Motherhood (ER)
"Motherhood" | |
---|---|
Decider found reminiscent of Reservoir Dogs.[1] | |
Episode no. | Season 1 Episode 24 |
Directed by | Quentin Tarantino |
Written by | Lydia Woodward |
Produced by | |
Featured music | Martin Davich |
Cinematography by | Richard Thorpe |
Editing by | Jim Gross |
Production code | 456623 |
Original air date | May 11, 1995 |
Running time | 47 minutes |
Guest appearances | |
| |
"Motherhood" is the twenty-fourth and penultimate episode of the
In the
In its initial airing, "Motherhood" received the highest rating of the week, in front of episodes from Friends and Seinfeld, and was watched in a total of 21.8 million homes by 33.1 million viewers. The episode also received generally positive reviews from critics, who enjoyed the episode but also said that for ER, the directing style of Tarantino did not stand out.
Synopsis
Late at night,
Production
"Motherhood" was directed by Quentin Tarantino and written by ER supervising producer Lydia Woodward. Tarantino decided to come on board as director after George Clooney (the actor who was portraying Doug Ross on ER) gave him the idea after filming From Dusk till Dawn. Writing the episode, Woodward said that she did not create the script with Tarantino in mind, but did try to "gross out" the scenes featured in the episode after learning he would direct.[2][3]
For his work on the episode, Tarantino received $30,000 from NBC.[4] Filming it, Tarantino said he "liked the ER style" and the use of Steadicams to shoot long takes. On set, the director encountered a problem with executive producer John Wells, who told him to go back and reshoot a scene. Tarantino said that the incident taught him that in television, the choices were actually made by the producers as it was "their show. I'm directing the episode, and then I'm leaving".[5] Julianna Margulies mentioned that Tarantino would only shoot one take for the scenes so the network would be forced to accept his cut of the episode without any interference.[6]
Reception
Viewership
According to the
Critical response
The ER episode received generally positive reviews from critics, who gave generally positive notes to director Quentin Tarantino.[1] In a review from the Detroit Free Press, a critic said that the episode was "high-powered, fast-paced, [and] darkly funny", and said that the episode contained "sudden moments of intense, emotion-grabbing sentiment."[10] Writing for The Boston Globe, Frederic M. Biddle said that NBC's choice of hiring a film director like Tarantino was risky, but ultimately said that the "gift of mischief dazzles."[11]
Additionally, television critic Hal Boedeker simply called the episode "memorable", and said that it revealed "unexpected tenderness" from the director.[12][13] In a positive note, David Zurawik from The Baltimore Sun compared Tarantino's dark humor to the jokes found in M*A*S*H and St. Elsewhere,[14] while Richard Helm, writing for the Edmonton Journal, said that he felt Tarantino was "[fighting] the temptation" of applying his "reputation on shock violence and dark humor" to the episode.[15] On a mixed review from The News-Press, Kinney Littlefield said that Tarantino's directing style on the episode was "edgy" but that for ER, it did not stand out.[16]
From the
References
- ^ a b Reid, Joe (May 11, 2017). "Today in TV History: Quentin Tarantino Brought Some Blood to the ER". Decider. Archived from the original on January 25, 2021. Retrieved January 25, 2021.
- ^ Rossen, Jake (January 14, 2016). "When Quentin Tarantino Directed an Episode of ER". Mental Floss. Archived from the original on January 24, 2021. Retrieved January 24, 2021.
- ^ Holmes, Anna (August 25, 1995). "Quentin Tarantino directs an episode of ER". Entertainment Weekly. Archived from the original on January 26, 2021. Retrieved January 26, 2021.
- ^ Frere, Jackie (August 2, 2019). "40 Behind-the-Scenes Photos on Set With Quentin Tarantino". Esquire. Archived from the original on January 24, 2021. Retrieved January 24, 2021.
- ISBN 978-1-578-06051-1.
- ^ Sharf, Zack (April 23, 2021). "Quentin Tarantino Directed ER in One-Takes So NBC Would Be Forced to Use His Cut". IndieWire. Archived from the original on April 23, 2021. Retrieved April 23, 2021.
- Newspapers.com.
- Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Nielsen ratings". USA Today. May 17, 1995. p. 3D.
- Newspapers.com.
- Newspapers.com.
- Newspapers.com.
- Newspapers.com.
- Newspapers.com.
- Newspapers.com.
- Newspapers.com.
- Newspapers.com.
- Newspapers.com.
- Newspapers.com.
- Gold Derby. September 18, 2019. Retrieved March 11, 2022.
External links
- "Motherhood" at IMDb
- Script – Archived January 24, 2021, at the Wayback Machine