Tarantino Nails ‘Basterds’ 40-minute Coffin Shut

Lying liar Tragically incorrect Sharon Waxman’s assertion that Harvey Weinstein and Universal were pressuring Quentin Tarantino to trim 40 minutes from Inglourious Basterds was already dealt a blow when it was vigorously denied by Weinstein himself and now Tarantino’s flat denial to Variety’s Michael Flemming over at BFDMemo should really finally be the end of it:

“I’ve heard these rumors that the studios told me to cut out 40 minutes. These are complete lies. The movie is actually a minute longer, in running time, than it was in Cannes. It was 2:28, without end credits, and now it’s 2:29, or 2:32 with end credits.”

The bold is mine obviously since a person can’t really speak in bold.

The rest of the interview is pretty good. Tarantino discusses some of the additions and subtractions he made to the film; he fans the embers of Basterds prequel rumors; he talks about working with a big star and the speculation that big stars can no longer open movies; and he talks about the pressures of commercial success. Check it out.

Also, we’re officially off the Basterds image posting bandwagon, but since we keep getting inerrupted by this pesky “news” business you might as well have a look at this and these.

Filed under: Buzz, Marketing
Tags: Inglourious Basterds, Quentin Tarantino, Sharon Waxman