Quentin Tarantino is one of the most influential filmmakers of the last 30 years. From his cool, viscerally fresh early films like Reservoir Dogs to his recent grand, overarching cinematic work Once Upon a Time... In Hollywood, Tarantino's impact on the film industry cannot be overstated. Along with this, his take on many different beloved genres -- from 1970s kung-fu flicks to spaghetti westerns -- have become gems of these genres in their own right. However, with the swirling rumors of Tarantino potentially directing a Star Trek film, and the plot that goes along with it, the possibility of him putting his own spin on an original science-fiction movie is dwindling.
So, why exactly does his potential involvement in the next Star Trek film dampen the chances of him making a truly great sci-fi movie? Well, according to the rumors, the movie would be based on an episode of the original series that takes place, for the most part, on a planet a lot like Earth. In fact, the planet is run by a group similar to 1920s Chicago gangsters. So while this may be a Star Trek film with many sci-fi elements in it, if this plot is the direction the Tarantino-led Star Trek movie is going, then the world will miss out on a truly original sci-fi movie from the director.
Quentin Tarantino is a master of putting his own spin on well-known genres already filled with specific tropes and expectations. He did precisely this with his rendition of the grindhouse-style martial-arts movies of the 1970s in Kill Bill. In that movie, he took many of the expected tropes, including over-the-top musical cues, liberal use of close ups and black and white along with a dramatic final showdown, and created a vision that is uniquely his own. He twisted the expectations associated with the genre to fit within his own style. He did the very same thing with his rendition of the spaghetti western in Django Unchained; keeping the large, sweeping landscape shots and quick-draw gun slinging, but setting them in the Antebellum south and making the protagonist a former slave trying to find his long-lost love.
This is precisely why the current rumors about the Tarantino-led Star Trek film are so disappointing. Based on what's been reported, the movie would fall in line with ground he has already covered in his previous movies focused on violence and organized crime. As a result, the Star Trek film should not be the sci-fi movie he attaches his name to.
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Instead, it is time for Tarantino to create his own, original science-fiction movie without any restrictions based on previous source material. Absolute freedom to explore the genre in whichever way he sees fit could lead to another instant classic in his already beloved filmography. In a genre as laden with expectations and tropes as science fiction, the possibilities of where he could taken them are endless.
Quentin Tarantino's clear and obvious love for all genres of film, both high and low brow, is well documented in his words and his works. So, before he decides to retire -- or perhaps wastes the opportunity on a project below the standards his fans have grown accustomed to seeing from him -- he should make his version of a sci-fi flick.