With "Once Upon a Time in Hollywood" still in theaters, I decided it would be fun to take a look at all those great character director Quentin Tarantino created over the years.
20. Hugo Stiglitz (Til Schweiger) in “Inglourious Basterds”
Til Schweiger truly puts the ‘glorious’ in his Baserd as a defected German sergeant with a penchant for murdering Nazis in the sickest ways possible.
19. Butch Coolidge (Bruce Willis) in “Pulp Fiction”
Boxer Butch Coolidge ain’t nobody’s bitch. Fleeing from the scene after accidentally killing his opponent in the ring, Coolidge is still the closest thing “Pulp Fiction” has to a good guy. Butch later embraces his bloodlust by slicing and dicing his would-be rapist, who couldn’t have picked a worse guy to screw with.
18. Lt. Aldo Raine (Brad Pitt) in “Inglourious Basterds”
Aldo Raine is the leader of the Basterds and and Apache descendant, who loved killing and scalping Nazis. Not the brightest star in the universe, but he does everything to get to his goal.
17. Vincent Vega (John Travolta) in “Pulp Fiction”
John Travolta pulled a dramatic career U-turn as Vincent Vega, the icy calm at the center of “Pulp Fiction” manic universe. He always remains the picture of coolness. Even when he has to show his moves on the dancefloor with Mia Wallace or when he accidentally shoots a guy in the head.
16. O-Ren Ishii (Lucy Liu) in “Kill Bill”
One of the Deadly Vipers on The bride’s to-do list. O-Ren gets the most fleshed out backstories of all the Kill Bill villains: orphaned by the Yakuza, eventually getting her much needed and deserved revenge. She becomes a master assassin and heads a Tokyo crime syndicate complete with her own Crazy 88 army.
15. Stuntman Mike (Kurt Russell) in “Death Proof”
“Death Proof” is the only Tarantino film that I didn’t like, but Stuntman Mike is its only redeeming feature. A psychopath hard-wired on murdering innocent female passengers by crashing his ‘death proof’ stunt car.
14. Dr. King Schultz (Christoph Waltz) in “Django Unchained”
Schultz is a bounty hunter, but also a righteous campaigner for racial equality. He teams up with ex-slave Django to free his wife from Calvin Candie. A man of tall tales, Schultz is a sharp-shooter but a sharper dresser. King is a man of principle, even when it costs him the ultimate price.
13. Mia Wallace (Uma Thurman) in “Pulp Fiction”
With a wit only as sharp as her bob, Mia Wallace is a very modern gangster’s moll: a thrillseeker whose actions are even more irresponsible than her husband’s. if you ignore the overdose, she’s a delightful dinner companion, able to fill any awkward silence and capable of tearing up the dance floor.
12. Stephen (Samuel L. Jackson) in “Django Unchained”
Calvin Candy is the obvious villain in “Django Unchained”, but there’s something even more insidious about his house slave Stephen: a man who seemingly turned his back on his entire race. Stephen is either a desperate victim forced into the unthinkable by circumstance, or the most insidiously evil character in the movie. I think the latter.
11. Mr. White (Harvey Keitel) in “Reservoir Dogs”
He can’t make a clean getaway. He shows some mercy to his fatally wounded companion Mr. Orange after their diamond heist went wrong. Stoic and composed, Mr. White displays chinks of humanity that the rest of the Reservoir Dogs fill with greed.
10. Rick Dalton (Leonardo DiCaprio) in “Once Upon a Time in Hollywood”
Rick Dalton is a TV actor who’s on his way back and is only playing villains in TV pilots. Dalton would rather self-destruct than acknowledge he doesn’t truly matter anymore. He is so magnetic because he’s also wildly funny. Played by an actor that is not known for his funny roles, Leonardo DiCaprio is completely loveable, ludicrously demanding and he has a child-like sense of wonder.
9. Jackie Brown (Pam Grier) in “Jackie Brown”
The heroine of “Jackie Brown” is a blaxploitation legend of her own right. The stewardess/ smuggler checks in that baggage to her advantage, expertly playing off the cops and criminals, Jacki is one of the baddest asses in the Tarantino universe.
8. Jules Winnfield (Samuel L. Jackson) in “Pulp Fiction”
It’s tough to define cool, particularly in a Tarantino movie that’s super cool. But then there is Jules Winnfield, the coolest of them all. A burger eating and verbally strong hitman, who has some of the most quotable lines in movie history.
7. Elle Driver (Daryl Hannah) in “Kill Bill”
Elle Driver is definitely the coolest of Bill’s hit squad, with a rad accessory: a patch covering the gaping socket from where Pai Mei pulled her eye. Elle is a direct rival of The Bride, mainly for the affections of their master Bill. And the trailer cat-fight is without a doubt a highlight of the film.
6. Shosanna Dreyfuss (Mélanie Laurent) in “Inglourious Basterds”
Revenge is a dish best served cold, or if you’re war survivor Shoshanna, a dish best served roasted and dripping in Nazi blood. Narrowly avoiding being killed, she sets her sight high with the help of the Basterds, brings down Hitler and his Third Reich with a fiery massacre in her own movie theater.
5. Mr. Pink (Steve Buscemi) in “Reservoir Dogs”
Mr. Pink is a nitpicker. He’s not happy with his codename Mr. Pink, he doesn’t tip. He is, however, an utmost professional, and is the only man smart enough to escape with his life. It’s easy to see why Tarantino loved this character so much, he initially wanted to play the role himself.
4. Mr. Blonde (Michael Madsen) in “Reservoir Dogs”
Mr. Blonde is the darkest soul of all of the Reservoir Dogs gang. A man for whom torture is an activity to be set to music. Michael Madsen nails the quesy tone, adding style and swagger to his sadistic deeds. He is Tarantino’s most vicious villain.
3. Cliff Booth (Brad Pitt) in “Once Upon a Time in Hollywood”
Could stuntman Cliff Booth be Brad Pitt’s greatest achievement. He’s certainly on the list. The kind of character that only Pitt could have played in this stage of his life and definitely the best part of “Once Upon a Time in Hollywood”.
2. Col. Hans Landa (Christoph Waltz) in “Inglourious Basterds”
This is the role that introduced Hollywood to Christoph Waltz (and the Oscars). Hans Landa is a once-in-a-lifetime part: a comic book bad guy with a silver tongue. Is he Tarantino’s most detestable character? Certainly up on the list, but he is definitely one of the smartest. Landa is both charming and terrifying at the same part.
1. Beatrix Kiddo aka The Bride (Uma Thurman) in “Kill Bill”
We first meet Beatrix Kiddo at her most vulnerable: pregnant, beaten, shivering and at the mercy of her former lover, she’s staring down the barrel of a gun that’s about to go off. Thus begins the epic journey of The Bride, who never made it down the aisle. Left for dead, but miraculously survived. And she has a hitlist, taking down all the sons of bitches that caused a bloodbath at her wedding (which was actually a rehearsal). With no mercy whatsoever.
Honorable mentions: Louis Gara (Robert De Niro) – Jackie Brown, Ray Nicolette (Michael Keaton) – Jackie Brown, Pai Mei (Gordon Liu) – Kill Bill Vol. 2, Donny Donowitz (Eli Roth) – Inglourious Basterds, Marsellus Wallace (Ving Rhames) – Pulp Fiction, Calvin Candie (Leonardo DiCaprio) - Django Unchained, Ordell Robbie (Samuel L. Jackson) – Jackie Brown, Mr. Orange (Tim Roth) – Reservoir Dogs, Captain Koons (Christopher Walken) – Pulp Fiction
