Viewed in
2012
Formats
HDTV
Premise
Christian Slater stars as an Elvis fanatic who falls in love with a prostitute (Patricia Arquette), but gets into deep trouble when he kills her pimp.
Loved
Star-studded cast.
Liked
Tarantino's writing.
Disliked
Hans Zimmer's score.
Thoughts
It was fun, though probably overhyped by my friends.
Even though it was directed solidly by Tony Scott, Tarantino's fingerprints were all over this via screenplay. I easily recognized the intertwining of criminals and lowlifes into multiple story lines, the deft command of dialog bordering on poetry, and scenes that just ooze character and style or wry humor. Heck, the film even included Samuel L. Jackson and Christopher Walken.
Speaking of actors, the cast was crazy good, including a skinny James Gandolfini, Val Kilmer as Elvis (whom I didn't recognize), Dennis Hopper, Gary Oldman as Drexl and Brad Pitt as a stoned out roommate. Oh yeah, don't forget 1980's icon Bronson Pinchot. Each had their moment in the spotlight to do something outrageous. Slater and Arquette were charming as the leads.
So what made it overrated? I'm not sure to be honest. Hans Zimmer's xylophone score was annoying, but not a deal-breaker. The story was pretty weak compared to Tarantino's later works. I also have a sneaky suspicion that director Scott probably didn't know exactly what Tarantino had in mind stylistically.
True Romance is definitely recommendable, especially for Tarantino fans. It's basically withstood the test of time thanks to fun dialog, wry moments and cool performance by the awesome cast. But be wary of the hype.
