Tarantino isn't the first Director to push actors too far into doing their own stunts, or turn a blind eye to unsafe situations and not heed warnings about unsavoury characters. As far as dangers you can mitigate against, there are people who's job it is to ensure stunts work to plan and they'll have sat in that car and done that exact same sequence themselves personally. Surely QT trusted them, and did whatever he did to provoke Thurman to act in a certain way in the scene. Yes, I can believe there are some Directors who'll behave like tyrants purposely to get a response from an actor that probably wouldn't ordinarily be capable of delivering that intense. It's a weird schizophrenic business is show.
