Christopher Nolan says of Quentin Tarantino’s retirement that he’s a purist and a “cinephile who rewards film history”

Director Quentin Tarantino is working on his tenth feature film, The film critic, and has made it clear for years that this film will close his filmography, sending him into retirement. He has decided to tell ten different stories in various genres during his career as a director, and this will conclude his journey on the big screen.

Director Christopher Nolan is releasing its 12th feature film this week with Oppenheimer, and like Tarantino, he has created films that are very much his own style, with a box office following and fan base. Asked about fellow filmmaker Tarantino and his retirement plans during a recent appearance on the “ReelBlend” podcast (via CinemaBlend), and whether Nolan plans to retire soon or continue making movies until he’s 80 Martin ScorseseNolan said:

“The truth is, I understand both points of view. It’s exciting to tell stories in cinema. It’s hard work, but it’s a lot of fun. It’s something you feel compelled to do, so it’s a little hard to imagine stopping voluntarily. But I also get… Quentin’s point has always been this – and he’s never, very kindly, never specific about the movies he’s talking about or anything – but he’s looking at some of the work the filmmakers have done over the next few years and he feels that if it can’t live up to the heyday, it would be better if it didn’t exist. And I think that’s a very purist point of view. It is the point of view of a cinephile that rewards the history of cinema”.

While Nolan understands where Tarantino is coming from, he’s not sure he entirely agrees. After all, there’s usually at least one element to appreciate in a mixed film from a great director.

“I’m not sure I would trust my sense of the absolute value of a work to know whether it should have been done or not. I’m a huge fan, as is Quentin, of movies that maybe don’t fully achieve what they’re trying to achieve, but there’s something in there that’s a performance, or a little structural thing, or a scene, you know, it’s wonderful. And so, yeah, I get it. I think you wanted to keep sort of a perfect reputation of something, but also not wanting to take anything off the table.

Nolan’s opinion of Tarantino’s retirement is very different from that of their friend and fellow director Paul Thomas Anderson.

“I know Quentin [Tarantino] he likes to say: “I make 10 films and then I stop”. But I could never do that,” Anderson said in 2018. “I don’t know how she can say that, or how she can take herself seriously when she says it. This is what I want to do as long as I am able to. As long as I’m able to, I will. I think things can get weird when directors aren’t acting their age maybe, or seeing them trying to keep up with the guys or trying to be hip. It’s never a good look.

I guess we’ll just have to wait and see if Tarantino can stay away. If he does, at least he’s made a collection of great films that will live on as he does in his legacy. by Nolan Oppenheimer hits theaters this weekend. Do you go to the cinema to see it?