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1994
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PULP
FICTION
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STARRING:JOHN
TRAVOLTA,SAMUEL L.JACKSON,UMA THURMAN,BRUCE WILLIS,VING RHAMES,TIM
ROTH,AMANDA PLUMMER,ERIC STOLTZ,HARVEY KEITEL,MARIA DE MEDEIROS,QUENTIN
TARANTINO,CHRISTOPHER WALKEN
STORIES
BY QUENTIN TARANTINO & ROGER AVARY
WRITTEN
BY QUENTIN TARANTINO
PRODUCED
BY LAWRENCE BENDER
DIRECTED
BY QUENTIN TARANTINO
GENRE:CRIME/DRAMA
RATED:AUSTRALIA:R/UK:18/USA:R
RUNNING
TIME:154 MIN
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With
only his second feature film, director Quentin Tarantino has established
himself as a force to be reckoned with, creating a style that has
been duplicated so many times that the term 'Tarantino-esque' had
to be invented to keep up with the never ending stream of pictures
that have copied his always entertaining formula of film making.
Pulp Fiction involves four intertwining storylines; two hit
men Vincent Vega (John Travolta) and Jules Winfield (Samuel L. Jackson)
reclaim a mysterious package for their employee Marcelus Wallace (Ving
Rhames); Vincent takes Marcelus' wife, Mia (Uma Thurman) out to dinner
only for the night to turn into a near tragedy; a boxer named Butch
(Bruce Willis) is on the run after he refuses to take a dive in the
ring for Marcelus, making a fortune in the process after he bets all
of his money on himself; and Vincent and Jules are stuck in a bizarre
situation after their hit turns into a catastrophe, prompting to call
on the services of the mysterious Mr. Wolf (Harvey Keitel), only for
the day to get worse when they are stuck in a diner which is being
robbed by two love struck criminals (Tim Roth and Amanda Plummer).
The biggest strength of the film is the excellent script by Tarantino
which is full of pop culture riffs with the comedy blacker than black.
The dialogue between the characters is excellent where subjects such
as foot massages, $5 shakes and TV pilots are common place. No doubt
it is one of the most quoted films of all time which is also filled
with unforgettable moments such as Samuel L. Jackson's 'Ezekiel' speech,
John Travolta and Uma Thurman dancing to Chuck Berry at the fictional
(yet extremely cool) Jack Rabbit Slims restaurant and Travolta and
Jackson talking about fast food restaurants in Europe. Yet my favorite
scene has to be the brilliant monologue delivered by Christopher Walken
playing the role of Captain Koons, where he tells a young Butch the
story of how his birthright (his great grandfathers watch) had survived
the Korean War when his father was trapped in a prison camp, only
to die and pass the watch on to Koons who kept the watch safe.
Plucked from the dregs of straight to video hell and never ending
Look Who's Talking sequels, Travolta rises to the occasion
delivering what might very well be his greatest acting achievement.
Samuel L. Jackson too delivers his best performance with years of
wallowing in bit parts finally paying off, while Hollywood superstar
Bruce Willis continues to surprise making good choices to counter
act with his typically big budget fare. Uma Thurman is superb, Harvey
Keitel and Christopher Walken shine in unique minor roles, while the
likes of Eric Stoltz, Tim Roth, Amanda Plummer, Roseanna Arquette
and Ving Rhames will never be able to surpass what might very well
be their most memorable, if not best performances
There are no 'good guys' found here. This is a movie about criminals
with the violence and drug use shown in grim detail. Some may say
that it glorifies criminal life, but I have to disagree. Sure some
of the characters come off as 'cool', but Tarantino clearly shows
the consequences to the characters actions with Uma Thurman's overdose
scene a case in point on how the excesses of doing drugs can lead
to disastrous results.
In conclusion I found Pulp Fiction to be one of the best films
I have ever seen and it sits comfortably in my personal top five.
Oh, and the soundtrack is also first rate. |
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