There’s one director working today that Quentin Tarantino has boldly compared to Steven Spielberg in his prime — and that comparison is absolutely spot-on. Tarantino is hesitant to discuss current films and filmmakers, because if he says something negative, he’s “slamming” them, and if he says something positive, then he’s giving airtime to his own compeтιтors. But he’s made some exceptions over the years if he feels really pᴀssionate about something, like his rave review of Top Gun: Maverick.

In 2013, Tarantino “impulsively” flew out to attend the Busan International Film Festival (via The Hollywood Reporter), because he wanted to meet with acclaimed South Korean director Bong Joon-ho after being “blown away” by his work. Tarantino interviewed Bong on stage at the festival and hailed him as one of the greatest visionary filmmakers of his generation. He even went as far as making a laudatory comparison between Bong and prime Spielberg, which is about the highest compliment a filmmaker can give — and it’s not hyperbole.

Quentin Tarantino Believes Bong Joon Ho And Steven Spielberg Have A Lot In Common

Bong & Spielberg’s Movies Both Achieve The Same “Level Of Entertainment & Comedy”

During this interview, Tarantino said that Bong, “of all the filmmakers out there in the last 20 years,” has the most in common with Spielberg in his prime, which Tarantino delineates as the 1970s when he made Jaws and Close Encounters of the Third Kind back-to-back. He said that Bong’s films have a “level of entertainment and comedy” that’s comparable to Spielberg’s best work. Even when Spielberg is telling a terrifying story about a bloodthirsty shark, he finds plenty of room for sight gags and funny character moments — and Bong does the same thing.

Much like Spielberg, Bong can achieve greatness across a wide variety of genres. He’s never settled into a niche; he’s made monster movies like The Host, grisly crime thrillers like Parasite and Memories of Murder, and futuristic sci-fi actioners like Snowpiercer and Mickey 17. Bong, like Spielberg, has never gotten pigeonholed by a single genre or style, and yet his personality always shines through in his tonally disparate works. The Host, much like Close Encounters, frames its speculative sci-fi story through the eyes of a dysfunctional family.

Bong Joon Ho’s Movies Are Always Entertaining – Regardless Of How Dark They Are

Mickey 17 Is As Much An Odd-Couple Comedy As A Dark Corporate Satire

No matter how dark and twisted Bong’s movies get, they’re always funny and entertaining. Parasite is a dark social satire about the class divide, but it also has the visual gag of a toilet being plumbed in uncomfortably close to the ceiling. Mickey 17 is a morbid critique of capitalism and corporate exploitation, but it’s also an odd-couple comedy about two bickering clones. Quentin Tarantino is right; Bong just might be his generation’s answer to Spielberg.

Source: The Hollywood Reporter

Quentin Tarantino

Birthdate

March 27, 1963

Birthplace

Knoxville, Tennessee, United States

Notable Projects

Pulp Fiction, Django Unchained, Inglourious Basterds

Professions

Director, Screenwriter, Producer, Actor, Author