so my theory on tarantino has always been, since i first saw pulp fiction when i was like 12, that he is obsessed with everything taboo, but because you can't just make movies about taboo subjects, he deliberately creates stories where the taboo stuff will not only be seen as acceptable, but will actually be lauded and encouraged.

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i always come back to the rape scene in pulp fiction. when i first saw that i was just totally stunned, i had no idea anything even close to that was going to happen. and i thought why would someone put this here in this movie? it's not just unnecessary, it's a level of randomness and a level of taboo that's going far beyond maybe anything i've seen in a movie. and then i realized when bruce willis gets the sword that the person who comes up with that rape scene isn't coming up with it in addition to an existing story - they are obsessed with these types of scenes to begin with, and they craft a story around them in order to make them acceptable subjects.

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i think that if people would pay to see it, tarantino would just make a movie of taboo/perverted/violent scenes that had nothing to do with each other, just exploring themes of brutality, dominance/submission, 'coolness', etc. like porn + snuff films, hence his interest in grindhouse. but he's also got the sensibilities of an auteur and i think deep down really wants to be liked. so he, especially in his last 5 or so movies, deliberately creates situations where his heroes will be allowed to engage in heinous, taboo behavior because they have suffered and are seen as the good guys. that way he can get off on the perverted stuff, the auteur stuff, AND still have people like him and not call him a disgusting freak all the time...which is what i'm sure people called him a lot when he wasn't famous.