We watched True Romance last night, I hadn't seen it for about 15 years, though it has stayed with me ever since. Written by Quentin Tarantino, it wasn't a huge box office success but amongst us film students and film buffs of the very early 90's, it remains a cult movie.
It explores the survival of true love against the most adverse circumstances. Clarence, a rather unsuspecting guy with an Elvis obsession, who works in a comic bookshop happens upon the gorgeous, kooky and wild Alabama. They immediately fall for each other and so begin a long, crazy journey trying to escape her former Call girl life. The excruciatingly violent scenes are interspersed with great moments of comedy, mostly bought to us by a young Brad Pitt and the young hapless couple themselves. Lust and an almost childlike fascination for each other takes them on a journey of Bonnie and Clyde proportions.
The film is a tongue in cheek pastiche of different film genres, as is typical of a Tarantino script with what seems like a particular homage to Badlands. Tony Scott got some fantastic performances from his actors in particular Christian Slater and Patricia Arquette as the foolish couple. Also Gary Oldman as the white rastafarian drug dealer/pimp is one of the best performances he's ever given. The film is shot in a technicolour comic strip style, performances are big, the soundtrack loud. It's a fantastically entertaining escapade with true love conquering all firmly nestled at it's heart or does it?
Comments
Post a Comment