Quentin Tarantino Called This Action Flick One Of The 'Most Entertaining Movies Ever'

In 2003, director Quentin Tarantino appeared on KRON 4, a local San Francisco news program, to be interviewed about his then-new film "Kill Bill." His interviewer was the prolific critic and lecturer Jan Wahl, and she had a bone to pick with Tarantino. She clearly didn't think much of Tarantino's movies and felt that the amount of bloody violence in "Kill Bill" had crossed a line. When Wahl prodded the director about his use of violence, Tarantino defended himself with ease, saying that "Kill Bill" is a fine, empowering fantasy for young women, and that it's probably okay for 12-year-olds to see. 

Wahl continued to push, however, saying that violence of that magnitude is going to be off-putting no matter the context. Why must Tarantino's films be so violent? The director famously yelled back, "Because it's so much fun, Jan! Get it?!" He flew off the handle, accusing Wahl of mistaking movie violence for real-life violence, and ended the interview in a huff. 

This moment reflects something that Tarantino's many fans knew about him already: the man loves violence in movies. Indeed, violence is one of his stylistic calling cards. In multiple films, he uses movie violence as a way to enact a sort of vicarious cultural revenge on real-life monsters. "Inglourious Basterds," for instance, climaxed with a Jewish theater owner and a Jewish-American soldier burning hundreds of Nazis alive and assassinating Hitler. "Django Unchained" climaxed with a Black man murdering a family of white slave-owners and exploding their plantation home.

What's more, Tarantino has never been guarded about his taste in movies, often citing Spaghetti Westerns and martial arts films as his favorites. If there's fighting and gunplay, paired with a certain amount of masculine grit, Tarantino will be all over it. The more violent, the more fun, and if it's obscure, so much the better. Indeed, in a recent interview on the Pure Cinema Podcast, Tarantino noted that the 1977 martial arts film "The Hot, the Cool, & the Vicious" is one of the most entertaining of all time.

Tso Nam Lee's "Nan Quan Bei Tui Zhan Yan Wang," a.k.a. "The Hot, the Cool, & the Vicious," a.k.a. "Hot, Cool, & Vicious," stars Wong Tao as a mysterious stranger passing through the small town of Black Stone. It is soon discovered that he is a notorious super-fighter, Pai Yu Ching, the dreaded "Southern Fist," rousing the ire and suspicion of the local sheriff, Captain Lu (Dorian Tan Tao-liang). Captain Lu is a notorious fighter himself, known as "Northern Leg." The two will end up joining forces, however, when the Mayor's shiftless son sexually assaults Captain Lu's fiancé and beats up his mother-in-law. Oh yes, and the Southern Fist is actually a secret government agent. Tommy Lee plays a pale-skinned, bug-like martial arts master who works for the evil mayor. 

Lee, the director of "Vicious," is a prolific martial arts director whom Tarantino has long been fond of. His films have screened at the New Beverly Cinema in Los Angeles, a venue that Tarantino owns and programs. Lee has helmed 1976's "Exit the Dragon, Enter the Tiger," 1981's "The Organization," and 2018's "Goddesses in the Flames of War." Tarantino is an expert in kung-fu cinema, so when he says that a certain director stands above the others, one can take his word for it. 

Tarantino loves the film, especially its climactic fight scene. He said: 

"It's one of the most entertaining movies ever. [...] One of the great martial arts directors, Lee Tso-nam, his nickname was the 'Master Blaster.' I think this is his best movie. That final fight in 'Hot, Cool, Vicious,' when they fight Tommy Lee, is just amazing. It's as fun as cinema gets." 

Yes, Salt-N-Pepa took the title of their 1986 debut album from Lee's movie. One can watch "The Hot, the Cool, & the Vicious" on Plex. Do it today.