Worshiped like a film star by fans of his ultrahip and violent movies, reviled and condemned by the self-appointed guardians of mortality, Quentin Tarantino has become the cult hero of the nineties.

Using exclusive material from her interviews with Tarantino and those close to him, Jami Bernard traces his fascinating rise from high school dropout and B-movie junkie to the darling Hollywood, exploring the philosophy and mythology of the writer and director who has, with just a few explosive films, turned the movie world on its head.

With the furor over Reservior Dogs, the triumph of Pulp Fiction, and the bitter conflict over Natural Born Killers, Tarantino's meteoric rise has been perspective of those who have worked, played, and done battle with him, Jami Bernard looks beyond the media icon and reveals the man--and his message.

The wide gamut of films that turn us on, as judged by the most distinguished group of movie critics in America The National Society of Film Critics dares to go where few mainstream critics have gone before - to the heart of what gets the coloured lights going as they say in A Streetcar Named Desire. Here is their take on the films that quicken their (and our) pulses - an enterprise both risky and risque, an entertaining overview of the most arousing films Hollywood has ever produced. But make no mistake about is: This isn't a collection of esoteric critic's choice movies. The films reflect individual taste, rubbing against the grain of popular wisdom. And, because of the personal nature of the erotic forces at play, these essays will reveal more about the individual critics than perhaps they have revealed thus far to their readers. The Society is a world-renowned, marquee-name organization embracing some of America's most distinguished critics, more than forty writers who have followings nationally as well as devoted local constituencies in such major cities as New York, Chicago, Los Angeles, Boston, Philadelphia, Atlanta and Minneapolis. lover