Cinema Speculation

4.6 4.6 out of 5 stars | 2,542 ratings

Price: 22.04

Last update: 02-09-2025


About this item

Instant New York Times bestseller

The long-awaited first work of nonfiction from the author of the #1 New York Times bestselling Once Upon a Time in Hollywood: a deliriously entertaining, wickedly intelligent cinema book as unique and creative as anything by Quentin Tarantino.

In addition to being among the most celebrated of contemporary filmmakers, Quentin Tarantino is possibly the most joyously infectious movie lover alive. For years he has touted in interviews his eventual turn to writing books about films. Now, with Cinema Speculation, the time has come, and the results are everything his passionate fans—and all movie lovers—could have hoped for. Organized around key American films from the 1970s, all of which he first saw as a young moviegoer at the time, this book is as intellectually rigorous and insightful as it is rollicking and entertaining. At once film criticism, film theory, a feat of reporting, and wonderful personal history, it is all written in the singular voice recognizable immediately as QT’s and with the rare perspective about cinema possible only from one of the greatest practitioners of the artform ever.

The audiobook is narrated by Edoardo Ballerini, and features Quentin Tarantino reading the first and last chapters. A perfect listen for all fans!


Top reviews from the United States

  • mnigrey
    5.0 out of 5 stars Tarantino: The Non-Fiction Writer
    Reviewed in the United States on May 12, 2024
    I really like Quentin Tarantino, the author. Most of his movies are cool, for sure, but you don’t need to like them to love this book. Here, he flexes an entirely different muscle with ease. I’ve admittedly been a fan of his since I saw “Pulp Fiction” - in the original German - while studying abroad as a high schooler. I could instantly recognize the unmistakeable product of a true film nerd. Like knows like, so maybe I’m biased.

    In this tome, his words ring out from the musty confines of non-fiction with the same realistic cadence, slang and expressiveness found in his scripts. As a narrator of an obvious wealth of film knowledge, compounded by spilled secrets of an insider’s perspective, he brings a unique insight brimming with an approachability not usually found in scholarly treatises about 1960’s and 70’s film culture. His opinion on film is formed by an admittedly really, lucky but f’n cool life - the best a film nerd could ask for - having essentially been raised by Hollywood, and well-steeped in its legends and history. His words speak with authority, the product not only of a lifelong career, but of a genuine love of feet. I mean film. He walks a road of deep thoughts on impactful movies from his upbringing of varying quality which, to quote the author, “Produces a cocktail mixed with piss that’s disturbingly tasty.”

    Obviously, it’s a delightful read. However, novice film buffs should have your IMDb.com ready to look up some deep cuts for your next watchlist of excellent cinema. It’s not just well-known mainstays like ‘Bullit’ and ‘Dirty Harry’ though. The author waxes philosophical on Marvel multiverse-style questions like, “What if Brian de Palma directed Taxi Driver?” The myriad threads of this thought exercise are detailed and compelling. There’s also fascinating discussion on the scope and breadth of a genre of self-described ‘Revenge-a-matic’ films. I’ve enjoyed several of these myself, featuring immortal action stars like Clint Eastwood and Charles Bronson. This authors’ interest spans multiple shelves of video rental store shelves, from sci-fi and comedy to Toby Hooper’s other, also-great horror flicks that aren’t called ‘Texas Chainsaw Massacre.’

    It’s a deeply personal book too, framing these consequential films as ‘fixed-points’ in the development of a filmmaker that influenced his own contributions to the medium. For instance, in the concluding chapter - no spoilers - we learn about in an influential figure named Floyd. He’s a movie nerd Obi-Wan who happens to be a man with a deep knowledge of film and a dream to be a screenwriter, which obviously affected a young Quentin. It just makes sense in a way, how all these personalities, on screen or sitting in front of the screen, impacted this author in fundamental ways.
  • BBF
    5.0 out of 5 stars Great Read!
    Reviewed in the United States on December 4, 2024
    Reading this book feels like learning a lot more about an old friend. Tarantino uses a very personal writing style and gives interesting insights into his life, influences, and inspirations. Love it!
  • enubrius
    4.0 out of 5 stars A tarantella with Tarantino
    Reviewed in the United States on April 25, 2023
    Fun read that offers some insight into Tarantino's thought process and directing style as a bonus
    Some carps to be sure
    Mr T insists on confusing director ROBERT Mulligan with his actor brother Richard and he certainly subscribes to the movie geek creed of finding value in even the worst of the B/C/D listers (Quentin, dear boy, just because a film is made for no money and with nobody anyone has ever heard of does not AUTOMATCALLY make it a classic. Some of them DO suck!)
    But, all in all, a really good time for the buff
  • jkca1
    5.0 out of 5 stars Very Enjoyable
    Reviewed in the United States on October 15, 2024
    The book delved into many fascinating stories regarding how and why pictures got made and also covered the actors that starred in them.
  • Paul
    5.0 out of 5 stars Great Book by Quentin Tarrantino
    Reviewed in the United States on September 3, 2024
    Love the way he articulates his inspirations and descriptions of all those defining moments, shaping the development and production of movies!
  • Roberta Hause
    5.0 out of 5 stars Very Interesting Fun Read
    Reviewed in the United States on September 21, 2024
    I love this book, but I keep getting distracted by all of the movies Tarintino mentions that I haven't seen yet. My list of movies to see, grows every time I read a few pages of the book. It's really cool to get the inside scoop about the thinking behind how movies are made.
  • Jeremy S. Zehr
    5.0 out of 5 stars A Must Read for Movie Fans and Aficionados
    Reviewed in the United States on September 14, 2024
    It was only a matter of time until Quentin Tarantino wrote a book about movies, and there is no other subject more appropriate for him to focus on than the films of the 70s. His enthusiasm is infectious, and I’ve found myself seeking out many of the genre films that he mentions while I was reading. Highly recommended if you love movies.
  • Anthony Giancola
    3.0 out of 5 stars Mostly Ramblings
    Reviewed in the United States on October 26, 2024
    I’m not sure what I was expecting, exactly, but it wasn’t this. That is not to say that Tarantino’s book Cinema Speculation is bad, but it does promise a book not found beyond the first chapter. Simply put, I had expected this book to essentially be a memoir told through movies, and the first chapter, with Tarantino describing his earliest memories attending the theater, delivers. Then, as the book goes on, it becomes a collection of thoughts about a few key movies of the 1970s.

    Which is not bad, except that Tarantino chooses literally the most obvious titles to focus in on. Bullit, Dirty Harry, Deliverance. I get that these movies were seminal to the decade, and so seminal to Tarantino, but they’re so well covered elsewhere I was disappointed. He offers a lot of insight into the films written by Paul Schrader, but otherwise it’s a lot of IMDb trivia.

    The Floyd Footnote at the end of the book is the other portion of the book that I was more hoping the book would be. It serves both as film history and personal history. It explains how his worldview and film interpretation was formed. As well, it gives an origin to how Tarantino learned to write scripts.

    Also, Quentin, I’ve seen Charley Varrick, and you really need to stop recommending that people watch Charley Varrick.

    Don’t watch Charley Varrick.

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