Cinema Speculation
{{Short description|2022 nonfiction book by Quentin Tarantino}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=October 2022}}
{{Infobox book
| name = Cinema Speculation
| image = Cinema Speculation (Quentin Tarantino).png
| alt =
| caption = First edition cover
| author = Quentin Tarantino
| audio_read_by = Edoardo Ballerini
Quentin Tarantino
| country = United States
| language = English
| subject = Film
| publisher = Harper
| pub_date = November 1, 2022
| media_type = Print (hardcover)
| pages = 400
| isbn = 978-0-06-311258-2
| oclc = 1348950198
| dewey =
| congress =
}}
Cinema Speculation is a 2022 nonfiction book by American filmmaker Quentin Tarantino, published by Harper on November 1, 2022.
Background
Cinema Speculation is Tarantino's debut work of nonfiction and combines "film criticism, film theory, a feat of reporting, and wonderful personal history".{{cite web|url=https://www.indiewire.com/2022/05/quentin-tarantino-new-book-cinema-speculation-coming-this-fall-1234729304/|title=Quentin Tarantino Announces Film History Book 'Cinema Speculation' Coming This Fall|last=Zilko|first=Christian|date=May 29, 2022|website=IndieWire|access-date=October 30, 2022}} The book is a collection of essays organized around "key American films from the 1970s" which Tarantino saw in his youth,{{cite web|url=https://www.nme.com/news/film/quentin-tarantino-to-release-new-book-cinema-speculation-later-this-year-3236701|title=Quentin Tarantino to release new book 'Cinema Speculation' later this year|last=Shutler|first=Ali|date=May 30, 2022|website=NME|access-date=October 30, 2022}} ranging from blaxploitation films to all the Best Picture nominees of 1970.[https://www.newyorker.com/culture/the-front-row/quentin-tarantinos-cinema-speculation-is-an-obsessive-insiders-view-of-hollywood Quentin Tarantino's "Cinema Speculation" Is an Obsessive Insider's View of Hollywood|The New Yorker] It was inspired by the film writing of critic Pauline Kael.{{cite magazine|last=Shaffer|first=Claire|date=November 17, 2020|title=Quentin Tarantino Lands Book Deal, Including "Once Upon a Time in...Hollywood" Novelization|url=https://www.rollingstone.com/movies/movie-news/quentin-tarantino-books-once-upon-a-time-in-hollywood-novelization-1091425/|url-access=limited|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201119110225/https://www.rollingstone.com/movies/movie-news/quentin-tarantino-books-once-upon-a-time-in-hollywood-novelization-1091425/|archive-date=November 19, 2020|access-date=November 23, 2020|magazine=Rolling Stone}}
Contents
The first and last chapters are autobiographical. Two other chapters are a homage to film critic Kevin Thomas, and a comparison of two generations of film-makers. The rest of the chapters are essays about the following films:
Publication
The book was initially scheduled to be published on October 25, 2022;{{cite news|date=May 27, 2022|title=Quentin Tarantino book 'Cinema Speculation' to land Oct. 25|url=https://apnews.com/article/entertainment-quentin-tarantino-nonfiction-ff805653c07219226257ea04903c9268|work=Associated Press|access-date=October 30, 2022}} Cinema Speculation was published by Harper on November 1, 2022.{{cite web|url=https://www.harpercollins.com/products/cinema-speculation-quentin-tarantino?variant=40461820756002|title=Cinema Speculation|website=HarperCollins|access-date=October 30, 2022}} It is the second book in a two-book deal Tarantino signed with HarperCollins in 2020. Tarantino promoted the book with a nationwide book tour.{{cite web|url=https://thefilmstage.com/quentin-tarantino-to-embark-on-nationwide-book-tour-for-cinema-speculation/|title=Quentin Tarantino to Embark on Nationwide Book Tour for Cinema Speculation|last=Raup|first=Jordan|date=October 5, 2022|website=The Film Stage|access-date=October 30, 2022}} The book's cover features a photograph of Steve McQueen with director Sam Peckinpah on the set of the 1972 action crime thriller The Getaway.{{cite magazine|last=Williams|first=Owen|date=May 30, 2022|title=Quentin Tarantino's Cinema Speculation To Be Published This Autumn|url=https://www.empireonline.com/movies/news/quentin-tarantino-cinema-speculation-to-be-published-this-autumn/|magazine=Empire|access-date=October 30, 2022}}
Reception
Cinema Speculation debuted at number five on The New York Times nonfiction best-seller list for the week ending November 5, 2022.{{cite web|url=https://www.nytimes.com/books/best-sellers/2022/11/20/combined-print-and-e-book-nonfiction/|title=Combined Print & E-Book Nonfiction|work=The New York Times|date=November 20, 2022|access-date=November 20, 2022}} Kirkus Reviews gave the book a starred review, writing, "Whether you agree with his assessments or not, he provides the original reporting and insights only a veteran director would notice, and his engaging style makes it impossible to leave an essay without learning something."{{cite magazine|date=October 27, 2022|title=Cinema Speculation by Quentin Tarantino|url=https://www.kirkusreviews.com/book-reviews/quentin-tarantino/cinema-speculation/|magazine=Kirkus Reviews|access-date=November 1, 2022}} The Daily Telegraph reviewer Jasper Rees gave the book 3 out of 5 stars, writing, "At times it's like leafing through yellowing back issues of Screen International. At others you feel Tarantino would have made a brilliant Tinseltown gossip columnist."{{cite news|last=Rees|first=Jasper|date=November 1, 2022|title=Cinema Speculation by Quentin Tarantino review: like a monologue from a relentless 19-year-old geek|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/books/what-to-read/cinema-speculation-quentin-tarantino-review-like-monologue-relentless/|url-status=live|newspaper=The Daily Telegraph|archive-url=https://archive.today/20221101160407/https://www.telegraph.co.uk/books/what-to-read/cinema-speculation-quentin-tarantino-review-like-monologue-relentless/|archive-date=November 1, 2022|access-date=November 5, 2022|url-access=subscription}}
See also
- New Hollywood
- Exploitation film
- American independent cinema
- Cinephilia
- A Personal Journey with Martin Scorsese Through American Movies - 1995 documentary film similar in content
References
{{Reflist}}
{{Quentin Tarantino}}
{{Authority control}}
Category:2022 non-fiction books
Category:American essay collections
Category:Books by Quentin Tarantino