Rolling Thunder Pictures was a short-lived film distribution company, set up under

Miramax Films Miramax, LLC, also known as Miramax Films, is an American film and television production and distribution company founded on December 19, 1979, by brothers Harvey Weinstein, Harvey and Bob Weinstein, and based in Los Angeles, California. It was ...

Quentin Tarantino Quentin Jerome Tarantino (; born March 27, 1963) is an American film director, writer, producer, and actor. His films are characterized by stylized violence, extended dialogue, profanity, Black comedy, dark humor, Nonlinear narrative, non-lin ...

, that was headed by Jerry Martinez and Tarantino. It specialized on releasing independent, cult, or foreign films to theaters. "Rolling Thunder, Grindhouse and Cowboy Go ‘Beyond’ Dinner and a Movie, To Midnight" Indiewire, April 8, 1998
/ref> The company was created in 1995 but closed in 1999. The company was named after the film '' Rolling Thunder''."The Beyond Special" by Guido Henkel, DVD review
/ref>

Releases

The following films were re-released under the Rolling Thunder Pictures label: *'' The Beyond'' (in association with

Grindhouse Releasing Grindhouse Releasing is a Hollywood-based independent cult film distribution company led by film editor Bob Murawski and co-founded by Sage Stallone. Grindhouse digitally remasters, restores, and produces bonus materials and video documentaries f ...

) *''

Chungking Express ''Chungking Express'' is a 1994 Hong Kong romantic crime comedy-drama film written and directed by Wong Kar-wai. The film consists of two stories told in sequence, each about a lovesick Hong Kong policeman mulling over his relationship with a ...

'' *''

Detroit 9000 ''Detroit 9000'' is a 1973 American action film directed by Arthur Marks from a screenplay by Orville H. Hampton. Originally marketed as a blaxploitation film, it had a resurgence on video 25 years later. Plot Street-smart white detective Danny ...

'' *''

Mighty Peking Man ''The Mighty Peking Man'' (猩猩王) (Mandarin: ''Xīngxing Wáng'' – which translates to "Gorilla King" in English) is a 1977 Monster movie, giant monster film produced by Shaw Brothers Studio to capitalize on the craze surrounding the King ...

'' *'' Sonatine'' *''

Switchblade Sisters ''Switchblade Sisters'' is a 1975 American exploitation action film detailing the lives of high school-aged female gang members. It was directed by Jack Hill and stars Joanne Nail, Robbie Lee and Monica Gayle. The film is also known as ''The Jeze ...

'' The label also released the independent films ''

Hard Core Logo ''Hard Core Logo'' is a 1996 Canadian mockumentary adapted by Noel S. Baker from the novel of the same name by author Michael Turner. The film was directed by Bruce McDonald and illustrates the self-destruction of punk rock. Released in 1996, ...

'' and ''

Curdled Curdling is the breaking of an emulsion or colloid into large parts of different composition through the physio-chemical processes of flocculation, creaming, and coalescence. Curdling is purposeful in the production of cheese curd and tofu; und ...

''. The 1994

Jet Li Li Lianjie (courtesy name Yangzhong; born 26 April 1963), better known by his stage name Jet Li, is a Chinese film actor, film producer, Chinese martial arts, martial artist, and retired wushu (sport), Wushu champion. He is a naturalized Singapo ...

film ''

Fist of Legend ''Fist of Legend'' ( zh, , t=精武英雄, j=Zing1 Mou2 Jing1 Hung4) is a 1994 Hong Kong martial arts film directed and co-written by Gordon Chan, featuring action choreography by Yuen Woo-ping, and produced by Jet Li, who also stars in the l ...

'' had been scheduled for a Rolling Thunder Pictures release, but eventually

Dimension Films Dimension Films is an American film production company owned by Lantern Entertainment. It was formerly used as Harvey and Bob Weinstein's label within Miramax, which was acquired by The Walt Disney Company on June 30, 1993, to produce and relea ...

released it. Other production companies re-released on DVD later.

Quentin Tarantino's Rolling Thunder Pictures Triple Feature

On April 16, 2013, coinciding with the release of ''

Django Unchained ''Django Unchained'' () is a 2012 American revisionist Western film written and directed by Quentin Tarantino, starring Jamie Foxx, Christoph Waltz, Leonardo DiCaprio, Kerry Washington, and Samuel L. Jackson, with Walton Goggins, Dennis Chri ...

'', Miramax and

Lions Gate Lions Gate Entertainment Corporation, doing business as Lionsgate, is a Canadian-American entertainment company. It was formed by Frank Giustra on July 10, 1997, domiciled in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada and is currently headquartered in ...

released a special DVD set of three films previously released under the Rolling Thunder Pictures label. The set includes ''

The Mighty Peking Man ''The Mighty Peking Man'' (猩猩王) (Mandarin: ''Xīngxing Wáng'' – which translates to "Gorilla King" in English) is a 1977 giant monster film produced by Shaw Brothers Studio to capitalize on the craze surrounding the 1976 remake of '' ...

'', a ''King Kong'' knock-off; ''

'', a detective-style blaxploitation film; and ''

'', an obvious inspiration for Tarantino's films. Tarantino said of the collection "If you like my stuff, you can look at it as – this is where mine came from."

References

Further References

Retrospective page at the Quentin Tarantino Archives

List of Rolling Thunder Films in the Grindhouse Cinema Database

DJANGO and QT’s Rolling Thunder triple feature released today
Mass media companies established in 1995 Mass media companies disestablished in 1998 Film distributors of the United States Quentin Tarantino {{Film-studio-stub