mr. Orange. 560 00:20:22,847 --> 00:20:23,848 Orange? 561 00:20:23,973 --> 00:20:25,183 Mr. Orange. 562 00:20:25,475 --> 00:20:27,060 {\an8}Tim Roth was not his number one choice. 563 00:20:27,185 --> 00:20:28,311 [Narrator] Quentin originally had his eye 564 00:20:28,436 --> 00:20:29,771 on a Hollywood favorite. 565 00:20:29,896 --> 00:20:32,148 He didn't even commit the crime. 566 00:20:32,273 --> 00:20:36,152 [Narrator] James Woods's agent dismissed "Reservoir Dogs" as a B movie. 567 00:20:36,277 --> 00:20:37,862 Never passing on the offer. 568 00:20:37,987 --> 00:20:38,988 I'm sorry, goodbye. 569 00:20:38,988 --> 00:20:40,323 I'm kicking myself. 570 00:20:40,448 --> 00:20:41,699 [Narrator] Tarantino needed to pivot. 571 00:20:41,866 --> 00:20:43,660 This is a very weird situation. 572 00:20:43,785 --> 00:20:46,121 {\an8}Similar to Buscemi, Tim was really at this point 573 00:20:46,246 --> 00:20:47,831 {\an8}looking to break through in the States 574 00:20:47,831 --> 00:20:50,166 {\an8}as many British actors are. 575 00:20:50,166 --> 00:20:52,085 [Narrator] Tim Roth had already proved his chops 576 00:20:52,085 --> 00:20:53,920 in the UK playing a skinhead 577 00:20:54,045 --> 00:20:56,131 in the cult classic "Made in Britain." 578 00:20:56,256 --> 00:20:58,174 I gotta memorize all this? 579 00:20:58,299 --> 00:20:59,717 [Narrator] For Roth, it was all about the script. 580 00:20:59,884 --> 00:21:01,427 When I read it, I thought, this is extraordinary. 581 00:21:01,427 --> 00:21:02,929 This is how we construct a character. 582 00:21:02,929 --> 00:21:04,597 And he's put that in a film. 583 00:21:04,722 --> 00:21:06,599 You gotta remember this story's about you. 584 00:21:06,724 --> 00:21:08,184 [Narrator] The last piece of the puzzle. 585 00:21:08,351 --> 00:21:10,520 This guy in the 80's tracksuit. 586 00:21:10,645 --> 00:21:12,730 Look part of your job, Vic, is going different places. 587 00:21:12,897 --> 00:21:14,232 That's the beauty of it. 588 00:21:14,399 --> 00:21:15,817 Chris was a big, tough guy, man. 589 00:21:15,942 --> 00:21:18,319 He's, no longer with us, but he was a mountain of a man. 590 00:21:18,444 --> 00:21:20,113 He was a strong son of a gun. 591 00:21:20,238 --> 00:21:22,365 All right, enough of this shit, break it up. 592 00:21:22,490 --> 00:21:23,867 [Narrator] Next up, Tarantino trained 593 00:21:23,992 --> 00:21:25,827 his focus on a Hollywood legend. 594 00:21:25,952 --> 00:21:27,412 Lawrence Tierney, for God's sake. 595 00:21:27,537 --> 00:21:29,372 Lawrence Tierney was a big star. 596 00:21:29,372 --> 00:21:31,499 {\an8}Lawrence Tierney was a hell of a good actor. 597 00:21:31,624 --> 00:21:34,043 Well, he's the first actor who ever played John Dillinger. 598 00:21:34,169 --> 00:21:35,795 I said wait in the car. 599 00:21:35,920 --> 00:21:37,547 [hand smacks] 600 00:21:37,672 --> 00:21:39,215 [Narrator] Although Tierney's more recent work 601 00:21:39,215 --> 00:21:41,259 did reveal somewhat of a fall from grace. 602 00:21:41,259 --> 00:21:42,719 Are you certain she's a virgin? 603 00:21:42,844 --> 00:21:44,429 Would I lie to you? 604 00:21:44,554 --> 00:21:45,930 [Narrator] But Quentin saw past 605 00:21:46,055 --> 00:21:47,974 the wizards of the demon sword. 606 00:21:47,974 --> 00:21:49,809 I don't care what you think. 607 00:21:49,934 --> 00:21:51,728 [Narrator] And wanted to bring back the hard boiled 608 00:21:51,895 --> 00:21:54,856 Lawrence Tierney of yesteryear. 609 00:21:55,023 --> 00:21:56,524 I mean, he was big, big, big time. 610 00:21:56,649 --> 00:21:58,485 Okay, boy, I'll be seeing you. 611 00:21:58,610 --> 00:22:00,695 [Narrator] With Lawrence Tierney locked in, 612 00:22:00,820 --> 00:22:02,447 it was time to celebrate. 613 00:22:02,780 --> 00:22:03,948 Going on a little break? 614 00:22:04,115 --> 00:22:05,366 Yeah. 615 00:22:05,492 --> 00:22:07,827 They told us, they told us to never 616 00:22:07,952 --> 00:22:09,788 give Lawrence any alcohol. 617 00:22:10,872 --> 00:22:13,833 As soon as they told us not to do that, me and Tim did it. 618 00:22:13,958 --> 00:22:16,336 [Narrator] The old Hollywood star was fittingly taken 619 00:22:16,461 --> 00:22:18,087 to an old Hollywood haunt. 620 00:22:18,213 --> 00:22:19,422 To Musso and Frank's. 621 00:22:19,547 --> 00:22:21,174 He got a vodka and grapefruit 622 00:22:21,299 --> 00:22:23,301 and he guzzled that thing down like, wow. 623 00:22:23,301 --> 00:22:24,594 Dive in and swim. 624 00:22:24,719 --> 00:22:26,262 [Narrator] For being a big guy, 625 00:22:26,387 --> 00:22:28,139 Tierney turned out to be a lightweight. 626 00:22:28,306 --> 00:22:30,350 He said, "You kids are a bunch of babies 627 00:22:30,350 --> 00:22:31,935 and I gotta go to the bathroom." 628 00:22:32,101 --> 00:22:33,353 And I said, "It's over there." 629 00:22:33,353 --> 00:22:34,521 And he goes, "I know where it is." 630 00:22:34,646 --> 00:22:35,980 Okay. 631 00:22:36,105 --> 00:22:37,440 So, he... 632 00:22:37,899 --> 00:22:38,983 ...he disappeared. 633 00:22:39,692 --> 00:22:42,237 [Narrator] Tim Roth volunteered to do recon. 634 00:22:42,362 --> 00:22:44,405 He came back and he goes, "He's not in there, man." 635 00:22:44,531 --> 00:22:46,199 I said, "Holy shit." 636 00:22:46,324 --> 00:22:48,284 We hear all these cars out in front honking 637 00:22:48,451 --> 00:22:50,370 and people were getting up and some people 638 00:22:50,495 --> 00:22:52,664 were walking over, looking out the windows. 639 00:22:52,789 --> 00:22:54,707 And so me and Tim, we got up, "What the hell's going on?" 640 00:22:54,833 --> 00:22:56,793 And there's Lawrence and he was standing 641 00:22:56,918 --> 00:22:58,294 in the middle of the street 642 00:22:58,294 --> 00:23:00,547 with his pants down around his ankles 643 00:23:00,547 --> 00:23:04,551 and he was pissing right in the middle of the street. 644 00:23:05,009 --> 00:23:07,178 [Narrator] He said he knew where the restroom was. 645 00:23:07,345 --> 00:23:08,805 I guess you could say that again. 646 00:23:08,930 --> 00:23:10,265 Cars were going around him, 647 00:23:10,390 --> 00:23:11,891 cars were honking at him, stopping. 648 00:23:11,891 --> 00:23:13,393 And it was insane. 649 00:23:13,560 --> 00:23:15,353 What the hell was I supposed to do? 650 00:23:15,520 --> 00:23:17,772 [Narrator] The duo did the only thing they could. 651 00:23:17,772 --> 00:23:18,898 I don't wanna do this. 652 00:23:18,898 --> 00:23:20,525 So we got him out of there. 653 00:23:20,692 --> 00:23:22,652 [Narrator] Which was easier said than done. 654 00:23:22,777 --> 00:23:24,279 I said something to him, I don't remember what I said, 655 00:23:24,404 --> 00:23:27,532 but he took a big swing at me and I backed off. 656 00:23:27,657 --> 00:23:29,200 He missed me by about that much. 657 00:23:29,325 --> 00:23:31,202 Well, I felt the breeze go by my face. 658 00:23:31,327 --> 00:23:32,453 He was gonna punch me right in the face. 659 00:23:32,579 --> 00:23:33,746 He was gonna knock me out. 660 00:23:33,872 --> 00:23:34,873 But he was pretty funny. 661 00:23:34,998 --> 00:23:36,541 He's a mad man. 662 00:23:36,541 --> 00:23:38,668 He's Larry. He's the mountain man. 663 00:23:38,793 --> 00:23:40,211 Thank you. 664 00:23:40,336 --> 00:23:41,713 [Narrator] But Tarantino's risky approach 665 00:23:41,880 --> 00:23:44,090 well beyond the cast.d 666 00:23:44,215 --> 00:23:46,384 {\an8}My name Andrzej Sekula. 667 00:23:46,509 --> 00:23:49,220 [Narrator] In 1991, Andrzej was best known for-- 668 00:23:49,387 --> 00:23:51,514 I didn't have any credit. 669 00:23:51,514 --> 00:23:53,558 [Nrator] But through an acquaintance of an acquaintance, 670 00:23:53,725 --> 00:23:55,602 Andrzej managed to arrange an interview 671 00:23:55,602 --> 00:23:57,854 or possibly a hostage exchange. 672 00:23:58,021 --> 00:24:01,483 I jokingly said, if you come three o'clock in the morning 673 00:24:01,608 --> 00:24:04,402 and pick me up and take me to the airport, 674 00:24:04,569 --> 00:24:07,947 I will have free lift and we will have interview. 675 00:24:08,114 --> 00:24:09,532 And guess what? 676 00:24:09,699 --> 00:24:11,951 Three o'clock he appeared with his small car 677 00:24:12,076 --> 00:24:15,330 and whole way, we were talking about films. 678 00:24:15,455 --> 00:24:17,332 These are my boys. 679 00:24:17,457 --> 00:24:19,209 [Narrator] Deep cuts like the Eastwood/Savalas film, 680 00:24:19,334 --> 00:24:20,835 "Kelly's Heroes." 681 00:24:20,960 --> 00:24:22,587 The moment in this particular movies, 682 00:24:22,712 --> 00:24:24,589 which touch me also touch him. 683 00:24:24,714 --> 00:24:26,174 We need at least a hundred guys, where do I find a hundred men? 684 00:24:26,174 --> 00:24:27,675 Just like that? 685 00:24:27,675 --> 00:24:29,135 So it was a possible good collaboration. 686 00:24:29,135 --> 00:24:30,845 I said, "Why you choose me?" 687 00:24:30,970 --> 00:24:32,430 Quentin said, "Because you opposite 688 00:24:32,555 --> 00:24:35,266 what other people were saying." 689 00:24:35,266 --> 00:24:37,894 [Narrator] Quentin had found a kindred spirit. 690 00:24:37,894 --> 00:24:41,564 His next task was calling in their special effects favor. 691 00:24:41,689 --> 00:24:43,817 One day we get a phone call and it's Quentin 692 00:24:43,942 --> 00:24:46,319 and he is like, "Hey, I'm making a movie 693 00:24:46,444 --> 00:24:48,571 and I'm calling in the second half of the deal." 694 00:24:48,696 --> 00:24:50,281 "Hey, we made the promise." 695 00:24:50,406 --> 00:24:51,783 You're gonna be okay! 696 00:24:51,908 --> 00:24:53,743 [Narrator] One thing Quentin needed-- 697 00:24:53,743 --> 00:24:56,454 Tons and tons of blood 'cause we make our own blood. 698 00:24:56,621 --> 00:24:58,331 [Narrator] And when it comes to film blood, 699 00:24:58,331 --> 00:25:00,250 Tarantino is a connoisseur. 700 00:25:00,375 --> 00:25:01,960 {\an8}He loved the 70's blood. 701 00:25:02,126 --> 00:25:05,880 Almost that poster paint blood, but more realistic. 702 00:25:07,382 --> 00:25:08,883 [Narrator] And with Tim Roth's leaky condition, 703 00:25:09,008 --> 00:25:11,219 it meant there was plenty of work for K.N.B. 704 00:25:11,344 --> 00:25:13,763 Not to mention [records scratches] wardrobe. 705 00:25:13,888 --> 00:25:16,349 {\an8}We needed multiple jackets like for Tim Roth 706 00:25:16,349 --> 00:25:18,143 {\an8}and you, we just couldn't afford it. 707 00:25:18,309 --> 00:25:19,602 They didn't have no money. 708 00:25:19,602 --> 00:25:21,271 I remember the producer Lawrence going, 709 00:25:21,438 --> 00:25:23,356 "We cannot use that many paper towels." 710 00:25:23,481 --> 00:25:25,150 And I'm like, "Okay." 711 00:25:26,401 --> 00:25:28,695 [Narrator] So with a restricted budget, 712 00:25:28,820 --> 00:25:30,405 a rookie cinematographer, 713 00:25:30,530 --> 00:25:32,365 and day one of filming just around the corner, 714 00:25:32,490 --> 00:25:35,577 could Quentin keep the ensemble of actors in line? 715 00:25:35,702 --> 00:25:37,120 Who didn't throw in? 716 00:25:37,245 --> 00:25:38,371 Mr. Pink. 717 00:25:38,371 --> 00:25:39,497 Quentin comes walking over, 718 00:25:39,622 --> 00:25:41,124 he goes, "You're fucking fired." 719 00:25:41,624 --> 00:25:44,419 And everyone was like, wow, man. 720 00:25:44,544 --> 00:25:46,546 [♪ dramatic music] 721 00:25:46,546 --> 00:25:49,382 [Narrator] It was day one of filming "Reservoir Dogs". 722 00:25:49,507 --> 00:25:51,050 And the pressure was on. 723 00:25:51,217 --> 00:25:53,636 They kicked the door open for low budget movies. 724 00:25:53,761 --> 00:25:56,014 [Narrator] Could the former video store clerk 725 00:25:56,014 --> 00:25:57,473 and his cinematographer straight 726 00:25:57,599 --> 00:26:00,685 out of film school team up to create magic? 727 00:26:00,810 --> 00:26:03,188 {\an8}Our first few days of shooting 728 00:26:03,188 --> 00:26:05,648 present with a lot of challenge. 729 00:26:05,773 --> 00:26:07,484 [Narrator] Quentin decided 730 00:26:07,484 --> 00:26:09,277 to jump in head-first with the diner scene. 731 00:26:09,402 --> 00:26:10,945 Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, time out. 732 00:26:11,070 --> 00:26:13,198 [Andrzej] This was one of the most difficult scenes. 733 00:26:13,323 --> 00:26:15,950 {\an8}Quentin's like, "Let me open 'Reservoir Dogs' in the round." 734 00:26:16,075 --> 00:26:19,537 We're going to shoot this camera constantly moving. 735 00:26:19,662 --> 00:26:21,539 No argument about that. 736 00:26:21,539 --> 00:26:22,624 [Narrator] Quentin was taking a relatively simple scene 737 00:26:22,749 --> 00:26:24,918 and making it anything but. 738 00:26:25,084 --> 00:26:26,169 What's that? 739 00:26:26,169 --> 00:26:28,087 Problem was about eye lines. 740 00:26:28,213 --> 00:26:30,924 {\an8}You are moving one direction and then another and another. 741 00:26:31,049 --> 00:26:33,551 {\an8}If one character is looking left to right. 742 00:26:33,676 --> 00:26:35,428 Want me shoot this guy? 743 00:26:35,428 --> 00:26:36,763 When you cut to the person they're talking to, 744 00:26:36,763 --> 00:26:38,723 you want them looking right to left. 745 00:26:38,848 --> 00:26:41,559 We had additional script supervisor 746 00:26:41,684 --> 00:26:44,229 to make the notes that we don't commit a mistake. 747 00:26:44,354 --> 00:26:47,065 You shoot me in a dream, you better wake up and apologize. 748 00:26:47,065 --> 00:26:49,943 [Narrator] If Tarantino was looking for blind loyalty, 749 00:26:50,109 --> 00:26:51,694 he wasn't getting it. 750 00:26:51,694 --> 00:26:53,738 There were times where producer's going, whatever. 751 00:26:53,863 --> 00:26:55,198 They don't think it's gonna work. 752 00:26:55,198 --> 00:26:57,575 He's not from film school. 753 00:26:57,700 --> 00:26:59,494 [Narrator] Well, he might not be. 754 00:26:59,619 --> 00:27:01,246 When I was on film school, 755 00:27:01,246 --> 00:27:04,124 I spent a lot of time in editing room. 756 00:27:04,124 --> 00:27:05,792 So I know every kind of nuance, 757 00:27:05,917 --> 00:27:07,836 how to cut, would it cut together. 758 00:27:07,961 --> 00:27:12,090 And so you would see arguments sometimes. 759 00:27:12,215 --> 00:27:14,050 [Narrator] Even Andrzej's assistant was on edge. 760 00:27:14,050 --> 00:27:18,513 He said, "Andrzej, are we going to get fired? 761 00:27:18,638 --> 00:27:20,640 [Narrator] But the fireworks were just getting started. 762 00:27:20,640 --> 00:27:23,393 As Andrzej's camera turned to Lawrence Tierney. 763 00:27:23,393 --> 00:27:25,144 I'm gonna do whatever the fuck I want with it. 764 00:27:25,270 --> 00:27:28,314 Harvey showing him a book with people's names in it. 765 00:27:28,314 --> 00:27:30,817 Toby Wong. 766 00:27:30,984 --> 00:27:32,652 So Lawrence had to look at Steve 767 00:27:32,819 --> 00:27:34,320 and he had to look at Harvey who had this book. 768 00:27:34,445 --> 00:27:35,864 {\an8}And Quentin kept saying, "No, you gotta take, 769 00:27:35,864 --> 00:27:37,782 {\an8}take a minute and, and look at these guys." 770 00:27:37,907 --> 00:27:39,868 He'd feel a ton of insecurity, so it was kind of tension. 771 00:27:39,993 --> 00:27:41,077 [Narrator] And it wasn't silent tension. 772 00:27:41,244 --> 00:27:42,412 Give it back now. 773 00:27:42,579 --> 00:27:44,664 Lawrence Tierney had this personality 774 00:27:44,789 --> 00:27:46,082 that could get triggered. 775 00:27:46,082 --> 00:27:47,542 [Narrator] And that trigger? 776 00:27:47,542 --> 00:27:49,252 Shoot this piece of shit, will you? 777 00:27:49,377 --> 00:27:50,587 [Narrator] Had just been pulled. 778 00:27:50,712 --> 00:27:52,297 He got really mad, he said, 779 00:27:52,422 --> 00:27:53,840 "I look like a God damn fucking idiot. 780 00:27:54,007 --> 00:27:55,425 I'm looking over here and I'm looking over there 781 00:27:55,633 --> 00:27:56,885 and looking over here, looking over there." 782 00:27:57,010 --> 00:27:58,970 And he goes, "Ah, it doesn't feel good." 783 00:27:59,095 --> 00:28:00,638 Quentin comes walking over, he goes, "You're fucking fired." 784 00:28:00,763 --> 00:28:02,515 And he goes "Fuck this." 785 00:28:02,515 --> 00:28:05,477 And he got up and everyone was like, wow, man. 786 00:28:05,602 --> 00:28:08,146 And Lawrence left and he went outside 787 00:28:08,271 --> 00:28:10,398 and he was walking down the middle of the street. 788 00:28:10,398 --> 00:28:12,859 And Quentin ran after him 789 00:28:12,859 --> 00:28:14,861 with Lawrence Bender, the producer. 790 00:28:15,028 --> 00:28:17,614 {\an8}Lawrence asked to come back and Quentin brought him back. 791 00:28:17,739 --> 00:28:19,365 And two hours later we were back 792 00:28:19,365 --> 00:28:21,159 on the set, and shooting on the scene. 793 00:28:21,159 --> 00:28:22,327 [Narrator] Quentin had passed 794 00:28:22,452 --> 00:28:24,078 his first test as a director. 795 00:28:24,204 --> 00:28:27,499 Meanwhile, Mary Claire's trial was only just beginning. 796 00:28:27,624 --> 00:28:29,167 I think we were getting these jackets 797 00:28:29,167 --> 00:28:32,086 for like $2.50 each. 798 00:28:32,212 --> 00:28:33,588 [Narrator] The only problem 799 00:28:33,713 --> 00:28:35,381 with buying a bunch of cheap jackets. 800 00:28:35,381 --> 00:28:39,177 [Mary] Those jackets were actually all different jackets. 801 00:28:39,302 --> 00:28:40,512 [Narrator] Mary's idea? 802 00:28:40,678 --> 00:28:42,305 Buy a bag of buttons. 803 00:28:42,305 --> 00:28:43,807 The buttons are the same. 804 00:28:43,932 --> 00:28:45,350 And that's what the camera's gonna catch, 805 00:28:45,475 --> 00:28:46,726 is the light from the button. 806 00:28:46,893 --> 00:28:48,561 [Narrator] The result-- 807 00:28:48,686 --> 00:28:49,687 You convinced me. Gimme my dollar back. 808 00:28:49,813 --> 00:28:51,648 They look the same on camera. 809 00:28:51,773 --> 00:28:53,566 [Narrator] If there was a corner, Mary would cut it. 810 00:28:53,733 --> 00:28:55,360 [car honks] 811 00:28:55,568 --> 00:28:57,529 You can tell that Steve Buscemi has black pants, 812 00:28:57,529 --> 00:28:58,571 but they're jeans. 813 00:28:58,738 --> 00:29:00,323 He has black Levi's on. 814 00:29:00,448 --> 00:29:02,200 [Narrator] To save a buck, 815 00:29:02,325 --> 00:29:03,993 Tarantino even asked the cast to bring their own shoes. 816 00:29:04,118 --> 00:29:05,620 I didn't have any black dress shoes. 817 00:29:05,745 --> 00:29:07,247 I thought, what the fuck am I gonna do? 818 00:29:07,247 --> 00:29:09,249 But I had black cowboy boots. 819 00:29:09,415 --> 00:29:11,918 So that's why I have those damn cowboy boots on. 820 00:29:13,002 --> 00:29:14,128 [Narrator] With the men sorted, 821 00:29:14,254 --> 00:29:15,505 Tarantino turned to filming 822 00:29:15,505 --> 00:29:17,882 with the ladies of "Reservoir Dogs." 823 00:29:18,007 --> 00:29:19,300 [gun firing] 824 00:29:19,425 --> 00:29:21,135 That was quick. 825 00:29:21,261 --> 00:29:24,180 Well, there was one other woman, she even had lines. 826 00:29:24,305 --> 00:29:25,849 {\an8}My name is Nina Siemaszko 827 00:29:25,974 --> 00:29:29,018 {\an8}and I played Officer McClusky. 828 00:29:29,144 --> 00:29:31,062 [Narrator] Mr. Orange's handler. 829 00:29:31,187 --> 00:29:32,730 He's a pro. 830 00:29:32,856 --> 00:29:35,483 I am providing information to Tim Roth's character. 831 00:29:35,608 --> 00:29:37,193 One of the bank robbers? 832 00:29:37,318 --> 00:29:38,987 [Narrator] While the men's fashion was inspired 833 00:29:38,987 --> 00:29:42,282 by classic G-Man films, Quentin had a different muse 834 00:29:42,407 --> 00:29:43,450 when it came to McClusky. 835 00:29:43,575 --> 00:29:44,784 Like a Virgin. 836 00:29:46,077 --> 00:29:48,538 He wanted me to look like early Madonna. 837 00:29:48,663 --> 00:29:49,747 [Narrator] The scene would prove 838 00:29:49,873 --> 00:29:51,916 challenging for several reasons. 839 00:29:52,083 --> 00:29:53,710 No rehearsals. 840 00:29:53,710 --> 00:29:55,545 There was a lot of dialogue that I had to memorize. 841 00:29:55,712 --> 00:29:57,630 Girlfriend's got it, his dog got hit. 842 00:29:57,755 --> 00:29:59,257 [Narrator] And if that wasn't enough. 843 00:29:59,424 --> 00:30:00,300 [Holdaway] What was it? 844 00:30:00,300 --> 00:30:01,801 I'm eating a burger. 845 00:30:03,261 --> 00:30:04,512 [Nina laughs] 846 00:30:04,637 --> 00:30:05,555 [Narrator] While Nina had to eat 847 00:30:05,680 --> 00:30:07,182 a lot of burgers that day, 848 00:30:07,307 --> 00:30:10,018 she wasn't the only one to go the extra mile. 849 00:30:10,143 --> 00:30:13,104 Kirk Baltz, who played Officer Marvin Nash, 850 00:30:13,104 --> 00:30:16,357 had a special request of his scene partner. 851 00:30:16,483 --> 00:30:17,734 He goes, "You know, I've never been 852 00:30:17,901 --> 00:30:19,486 locked in a trunk before. You know?" 853 00:30:19,611 --> 00:30:20,737 He goes, "I wanna see what it feels like." 854 00:30:20,862 --> 00:30:21,988 You can torture me all you want. 855 00:30:22,697 --> 00:30:24,073 Well okay. 856 00:30:24,199 --> 00:30:25,992 Real method acting there. [chuckles] 857 00:30:27,702 --> 00:30:30,205 [Narrator] In that moment, it dawned on Madsen. 858 00:30:30,371 --> 00:30:32,040 I've never had anybody in my trunk before. 859 00:30:32,040 --> 00:30:34,626 And this ought to be interesting for me too. 860 00:30:34,751 --> 00:30:37,086 [Narrator] And with that, the experiment began. 861 00:30:37,212 --> 00:30:39,631 Started up the car and I drove down the alley 862 00:30:39,756 --> 00:30:41,758 across the street, but I didn't realize 863 00:30:41,758 --> 00:30:43,927 the alley was all filled with potholes. 864 00:30:44,052 --> 00:30:46,846 And so it was a lot of bump, bump, bump, bump. 865 00:30:46,846 --> 00:30:48,640 [Narrator] Leading Kirk Baltz to say. 866 00:30:48,765 --> 00:30:50,016 Let me out of here. 867 00:30:50,308 --> 00:30:51,518 Help! 868 00:30:51,518 --> 00:30:52,685 Get me out of here. 869 00:30:52,685 --> 00:30:54,312 And I just, I just kept going. 870 00:30:54,437 --> 00:30:55,814 [Narrator] As a kidnapper would. 871 00:30:55,980 --> 00:30:58,233 And when I turned left, it was Taco Bell. 872 00:30:58,942 --> 00:31:01,444 I rolled in there and I turned on the radio 873 00:31:01,569 --> 00:31:03,279 so you couldn't hear him 'cause he was yelling back there. 874 00:31:03,446 --> 00:31:04,531 No, please don't. 875 00:31:04,531 --> 00:31:05,532 And I got some French fries 876 00:31:05,532 --> 00:31:06,658 and I had a Coke. 877 00:31:06,783 --> 00:31:08,201 And then I drove back. 878 00:31:08,201 --> 00:31:10,078 [Narrator] One might think Tarantino 879 00:31:10,078 --> 00:31:13,331 was proud of the initiative and one would be wrong. 880 00:31:13,498 --> 00:31:14,874 Is he really in there? 881 00:31:14,874 --> 00:31:16,417 Oh my God, is he in the trunk? 882 00:31:16,543 --> 00:31:18,628 You have Kirk the trunk? 883 00:31:18,795 --> 00:31:20,380 And they're like, let him out, let him out! 884 00:31:20,505 --> 00:31:22,799 I said, "I will, I will." 885 00:31:22,799 --> 00:31:24,092 He was messed up. 886 00:31:24,217 --> 00:31:25,343 He was all sweaty. 887 00:31:25,468 --> 00:31:26,970 He didn't appreciate it. 888 00:31:27,136 --> 00:31:28,471 [Narrator] But Kirk wouldn't be 889 00:31:28,638 --> 00:31:30,098 the only one to end up in the trunk. 890 00:31:30,223 --> 00:31:32,559 I was sitting in the trunk with the camera. 891 00:31:32,684 --> 00:31:35,186 They closed me. 892 00:31:35,353 --> 00:31:38,690 Sitting there, Michael Madsen spit on me. 893 00:31:38,857 --> 00:31:40,650 Ain't a bad idea, let's get him the fuck outta here. 894 00:31:40,650 --> 00:31:43,361 I said, "Michael, why you did spitting on me?" 895 00:31:43,528 --> 00:31:44,654 "Because I feel that. 896 00:31:44,779 --> 00:31:46,448 You was policeman." 897 00:31:46,448 --> 00:31:49,451 [both chuckling] 898 00:31:49,576 --> 00:31:51,161 I was okay, I was laughing. 899 00:31:51,286 --> 00:31:53,204 [Narrator] But the laughs would be short-lived 900 00:31:53,329 --> 00:31:55,790 as a controversial decision lay ahead. 901 00:31:55,915 --> 00:31:58,585 They were gonna shoot the actual ear getting cut off. 902 00:31:59,461 --> 00:32:00,420 And... 903 00:32:00,420 --> 00:32:03,756 [♪ dramatic music] 904 00:32:03,882 --> 00:32:06,259 [Narrator] As production on "Reseoir Dogs" pushed on, 905 00:32:06,259 --> 00:32:07,677 Quentin Tarantino continued 906 00:32:07,802 --> 00:32:09,345 to struggle with Lawrence Tierney. 907 00:32:09,512 --> 00:32:11,306 {\an8}He had kind of a hard time with his dialogue. 908 00:32:11,431 --> 00:32:12,515 Wait a minute. 909 00:32:12,682 --> 00:32:14,017 {\an8}He could not remember line. 910 00:32:14,184 --> 00:32:15,727 {\an8}You know, he was older guy. 911 00:32:15,727 --> 00:32:17,729 Here are your names. 912 00:32:17,896 --> 00:32:19,689 You're Mr. Brown, you're Mr. Blonde, you're Mr. Purple. 913 00:32:19,814 --> 00:32:21,232 You're Mr.-- 914 00:32:21,357 --> 00:32:22,901 He kept pointing at the wrong people. 915 00:32:23,026 --> 00:32:25,487 He called me Mr. Brown. Chris, Mr. Blonde. 916 00:32:25,612 --> 00:32:26,613 He couldn't do it. 917 00:32:26,779 --> 00:32:28,239 You're not Mr. Purple. 918 00:32:28,364 --> 00:32:30,283 [Narrator] Tierney wasn't just struggling. 919 00:32:30,450 --> 00:32:32,786 He was struggling in front of a captive audience. 920 00:32:32,911 --> 00:32:34,621 Now I'd get fidgety and I, 921 00:32:34,621 --> 00:32:36,998 you know, scratch my face, whatever. 922 00:32:37,165 --> 00:32:38,833 And he goes, "You stop moving around. 923 00:32:38,958 --> 00:32:40,627 Moving around, you're throwing me off." 924 00:32:40,627 --> 00:32:42,462 [Michael chuckles] 925 00:32:42,629 --> 00:32:43,963 I just sit there, man. 926 00:32:43,963 --> 00:32:46,299 All you guys got the goddamn message? 927 00:32:46,299 --> 00:32:47,717 [Narrator] Take after take, 928 00:32:47,884 --> 00:32:49,511 Lawrence was burning through film. 929 00:32:49,636 --> 00:32:51,221 Expensive film. 930 00:32:51,346 --> 00:32:53,097 Goddamn man, because of you guys I can hardly talk. 931 00:32:53,264 --> 00:32:54,891 About the 3rd or 4th time, we got 932 00:32:55,058 --> 00:32:57,101 a little bit, you know, "Come on, Lawrence." 933 00:32:57,227 --> 00:32:59,395 [Narrator] Tarantino leaned into the old saying, 934 00:32:59,521 --> 00:33:01,564 opting to fix it in post. 935 00:33:01,689 --> 00:33:02,899 They had to take everybody out. 936 00:33:02,899 --> 00:33:04,359 No way. I pick. 937 00:33:04,484 --> 00:33:05,902 He did okay on his own. 938 00:33:06,069 --> 00:33:07,403 It didn't fucking matter where he was pointing. 939 00:33:07,529 --> 00:33:08,655 Mr. Pink. 940 00:33:08,655 --> 00:33:11,157 Because we weren't even there. 941 00:33:11,157 --> 00:33:13,284 Yes, Lawrence Tierney was difficult. 942 00:33:13,451 --> 00:33:14,994 Chris Penn was difficult. 943 00:33:16,371 --> 00:33:17,288 They were all difficult. 944 00:33:17,455 --> 00:33:18,498 {\an8}Are you kidding? 945 00:33:18,498 --> 00:33:19,749 {\an8}Michael Madsen was difficult. 946 00:33:19,749 --> 00:33:21,417 [Michael chuckles] Oops. 947 00:33:21,584 --> 00:33:23,086 [Narrator] Michael Madsen was about to shoot 948 00:33:23,211 --> 00:33:24,671 what would go on to become the most 949 00:33:24,671 --> 00:33:27,257 memorable scene of his career. 950 00:33:27,257 --> 00:33:30,343 It was also the scene he never wanted to shoot. 951 00:33:30,343 --> 00:33:33,346 I didn't like the idea of torturing some cop, 952 00:33:33,513 --> 00:33:34,722 you know, cutting his ears off. 953 00:33:34,848 --> 00:33:36,099 I don't like alarms, Mr. White. 954 00:33:36,224 --> 00:33:38,726 {\an8}The ear gag was the biggie. 955 00:33:38,893 --> 00:33:40,353 [Narrator] But cutting off the ear was the price 956 00:33:40,353 --> 00:33:43,022 Michael Madsen had to pay to be in the film. 957 00:33:43,148 --> 00:33:45,275 And he said, "Listen Mike, you're Mr. Blonde. 958 00:33:45,400 --> 00:33:47,902 And if you're not, then you're not gonna be in the film." 959 00:33:48,027 --> 00:33:49,654 I pretty much had to do it. 960 00:33:49,779 --> 00:33:51,322 [Narrator] And while Madsen was hesitant, 961 00:33:51,322 --> 00:33:53,283 the film's director was anything but. 962 00:33:53,450 --> 00:33:55,285 As an artist, alright, if violence 963 00:33:55,285 --> 00:33:57,871 is part of your palette, then you gotta paint. 964 00:33:57,871 --> 00:34:00,999 I don't have the slightest fucking idea 965 00:34:01,166 --> 00:34:02,792 what you're talking about? 966 00:34:02,959 --> 00:34:05,378 [Narrator] He's talking about blood, Mr. Orange. 967 00:34:05,378 --> 00:34:07,714 But what made the interrogation so memorable 968 00:34:07,714 --> 00:34:10,925 wasn't just the violence, but the foreplay. 969 00:34:10,925 --> 00:34:15,138 It said in the script, Mr. Blonde maniacally dances. 970 00:34:15,263 --> 00:34:17,223 What the hell does that mean, you know? 971 00:34:17,390 --> 00:34:20,101 I was scared of it and I didn't know what to do. 972 00:34:20,226 --> 00:34:21,895 I started thinking about James Cagney 973 00:34:22,020 --> 00:34:23,646 in "Yankee Doodle Dandy." 974 00:34:23,646 --> 00:34:26,441 ♪ I'm a Yankee doodle dandy. ♪ 975 00:34:26,566 --> 00:34:29,235 You know, he had that funny thing to do with his legs. 976 00:34:30,653 --> 00:34:32,030 You know, he didn't look like 977 00:34:32,155 --> 00:34:33,656 anybody else that I ever saw dancing. 978 00:34:33,656 --> 00:34:35,617 And so I started going back and forth. 979 00:34:39,454 --> 00:34:42,499 [Narrator] Only Cagney never danced to British glam rock. 980 00:34:42,665 --> 00:34:44,042 Quentin had "Ballroom Blitz" 981 00:34:44,209 --> 00:34:45,668 that he was gonna play during that scene. 982 00:34:45,793 --> 00:34:47,587 And so that's what I had in my head. 983 00:34:47,587 --> 00:34:49,130 And he said, "You know, Michael, 984 00:34:49,255 --> 00:34:50,757 what I really want is 'Stuck in the Middle.'" 985 00:34:50,757 --> 00:34:52,425 [Narrator] There was only one problem. 986 00:34:52,425 --> 00:34:54,511 He goes, Rafferty won't gimme the rights to it, 987 00:34:54,677 --> 00:34:56,054 so we're probably not gonna be able to use it. 988 00:34:56,221 --> 00:34:57,972 He goes, but if I get it, 989 00:34:58,097 --> 00:35:00,725 would you do one take where you sing that to it? 990 00:35:00,892 --> 00:35:02,310 I said, okay. 991 00:35:02,435 --> 00:35:04,312 I didn't know what the hell I was doing. 992 00:35:04,437 --> 00:35:06,773 But once I started turning around and around and around, 993 00:35:06,773 --> 00:35:08,483 then it sort of seemed natural. 994 00:35:10,110 --> 00:35:11,903 I kept waiting to hear and yell, "Cut, cut, cut. 995 00:35:11,903 --> 00:35:13,071 Michael, what are you doing?" 996 00:35:13,071 --> 00:35:15,657 You know, but he didn't. 997 00:35:15,782 --> 00:35:16,908 Quentin loved it. 998 00:35:17,033 --> 00:35:18,159 [Narrator] Not only did Quentin 999 00:35:18,284 --> 00:35:19,953 get a dance he didn't expect. 1000 00:35:19,953 --> 00:35:21,955 Somehow, he got the rights to the damn thing. 1001 00:35:21,955 --> 00:35:23,623 So they put it in the movie. 1002 00:35:25,166 --> 00:35:26,543 [Narrator] Movie villains have a long, 1003 00:35:26,709 --> 00:35:30,046 rich history of slow and painful interrogations. 1004 00:35:30,171 --> 00:35:31,673 Do you expect me to talk? 1005 00:35:31,673 --> 00:35:33,091 [Narrator] With the hero portrayed 1006 00:35:33,258 --> 00:35:35,510 here as James Bond always making an escape 1007 00:35:35,510 --> 00:35:38,596 just in the nick of time. 1008 00:35:38,596 --> 00:35:41,641 But in Tarantino's reality, there was no escape. 1009 00:35:41,641 --> 00:35:44,811 They were gonna shoot the actual ear getting cut off. 1010 00:35:44,978 --> 00:35:46,604 [Crew] 22, Denver, take one. 1011 00:35:46,729 --> 00:35:48,314 This is the kind of realistic violence prevalent 1012 00:35:48,481 --> 00:35:50,108 in Scorsese's films in the seventies. 1013 00:35:50,275 --> 00:35:51,276 Hey! 1014 00:35:51,401 --> 00:35:54,028 [gun firing] 1015 00:35:55,071 --> 00:35:56,447 [Quentin] Action. 1016 00:35:56,573 --> 00:35:57,949 [Narrator] The inspiration for the scene 1017 00:35:58,074 --> 00:36:00,285 came from 1966's Django, 1018 00:36:00,452 --> 00:36:02,287 where not only is an ear cut off, 1019 00:36:02,454 --> 00:36:04,664 its original owner was forced to-- 1020 00:36:04,664 --> 00:36:06,916 Well, imagine this ear of corn. 1021 00:36:07,041 --> 00:36:08,626 Now drop the word corn. 1022 00:36:08,751 --> 00:36:12,589 {\an8}Quentin wants this and you figure out how to do it. 1023 00:36:12,755 --> 00:36:14,465 [muffled screams] 1024 00:36:14,591 --> 00:36:17,093 So the way we built that, it was a double layer appliance. 1025 00:36:17,218 --> 00:36:19,012 He's got a hairpiece and you glue his ear down 1026 00:36:19,012 --> 00:36:20,889 and you have the earpiece that goes over it 1027 00:36:21,014 --> 00:36:22,390 that he cuts off. 1028 00:36:24,392 --> 00:36:27,061 I had a blade and I cut it off. 1029 00:36:28,605 --> 00:36:30,023 [Narrator] As for the blood. 1030 00:36:30,148 --> 00:36:31,608 And they had a tube up his shirt. 1031 00:36:31,775 --> 00:36:33,943 And when I cut it off, it was spraying blood. 1032 00:36:34,110 --> 00:36:35,778 You know, I had to get out the way. 1033 00:36:35,904 --> 00:36:38,531 As much as Michael Madsen didn't want to film the scene, 1034 00:36:38,531 --> 00:36:40,450 it was done and behind him. 1035 00:36:40,575 --> 00:36:42,285 Right? 1036 00:36:42,410 --> 00:36:45,371 The thing with Quentin is he will do a lot of alts. 1037 00:36:47,791 --> 00:36:49,542 When we redid it, come over there 1038 00:36:49,542 --> 00:36:51,961 and he didn't have the fake thing on anymore. 1039 00:36:52,128 --> 00:36:53,546 I couldn't lean far enough forward. 1040 00:36:53,546 --> 00:36:56,841 So I had to get in his lap and it looked like 1041 00:36:56,966 --> 00:36:58,259 I was really doing it. 1042 00:36:58,384 --> 00:36:59,469 And, and they turned away from it 1043 00:36:59,636 --> 00:37:01,054 and all you see is the wall. 1044 00:37:01,054 --> 00:37:02,555 That was a moment Quentin was happy, 1045 00:37:02,555 --> 00:37:03,973 so that when he pulled the camera up, 1046 00:37:04,098 --> 00:37:05,475 you'd see, "Watch your head." 1047 00:37:06,643 --> 00:37:08,895 It's much worse as a viewer, 1048 00:37:08,895 --> 00:37:11,397 you're imagining opposed to showing it. 1049 00:37:11,523 --> 00:37:13,525 [Narrator] Tarantino went one step further, 1050 00:37:13,650 --> 00:37:15,026 answering the question, 1051 00:37:15,151 --> 00:37:16,486 what do you do with another man's ear? 1052 00:37:16,611 --> 00:37:18,363 I remember standing there, holding it 1053 00:37:18,530 --> 00:37:21,032 and he said, "Toss it, toss it, 1054 00:37:21,032 --> 00:37:24,536 get rid of it, get rid of it." 1055 00:37:24,702 --> 00:37:26,746 And I didn't really wanna just toss it, and I didn't wanna-- 1056 00:37:26,746 --> 00:37:29,165 I was trying to think of something. 1057 00:37:29,290 --> 00:37:30,875 [Narrator] And that's when it came to him. 1058 00:37:31,000 --> 00:37:33,044 And so I talked, I spoke in it. 1059 00:37:33,169 --> 00:37:34,462 Hey, what's going on? 1060 00:37:35,213 --> 00:37:36,381 You hear that? 1061 00:37:36,548 --> 00:37:37,966 I thought that, that's pretty bad. 1062 00:37:38,091 --> 00:37:39,592 And then I, then I threw it. 1063 00:37:42,428 --> 00:37:44,305 [Narrator] As for that special effects favor. 1064 00:37:44,430 --> 00:37:47,350 How did that turn out for K.N.B's Howard Berger? 1065 00:37:47,475 --> 00:37:50,228 "Reservoir" was like our big, first big film. 1066 00:37:50,353 --> 00:37:53,690 It was kind of fun to, 1067 00:37:53,815 --> 00:37:56,401 you know, come up the ranks as Quentin came up the ranks. 1068 00:37:56,526 --> 00:37:58,236 [Narrator] With principal photography completed 1069 00:37:58,403 --> 00:38:00,113 on this low budget indie. 1070 00:38:00,238 --> 00:38:01,531 [Announcer] The "Reservoir Dogs". 1071 00:38:01,656 --> 00:38:03,158 [Narrator] But without distribution, 1072 00:38:03,283 --> 00:38:04,909 "Reservoir Dogs" would be headed 1073 00:38:05,034 --> 00:38:07,454 straight to the shelves of video archives. 1074 00:38:07,454 --> 00:38:10,540 I was in editing room when they get message. 1075 00:38:10,540 --> 00:38:13,626 He was accepted on the Sundance Film Festival. 1076 00:38:16,629 --> 00:38:18,923 [Narrator] Throughout the production of "Reservoir Dogs", 1077 00:38:19,048 --> 00:38:21,593 the freshman director stuck to his guns. 1078 00:38:21,759 --> 00:38:22,844 [gun firing] 1079 00:38:22,969 --> 00:38:24,429 And saw his vision through. 1080 00:38:24,596 --> 00:38:27,432 {\an8}With Quentin, nobody has any right to say, 1081 00:38:27,557 --> 00:38:29,017 {\an8}"Mbe we should get this covered. 1082 00:38:29,142 --> 00:38:30,268 Maybe we should get that covered." 1083 00:38:30,435 --> 00:38:31,978 No, Quentin knows what he's doing. 1084 00:38:32,145 --> 00:38:33,813 [Narrator] But when it came to editing, 1085 00:38:33,813 --> 00:38:35,607 Quentin was looking for a partner. 1086 00:38:35,773 --> 00:38:38,067 An editor's a very intimate relationship. 1087 00:38:38,193 --> 00:38:39,694 {\an8}You have to trust them, 1088 00:38:39,694 --> 00:38:41,404 {\an8}'cause sometimes you can't trust yourself. 1089 00:38:41,571 --> 00:38:43,031 [Narrator] Which is why the young auteur 1090 00:38:43,156 --> 00:38:45,283 turned to the editor of the indie darling. 1091 00:38:45,450 --> 00:38:47,952 It dices, it slices and yet makes 1092 00:38:48,077 --> 00:38:51,289 french fries in three different, whoops. 1093 00:38:51,289 --> 00:38:53,917 {\an8}Sally Menke was an incredible editor. 1094 00:38:54,042 --> 00:38:56,252 And you can see it in the work. 1095 00:38:56,252 --> 00:38:59,506 [Narrator] Beginning with the 1983 comedy, "Cold Feet." 1096 00:38:59,506 --> 00:39:01,966 I always wind up taking care of the men I see. 1097 00:39:02,133 --> 00:39:03,218 [Narrator] Sally split her time 1098 00:39:03,384 --> 00:39:05,094 between features and documentary, 1099 00:39:05,220 --> 00:39:08,723 most notably Ken Burns's 1988 film "The Congress." 1100 00:39:08,723 --> 00:39:11,476 Compromise, which gets us through the day. 1101 00:39:11,643 --> 00:39:14,270 [Narrator] Again, a logical transition to-- 1102 00:39:14,395 --> 00:39:16,940 [Turtles screaming] 1103 00:39:17,065 --> 00:39:19,192 As for "Reservoir Dogs," at the time, 1104 00:39:19,192 --> 00:39:20,819 spending any amount of money 1105 00:39:20,985 --> 00:39:22,737 often elicited the same response. 1106 00:39:22,862 --> 00:39:24,322 [Characters] Don't do it. 1107 00:39:24,447 --> 00:39:25,281 - Drop the gun, man. - Don't drop the gun. 1108 00:39:25,448 --> 00:39:26,658 {\an8}We just couldn't afford it. 1109 00:39:26,783 --> 00:39:27,742 We can't afford it. 1110 00:39:27,867 --> 00:39:28,952 They didn't have no money. 1111 00:39:29,077 --> 00:39:30,370 Should be about a buck apiece. 1112 00:39:30,370 --> 00:39:31,538 [Narrator] As it so happened, Sally-- 1113 00:39:31,663 --> 00:39:33,039 She was cheap. 1114 00:39:33,164 --> 00:39:34,082 Do you know what these chicks make? 1115 00:39:34,207 --> 00:39:35,333 They make shit. 1116 00:39:35,500 --> 00:39:37,210 [Narrator] This is true. 1117 00:39:37,210 --> 00:39:39,295 But more than that, Quentin and Sally clicked. 1118 00:39:39,462 --> 00:39:41,506 {\an8}A match made in heaven, Sally and Quentin. 1119 00:39:41,631 --> 00:39:45,593 {\an8}She took him seriously and just kind of got him. 1120 00:39:45,760 --> 00:39:49,180 {\an8}She could say to him, "This feels incongruous." 1121 00:39:49,347 --> 00:39:50,723 {\an8}And he'd be like, "Yeah, you're right. 1122 00:39:50,723 --> 00:39:51,766 {\an8}I've just got that in there 1123 00:39:51,891 --> 00:39:53,226 'cause it looks so cool." 1124 00:39:53,351 --> 00:39:54,727 She might be one of the few people 1125 00:39:54,727 --> 00:39:58,064 that he would've heard that from comfortably. 1126 00:39:58,064 --> 00:39:59,691 [Narrator] Quentin and Sally would be editing 1127 00:39:59,858 --> 00:40:01,276 up until the premiere. 1128 00:40:01,401 --> 00:40:03,486 It was there, "Reservoir Dogs" would become 1129 00:40:03,653 --> 00:40:06,698 the talk of the fest, or at least one scene was. 1130 00:40:06,823 --> 00:40:09,200 The ear cutting scene. 1131 00:40:09,325 --> 00:40:11,286 {\an8}There were people who walked out 1132 00:40:11,411 --> 00:40:13,830 {\an8}because they were so shocked and disgusted. 1133 00:40:13,955 --> 00:40:15,790 [Narrator] 33 to be precise, 1134 00:40:15,915 --> 00:40:19,294 even pushing purveyors of gore to the limit and beyond. 1135 00:40:19,419 --> 00:40:21,713 {\an8}Caused Wes Craven to actually get up outta the theater 1136 00:40:21,838 --> 00:40:24,090 {\an8}as it was too hard for him to handle. 1137 00:40:24,215 --> 00:40:28,469 I'm fucking dying here, I'm fucking dying! 1138 00:40:28,595 --> 00:40:30,722 {\an8}Quentin looks at violence in a different way. 1139 00:40:30,722 --> 00:40:32,724 Part of what really put him on the map 1140 00:40:32,849 --> 00:40:35,685 is his incredible ability to take violence 1141 00:40:35,810 --> 00:40:36,728 and make it funny. 1142 00:40:36,728 --> 00:40:38,354 As entertainment. 1143 00:40:38,480 --> 00:40:40,231 [Narrator] Moments before the big screening, 1144 00:40:40,398 --> 00:40:42,984 Sally and Quentin decided to make a last-minute cut. 1145 00:40:43,109 --> 00:40:46,029 {\an8}I'm walking in to watch the movie 1146 00:40:46,154 --> 00:40:47,530 and right before I walk in, 1147 00:40:47,530 --> 00:40:49,032 Quentin told me that the scenes 1148 00:40:49,157 --> 00:40:51,367 weren't going to be in the movie. 1149 00:40:51,493 --> 00:40:55,747 I just remember thinking, this is a male perspective. 1150 00:40:55,747 --> 00:40:57,665 Someone who looks like me in the middle of it all, 1151 00:40:57,665 --> 00:40:59,793 I, I think it would be a little jarring. 1152 00:40:59,918 --> 00:41:03,546 At the end of e day, you want a great movie. 1153 00:41:03,671 --> 00:41:04,839 [Narrator] "Reservoir Dogs" certainly 1154 00:41:04,839 --> 00:41:06,382 stirred the Sundance pot, 1155 00:41:06,382 --> 00:41:08,051 but it remained to be seen 1156 00:41:08,176 --> 00:41:10,261 if the controversy would help or hurt. 1157 00:41:10,261 --> 00:41:13,056 Another movie starring Steve Buscemi, actually 1158 00:41:13,181 --> 00:41:14,599 It's gonna be good. 1159 00:41:14,766 --> 00:41:17,310 "In the Soup" won in competition at Sundance, 1160 00:41:17,435 --> 00:41:18,937 but "Reservoir Dogs" was the film 1161 00:41:19,062 --> 00:41:20,480 that everyone was talking about. 1162 00:41:20,647 --> 00:41:22,357 This whole sort of Hollywood buzz around it. 1163 00:41:22,482 --> 00:41:24,609 [Narrator] Buzz but no award. 1164 00:41:24,734 --> 00:41:27,529 However, in the end, that didn't matter. 1165 00:41:27,654 --> 00:41:31,324 It took a few months before Miramax. 1166 00:41:31,491 --> 00:41:33,785 Harvey and Bob Weinstein decided 1167 00:41:33,910 --> 00:41:36,162 to pick up and distribute the movie. 1168 00:41:36,162 --> 00:41:38,331 [Narrator] But the offer wasn't without strings. 1169 00:41:38,498 --> 00:41:40,750 The Weinsteins are very well known 1170 00:41:40,750 --> 00:41:43,461 for getting the film re-edited and reworked 1171 00:41:43,628 --> 00:41:46,798 so that it would hit the market that they wanted it to hit. 1172 00:41:46,923 --> 00:41:50,635 Unsurprisingly, Harvey said to Tarantino, 1173 00:41:50,802 --> 00:41:53,388 "The ear cutting scene's gotta go." 1174 00:41:53,513 --> 00:41:55,098 But Tarantino dug his heels in. 1175 00:41:55,223 --> 00:41:57,517 He would not cut that scene. 1176 00:41:57,642 --> 00:41:59,435 [Narrator] Lawrence and Quentin felt very strongly 1177 00:41:59,561 --> 00:42:01,813 about having creative control moving forward. 1178 00:42:01,938 --> 00:42:03,481 So dug in their heels. 1179 00:42:03,648 --> 00:42:05,650 He said, "I don't care about it being mainstream. 1180 00:42:05,817 --> 00:42:08,069 Like I, I make movies for myself. 1181 00:42:08,194 --> 00:42:09,362 Everyone else is invited." 1182 00:42:09,362 --> 00:42:10,822 That was a very rare example 1183 00:42:10,989 --> 00:42:13,283 of someone standing up to the Weinsteins 1184 00:42:13,408 --> 00:42:15,160 and getting their way. 1185 00:42:15,326 --> 00:42:16,828 [Narrator] Which is exactly what happened. 1186 00:42:16,953 --> 00:42:20,415 As "Reservoir Dogs" hit theaters in October of 1992, 1187 00:42:20,540 --> 00:42:24,961 earning 2.9 million worldwide on a $1.2 million budget. 1188 00:42:25,128 --> 00:42:26,546 Here in America, 1189 00:42:26,671 --> 00:42:28,256 it would be considered not very successful. 1190 00:42:28,256 --> 00:42:30,842 However, it was a huge success in Britain 1191 00:42:31,009 --> 00:42:34,304 where they're used to having more dialogue in their films, 1192 00:42:34,429 --> 00:42:36,306 having their gangsters talk a lot. 1193 00:42:36,431 --> 00:42:37,390 Do you wanna go into the toilet? 1194 00:42:37,390 --> 00:42:40,602 I know you didn't kill him! 1195 00:42:40,727 --> 00:42:42,103 [Narrator] Not to mention the appeal 1196 00:42:42,103 --> 00:42:44,397 of Britain's favorite delinquent. 1197 00:42:44,522 --> 00:42:45,482 The most important thing about it 1198 00:42:45,482 --> 00:42:47,358 was it put Tarantino on the map. 1199 00:42:47,525 --> 00:42:49,486 So when the film's over, 1200 00:42:49,486 --> 00:42:51,196 no matter what you think about it, you've seen something. 1201 00:42:51,321 --> 00:42:53,448 You know, it's not just a bunch of images glazing over you, 1202 00:42:53,448 --> 00:42:55,533 you know, it's like, you know, it's doing something. 1203 00:42:55,533 --> 00:42:58,369 The funny thing is, just in typical Hollywood, that movie 1204 00:42:58,536 --> 00:43:01,289 comes out and everyone's like, you know, 1205 00:43:01,414 --> 00:43:03,666 we love this way he tells the story. 1206 00:43:03,666 --> 00:43:05,084 We love the-- we gotta-- What else do you have, 1207 00:43:05,210 --> 00:43:06,461 what else do you have? 1208 00:43:06,586 --> 00:43:08,213 [Narrator] Tarantino was in the game, 1209 00:43:08,213 --> 00:43:09,881 but could he play by Hollywood's rules? 1210 00:43:09,881 --> 00:43:13,718 There's that possibility of your sophomore failure. 1211 00:43:13,843 --> 00:43:15,678 You know, the sophomore curse. 1212 00:43:16,262 --> 00:43:18,181 [character screams] 1213 00:43:18,306 --> 00:43:20,058 He felt like he had a ton of money, the $9 million budget. 1214 00:43:20,225 --> 00:43:21,726 Quentin was fighting the studio. 1215 00:43:21,851 --> 00:43:23,186 It's just different than what I thought. 1216 00:43:23,311 --> 00:43:24,687 You're talking about John Travolta. 1217 00:43:24,813 --> 00:43:26,397 You know, that's breast milk. 1218 00:43:26,523 --> 00:43:28,775 Versus Daniel Day Lewis, Oscar winner. 1219 00:43:28,900 --> 00:43:30,485 I may explode. 1220 00:43:37,200 --> 00:43:38,868 [♪ dramatic music]