Quentin Tarantino, director of 'Django Unchained', has never really been a fan of streaming service Netflix, and he's also never been shy about admitting that. While there's never been any real explanation behind the director's dislike for the service, we at Movie'n'Co, and many of you we're sure, presumed the problem was similar to that of Christopher Nolan.
Netflix allows its users to select, from a huge variety of programmes, something to suit their ever-changing tastes. Nolan criticised the service because of its potential to skip cinemas and allow films to stream directly after their release. However, it appears as though Tarantino's dislike comes from another place entirely.
What appears to be bothering Tarantino is that less people are taking a risk and so end up watching the same sort of shows time and time again. With on-demand services like Netflix, there's a growing tendency among viewers to begin watching a particular film or series, and then swiftly giving up on their choice because it doesn't end up being their cup of tea. According to the 'Inglorious Basterds' director, "there was a different quality to the video store. You looked around, you picked up boxes, you read the back of the boxes. You made a choice, and maybe you talked to the guy behind the counter...he gave you a little bit of a sales pitch on it to some degree or another. And so the point being is, you were kind of invested, in a way that you're not invested with electronic technology when it comes to the movies."
It's not all Netflix's fault
So in a way, Tarantino isn't necessarily blaming Netflix in its entirety (he doesn't even have an account), but the vast choices the service offers us. With an endless cannon of shows, it's so much easier for us to change our minds and find something more appealing to watch. In the words of The Playlist, before streaming became the norm, "it's not like VHS prevented people from stopping a movie halfway through if they didn't like it."
Tarantino himself used the example of cable television to describe this tendency, so it's fair to say that it's been a long time coming, and not all down to Netflix.
