Sightlines · reception
How Go was received
1999 · Doug Liman · Go on Sightlines
The arc
Dismissed by some in April 1999 as just another Pulp Fiction knockoff and only a modest hit, Go has been steadily reappraised as one of the purest blasts of fun from cinema's legendary 1999 — the rare post-Tarantino movie people now argue outdoes the imitator label entirely.
What’s debated
The perennial fight: is Go the best of the Tarantino-wave triptych movies or merely the most likeable ripoff — and, among fans, which of its three interlocking segments actually rules.
Its footprint
Its big-beat soundtrack became a time capsule of the late-90s rave moment — Len's 'Steal My Sunshine' broke out from it — and Timothy Olyphant's Santa-hatted dealer Todd Gaines remains a cult-favorite character cinephiles still quote and meme.
Where it stands
A canonical 'underrated gem of 1999' pick — the sleeper that film lovers press on each other with 'you've never seen Go?'
Did you know? Go was Melissa McCarthy's feature film debut — a tiny role more than a decade before Bridesmaids made her a star — and Doug Liman, as on Swingers, acted as his own cinematographer.