WWII Masterpiece by Quentin Tarantino Inspired by 1972 Western Now Streaming Free
For many decades, the Western was revered as king, and rightly so. The journey began in 1903 with The Great Train Robbery, and by 1959, eight of the ten most-watched shows towed that line. In cinemas and on the big screen, John Wayne and Henry Fonda weren’t alone when it came to gunslinging, as Marlon Brando, Paul Newman, Frank Sinatra, and even Elvis Presley had their fair share. After a period of stalling and decline, the Western genre experienced a new dawn as Dances With Wolves opened in theaters in 1990, scoring at the box office and winning seven Oscars. Kevin Costner earned wins for Best Picture and Best Director in the epic Western film.
Fast-forward a couple of decades, and the genre is very much alive and thriving, with several filmmakers splashing drama and morality plays on the wide-open canvas of the Western genre, albeit with varying degrees of success. Filmmakers like Quentin Tarantino have made their mark on the big screen with titles like <em>Django Unchained</em>, proving quite memorable. Jordan Peele‘s third directorial feature, Nope, and Jeymes Samuel‘s electrifying directorial debut, The Harder They Fall, have brought exciting new variety to an ever-enduring genre. However, there are some titles unto which many modern Westerns turn to in hopes of drawing varied degrees of inspiration and hope. One of them is poised to become a free streaming gem.
Sydney Pollack is sometimes overlooked and not always given the respect that he deserves as one of the greatest filmmakers in history, and that disregard might stem from the fact that he worked with such a diverse number of genres. One defining part of Pollack’s filmography is his frequent collaborations with Robert Redford, and under Pollack’s guidance, Redford delivered one of his best performances ever in the survival thriller <em>Jeremiah Johnson</em>, which is now streaming for free on Tubi. Looking back, Tarantino, who has an eye for these things, in 2009 in an interview with Parade compared Brad Pitt‘s status as a major movie star and his physical presence on set in Inglourious Basterds to Redford during that time. Jeremiah Johnson is viewed as one of the best Westerns of all time, and the fact that Redford replaces Clint Eastwood, a legend in his own right, is further testament to Redford’s performance.
Collider Exclusive · Oscar Best Picture Quiz
Which OscarBest Picture
Is Your Perfect Movie?
Parasite · Everything Everywhere · Oppenheimer · Birdman · No Country
Five Oscar Best Picture winners. Five completely different visions of what cinema can be — and what it can do to you. One of them is the film that was made for the way your mind works. Ten questions will figure out which one.
Parasite
Everything Everywhere
Oppenheimer
Birdman
No Country for Old Men
FIND YOUR FILM →
01
What kind of film experience do you actually want?
The best movies don’t just entertain — they leave something behind.
ASomething that pulls the rug out — that makes me think I’m watching one kind of film and then reveals I’m watching another entirely.
BSomething overwhelming — funny, sad, absurd, and genuinely moving, all at once.
CSomething grand and weighty — a film that makes me feel the full scale of what I’m watching.
DSomething formally daring — a film that pushes what cinema can even do.
E Something lean and relentless — pure tension with no wasted frame.
02
Which idea grabs you most in a film?
Great films are driven by a central obsession. What’s yours?
03
How do you like your story told?
Form is content. The way a story is shaped changes what it means.
NEXTQUESTION→
04
Whatmakesatrulygreatantagonist?</spandiv
Theoppositiondefinestheprotagonist.Whatkindofoppositionfascinatesyou?</spandiv
04
AA system— invisible , structural ,andalmostimpossible tofightbecauseithasnosingleface.
BThe self—thewayswesabotage ,abandon,andfailthepeoplewelovemos.
CThehistory—theunstoppablemomentumofeventsthatnosinglepersoncanstopordirect.
DTheindustry—themachineryofculturethatchewsuptalentandspitsoutirrelevance.
EPure , implacable evil—a forcesocertainofitselfitbecomesalmostphilosophical.
NEXT QUESTION →
05
Whatdo you wantfromafilm’sending?</spandiv
Thefinalnoteistheone thatlingers.Whatdo you wantitsoundlike?</spandiv
05
A Shockandinevitability—aconclusionthatrecontextualiseseverythingthatcamebeforeit.
BEarnedemotion—Iwanttocry,laugh,andfeelgenuinelyhopeful,eveniftheworldisamess.
C Devastationandgrandeur—anendingthatmakesmesitin silenceforafewminutesafter.
DAmbiguity—somethingleavesenoughopenthatI’mstillthinkingaboutitdayslater.
E Bleakness—anhonestrefusaltopretendtheworldistidierthanitactuallyis.
NEXTQUESTION→
</pWhichsettingpullsyouinmost?</spandiv
Whereafilm takesplace shapeseverything—mood ,stakes ,what’s evenpossible .< / spandiv
AAgleamingmoderncitywithahiddenunderside—beautymaskingrot,weathmaskingdesperation.
BAcollapsingsuburbanlifethatopensontosomethinginfinite—themultiverseofasingleordinaryperson.
CThecorridors ofpowerandscienceataworld-historicalturningpoint—wheredecisions echofordecades.
DThegrimy ,alivechaosofNewYorkandHollywood—fameasbothdestinationandtrap.
E Vast ,indifferentlandscape—desertandhighwaywhereviolencearriveswithoutwarningorreason.
NEXT QUESTION →
</pWhatcinematiccraftimpressesyoumost?</spandiv
Everygreatfilmhasasignature—a technicalorartistic elementthatmakesit unmistakable .< // spandiv
A Productiondesignandmise-en-scène—everyframecomposedtocarrymeaningbeneaththe surface .
B Editingandtonalcontrol—theabilitytomovebetweenregisterswithoutlosingthe audience .
C Scoreandsounddesign—musicthatbecomesinseparablefromthe dreadandaweofwhatyou’rewatching .
=D<=Cinematographyasperformance—thecamera notrecordingeventsbutparticipatinginthem .
=E
=NEXTQUESTION→=
=
=
</p=Whatkindofmaincharacterdo you root for?=
=Theprotagonististhelens.Who you choosetofollowsayssomethingaboutyou.=///span>
=
=A
=B
=C
=D
=E
=
=NEXTQUESTION→=
<sectioncl==‘ qb slide qb sl9’=
<divcl==‘ qb question card’=
</p=How do you feel about afilmthattakesits time?=
=Paceisachoice.Somefilmsprint;otherslettensionaccumulateslowly ,deliberately .=///span>
=
=A
=B
=C
=D
=E
=
=NEXTQUESTION→=
<section cl== ‘qb slide qb sl10 ’=
<div cl== ‘qb question card ’=
</p=Whatdo you wantto feelwalkingoutofthecinema?=
=Thebestfilmsleaveamark.Whatkindofmarkdoyouwant?=
=
=
<section cl== ‘cb slide cb slR ’=
<div cl== ‘cb result reveal ’=
=TheAcademyHasDecided=
=YourPerfectFilmIs…=
=YouranswershavepointedtooneOscarBestPicturewinneraboveallothers.Thisisthefilmthatwasmadeforthewayyourmindworks.=/p>
<div cl== ‘cb result cards ’=
=Parasite=
=Youaredrawntofilms thatoperateonmultiplelevelsimultaneously—thatbegininonegenreandquietly ,brilliantlymigrateintoanother.BongJoon-ho’sParasiteisafilmabout,class ,desire,andthearchitectureofinequalitythatmanagestobedarklyfunny,deepsuspenseful,andgenuinelyshockingacrossasinglestunningrunningtime.Yourinstinctisforcinema thathidesitstrueintentionsuntilthemomentit’sreadyto revealthem.Parasiteisexactlythat—a filmthatrewardscloseattentionandpunishesassumptions,rightuptoitsdevastatingfinalimage.=/p>
=Everything Everywhere All at Once=
=Youwantitall—andthisfilmgivesyouallofit.TheDaniels’EverythingEverywhereAllatOnceisoneofthemostmaximalistfilmsevermade:actioncomedy,multiversescifi,familydrama ,existentialcrisis,andagenuinelyearned emotionalcorethatsneaksuponyouamidthechaos.Youaresomeonewhorespondstoambition ,whodoesn’twantcinematocontinuebetweenbeingentertainingbeingmeaningful.Thisfilmrefusesthatchoiceentirely.Itisoverwhelmingbydesign,anditsoverwhelmingnatureispreciselythepoint—becausethefeelingofbeingcrushedbyinfinitepossibilityisexactlywhatit’sabout.=/p>
=Oppenheimer=
=Youaredrawntocinemaonagrandscale—filmsthatunderstandhistorynotasabackdropbutasaforce,andthatplace theircharactersinsidethatforceandwatchwhathappens.ChrisNolan’sOppenheimerisafilmabouttheterrifyinggapbetweenwhatwecandoandwhatweshoulddo,toldwiththefullweightofoneofthemostconsequentialmomentsinhumanhistorybehindit.Youwantyourfilmstofeelimportantwithoutfeelingself-important—to earn theirambitionthroughsheercraftandthegravityoftheirsubject.Oppenheimerdoes exactlythat.Itisenormous ,complicated,andrefuseseasycomfort.=/p>
=Birdman=
=Youaredrawntofilms thatforegroundtheirownconstruction—thatmakethehowofthefilmmakingpartofthewhatit’sabout.AlejandroGonzálezIñárritu’sBirdman ,shottappearasasinglescontinuous take,is cinemaexaminingitselfthroughthecrackedmirrorofafadingactor’sego.Yourespondtoformaldaring,tothefeelingthatafilmdoing somethingthatprobablyshouldn’tbe possible.MichaelKeaton’sperformanceandEmmanuelLubezki’srestlesscamera createsomethinggenuinelyunlikeanythingelse—a filmthatis simultaneouslyaboutcreativity,relevance,self-destruction,andtheimpossibilityofever trulyknowingifyourworkmeansanythingatall.=/p>
=No Country for Old Men=
=Youaredrawntocinema thattrustsilence ,thatrefusestoexplainitself,andthattreatsdreadasaformofmeaning.TheCoenBrothers’NoCountryforOldMenisa filmaboutthearrivalofanewkindofevil—implacable ,arbitrary,andutterlyindifferenttothemoralframeworksweusetomakesenseoftheworld.Itisonceofthemostformallycontrolledfilmsgeneratedevermade,anditscontrolledrestraintismakesittoterrifying.Youwantyourfilmstohauntyou ,notcomfortyou.Youarenotinterestedinresolutionifresolutionwouldbe dishonest.NoCountryforOldMenishonestinawaythatmostcinemaneverdares tobe.=/p>
