Smackdown '94 Finale: "Pulp Fiction" and "Bullets Over Broadway"

THE SMACKDOWN IN THREE PARTS
• Written Blurbs & Reader Votes
• Podcast Pt 1: Tom & Viv and The Madness of King George
...and now the finale!

FINALE (40 MINUTES)
The group discusses Jennifer Tilly's outrageous comic triumph in Bullets Over Broadway and why the Broadway musical adaptation didn't work. We also revisit the cultural impact of Quentin Tarantino's Pulp Fiction and Uma's place in its success. Other films briefly discussed: Three Colors: Red and Natural Born Killers. Nathaniel thanks this month's terrific panel: Erik Anderson, Nick Davis, Itamar Moses, and Alfred Soto!

You can listen to the podcast here at the bottom of the post or download from iTunes. Continue the conversations in the comments, won't you? 

Bullets Over Broadway, Pulp Fiction

Tweetweek: Hathaway Tea, Princess Thor, Cooper Snatched, and More

The journey of this tweet. ❤️ 

pic.twitter.com/bYZNqVF92W

— Ray Lewis (@RayLewis1997) June 5, 2018

After the jump, Barry Jenkins reacts to Steve McQueen's Widows, Marc Sneticker reminds us of the existence of Shark Tale, Thor is revealed to be a true Disney Princess, and lots of other pop culture quips and bits feat. Bradley Cooper, Anne Hathaway, Reese Witherspoon, Samuel L Jackson, Zhang Ziyi, and more...

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More Tarantino Bloodshed Coming

Chris here. Quentin Tarantino has begun to lineup his next film to shoot next year, and it could be even bloodier than his divisive Hateful Eight if the subject matter is any indication. Hold on to your stomachs, the provacateur will next be tackling the Manson murders.

While this seemingly won't appease anyone put off by Hateful's gruesome antics, the potential for something great is there and Tarantino reportedly does have a unique take on the material yet to be revealed. Per his previous comments, this looks to be his penultimate film, but I'm guessing that that's actually as likely as that "unique take" being a tamer vision regarding onscreen bloodshed. My first guess is that like Inglourious Basterds before it, Tarantino will be doing a bit of revisionist history with the details of Charles Manson's enacted violence.

Casting is already promising some major talent, with reportedly approached stars including Brad Pitt, Jennifer Lawrence, Samuel L. Jackson, and Margot Robbie. Details are sparse on what roles could be attached to each star, aside from Robbie possibly playing Sharon Tate. We'll see what Tarantino's take is on the story and what the ensemble might actually shape up like - but (should it come to be) doesn't Pitt as Manson already sound like a fascinating choice?

The Links with the Feuding Stars, Too

Baby Jane Mania
EW Ryan Murphy talks about the first season of Feud. He's already casting the second and hints that a lot of people want to be Prince Charles and Princess Diana. Hmmm. Didn't anyone see Diana with Naomi Watts. That's dangerous ground!
Boy Culture searches for any living actors from Whatever Happened to Baby Jane?

Get Out
AV Club Jordan Peele (Get Out) has made history with the first $100 million grossing debut from a black filmmaker...
Vanity Fair Did you hear that Samuel L Jackson criticized the movie for casting a British actor in the lead? More on this and a great quote from the British star Daniel Kaluuya after the jump...

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Doc Corner: 'I Am Not Your Negro' is a Towering Achievement

In Doc Corner, Glenn Dunks looks at current, future and past documentaries of note...

With new year resolutions no doubt already a distant memory (it's been three days!), it’s probably time to remember that it is really hard for people to change. And I don't just mean quitting smoking. We can try all we want, but even those of us who consider ourselves ‘progressive’ probably can’t say with any real confidence that we're not set in our ways; the same person deep inside that we were a decade ago. And even if that isn’t the case, as hard as it is to change just ourselves, just think how much harder it is to change the larger mass. And with a new President about to be inaugurated on the back of violent, blatant racism, it is sadly even more pertinent to remember this.

Now, these are not necessarily ideas that are at the forefront of Raoul Peck’s superb I Am Not Your Negro, but as it was with 13th, 10 Bullets, 3 ½ Minutes, O.J.: Made in America and many other documentaries about race, it is a recurring theme that bubbles to the surface as if by default. The more we think things are changing, the more they sadly stay the same. A film about race in the 1950s and 1960s is, sadly and inevitably, a film about race in the modern age for we are doomed to repeat the sins of the past no matter what we do...

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