American director, screenwriter, producer and actor Quentin Tarantino attends The UK premiere of "Django Unchained" at The Empire Leicester Square, in London on January 10, 2013. UPI/Paul Treadway |
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LONDON, Jan. 11 (UPI) -- U.S. director Quentin Tarantino says he still sees no connection between film and real-life violence, but heatedly refused to tell a British TV journalist why.
The filmmaker appeared on Britain's Channel Four News program to promote his latest blood-soaked saga, "Django Unchained," which opened in U.S. theaters shortly after Connecticut's Sandy Hook school massacre, in which a 20-year-old gunman killed 20 first-graders and six adults before fatally shooting himself.
The critically acclaimed film, which is up for Hollywood's Best Picture Oscar, has become part of a wider dialogue about the impact screen violence has on people and whether filmmakers have a responsibility to tone it down in light of numerous real-life mass shootings.
Channel Four presenter Krishnan Guru-Murthy quietly asked Tarantino several times to clarify statements he has made in the past about his opinion there is no relationship between movie and real-life violence.
Growing visibly irritated by the journalist's line of questioning, Tarantino told him, "I'm shutting your butt down."
"This is a commercial for the movie -- make no mistake," Tarantino said, emphasizing he has no intention of explaining why he likes making violent movies and why he doesn't think they influence people to hurt others.
He also encouraged his interviewer -- and anyone else who is interested in what he has to say about the topics -- to search the Internet for his past statements because his opinions have not changed "one iota."
"It's none of your damn business what I think about that," Tarantino said.
"I've explained this many times in 20 years but I just refuse to repeat myself over and over again because you want me to -- for you and your show and your ratings," the filmmaker said. "I'm going to tell you why I'm so sure? Don't ask me a question like that. I'm not biting. I refuse your question. I refuse your question. I'm not your slave and you're not my master. You can't make me dance to your tune. I'm not a monkey. I don't want to talk about what you want to talk about. I don't want to talk about the implications of violence. I haven't wanted ... because ... The reason I don't want to talk about it -- because I've said everything I have to say about it."
The writer-director also referred to "Django Unchained," a movie about a 19th century African-American slave who exacts revenge on white slave owners and criminals, as "good cinema," "not real life" and a "fantasy" that features "cathartic violence."
Tarantino's other film credits include "Reservoir Dogs," "Pulp Fiction," "Kill Bill" and "Inglorious Basterds."
