‘True Romance’ is a romantic crime film, written by Quentin Tarantino and directed by Tony Scott. The plot follows an ex call-girl called Alabama (Patricia Arquette), and her husband Clarence (Christian Slater), as they go on the run from the mob after Clarence accidentally steals a large amount of cocaine from Alabama’s ex pimp.
This film feels very Tarantino esque despite only being written by him, all the hallmarks by which we would come to know his work are all present here; much like all of his pictures this film is glorious. Yes, my thoughts on current Tarantino have been noted in previous reviews, I don’t think he has made a film that was of the same caliber as his early works since ‘Django Unchained’ back in 2012; I think he is on the decline as a director.
The tone of the film again is familiar to Tarantino fans as it has moments of extreme darkness and moments of levity, it has moments of gritty realism and moments of fantasy oddness. One such odd detail which also happens to be one of my favourite bits of the film is how Clarence has Elvis (Val Kilmer) as an imaginary friend; a lot of these wacky details add to the film’s manic sensibilities.
That said the film also pulls off slow meaningful moments well, there are a lot of scenes between Alabama and Clarence that have genuine warmth and emotion to them. The relationship between the two grows throughout the runtime of the film in a real and organic way; you can feel the love they have for each other.
The performances in this film are also excellent, Slater and Arquette do a great job as the leads, but the supporting cast also give great turns. The late James Gandolfini is terrific as a mob hitman called Virgil, though his character isn’t in it a huge amount he shines with what he has. There is a brutal fight scene between his character and Alabama and the monologue that Gandolfini delivers before and during it can only be described as chilling.
Christopher Walken is also instantly memorable as Don Vincenzo Coccotti. Though Walken’s character only has a scene he brings such a presence to the screen such as sense of gravitas that he is immediately captivating.
Overall, this film is phenomenal it a testament to Tarantino as a screen writer as it is a film that features a lot of characters, but each one feels unique and special.
Pros.
Tarantino Magic.
Great Leads In Slater And Arquette.
Gandolfini Is A Scene Stealer.
So Is Walken.
Cons.
A Little Slow At Times.
4.5/5
Reviewed by Luke
Another Millennial Reviewer 