5 out of 5 stars
Family appropriateness rating: 2 out of 5 stars
Rated R
-Some mildly descriptive sexual content (mentions of oral sex).
-One disturbing depiction of male-on-male rape. It is shot from the back, and the men are wearing their clothes. However, it is still graphic in that the action itself is shown.
-One scene of sensuality, and a scene in which a man taking a shower barely covers his private parts.
-Strong language throughout including f-words and n-words.
-I rate it up a little bit in this area because it has an uplifting, religious message to it.
Watching "Pulp Fiction" is like listening to a catchy song. It is a pleasurable experience that sticks with you the first time and does not disappoint in subsequent viewings.
It is not a typical film with one central plot. It has three stories told out of order that relate to each other. Each is about someone involved in a gang led by Marsellus Wallace (Ving Rhames).
One story is about two hit men, Jules (Samuel L. Jackson) and Vincent (John Travolta), who have to retrieve a briefcase from an apartment. Another story is about Vincent taking Marsellus's wife, Mia (Uma Thurman), out to dinner at the gang leader's request. The third story is about a boxer named Butch (Bruce Willis) who is told by Marsellus to throw the next fight but decides not to do so.
To someone casually watching, the stories seem completely random. In fact, when I saw it, I was not sure what they have to do with each other. After some thinking, I figured out that the movie has one central theme of redemption, which can only be understood after watching the movie in its entirety. In each story, something goes wrong, and the characters have to deal with it. Each person has a different motivation for wanting to do the right thing. Only one has selfish motivations behind his actions, and his fate is different than the other two. More about this is explained in the spoiler section of this review.
I have heard people say they get bored watching this movie. I assume this is because most of the film is dialogue. There is some action, but it is mostly people talking. It is not the type of movie to watch with chatty friends who make it hard to focus. In order to get the full experience, one needs to listen to every word the characters say.
Like in his other films, Tarantino uses dialogue to establish characters and detail situations. Although a lot is exposition, it never feels forced because it is in the form of banter between two people. An example of this is in the beginning. Vincent and Jules are introduced as regular guys going to work. They do not talk about what they are going to do so much as they are talk gossip about what happened to a certain gang member for overstepping some boundaries with Marsellus's wife.
Not only does this detail why Vincent is nervous about taking Mia out to dinner, it establishes the culture of the gang as something relatable. It is not just gangsters who gossip, it is any group of people. It reminds me of when I served a Mormon mission. I had a lot of conversations about issues going on with other missionaries.
My favorite story is the one in which Vincent takes Mia out. I consider myself a movie fan, but there are often a lot of aspects about I overlook. One such thing is set designs, but there is one set in this movie that I am impressed with. It is the restaurant where the two characters eat. It is a beautifully-crafted set, and Tarantino takes time to show everything in it using one long take of the camera following Vincent.
It does not hurt that Uma Thurman's Mia character is in that scene as well. A combination of the way her character acts and the way she looks makes her attractive. She is an outgoing woman with a fascination for understanding the world around her. There is an extra layer on her that is never really explained. She never says she is dissatisfied with her marriage or her husband's decisions, but her excessive drug use paired with her flirtatious attitude with Vincent suggest that she might be a little sad about the way her life has been going. Part of what makes her character great is the fact that it is never explained. It is one of those things the artist puts out there to let audience members interpret themselves.
There is one scene in the Vincent story that is both intense and hilarious. It is set within a drug dealer's house as characters are frantically trying to take care of a situation. Tarantino adds to the intensity by taking one long take in which the camera is constantly moving to every character when he or she speaks.
Every performance is phenomenal. In the Blu-ray special features, John Travolta expresses gratitude to Quentin Tarantino for casting him in such a great role. It was filmed in the early '90s when Travolta's career was not very good. The movies he was being cast were dumb "Look Who's Talking" films, and since "Pulp Fiction," he started to get taken more seriously. Judging from his performance as Vincent, he deserves to be successful. He does a great job as a hit man who is just trying to do his job without any trouble.
Samuel L. Jackson is another actor who needs to be recognized for this movie. He brings a lot of personality to his character, especially when he confronts the men in the apartment. Jules is intimidating to them, but to the audience, it is obvious he is playing. Jules undergoes a rapid change that transpires after a certain event. Jackson does a great job showing this change in a way that does not seem forced.
It helps to watch "Pulp Fiction" multiple times. The stories are out of chronological order, and part of what makes it fun is realizing how consistent every little detail is. For example, there is a part in which Jules and Vincent go into a bar wearing gym shorts and t-shirts as opposed to their classy tuxedos in previous scenes. There is a reason for this, but it is never shown until later in the film.
The message of redemption (spoilers)
When I first saw this movie, I liked it. It is an example of how entertaining a film can be without blowing a huge budget on expensive action scenes. However, I knew there is a lot that I did not completely understand. The main question I had was "Why are these particular stories in the movie?" As stated earlier, this question is something I thought about the next day, and I came up with a tentative answer that it is about redemption. This section goes more in depth with this. It may not be what Tarantino meant, but it is my interpretation of it as an audience member.
When Vincent and Jules are in the apartment, they shoot everyone in the room except for one man named Marvin (Phil Lamarr). Meanwhile, there is another person in a different room listening to the whole incident. Enraged, he jumps out and fires six shots in close range at the hit men. All six miss and hit the wall behind them.
Jules is amazed. Not one bullet hits them. He sees this as an act of God, a miracle. Vincent, however, does not believe it. He thinks it is a strange coincidence but not divine intervention. Jules tells him he cannot be so picky about miracles. What God chooses to show is not always some big flashy sign.
In the end, Jules decides to give up his life of crime. He shows he is a changed man when he helps two bandits realize they should change their lives too.
Vincent should have changed because of the miracle at the apartment, but he stays the same. He is a heroin junkie, who only cares about himself. He finds Mia attractive, and he is afraid of succumbing to his sexual desires. This is not because he feels adultery is morally wrong but because he is afraid of what Marsellus would do if he found out. She ends up overdosing on Vincent's heroine, thinking it is cocaine. This worries him, but it is more out of worry for his own life than out of general concern for her. His reward for being self-absorbed and not changing his ways is he gets shot by Butch.
Butch's story is seemingly the most disconnected from the rest of the film, but even it is about being the better person. Not only does Butch win the fight, he accidentally kills his opponent. Marsellus is angry, and Butch knows it. In fact, he has an escape plan. He and his girlfriend are hiding in a motel, and they are to run away in the morning. Things get complicated when the fighter realizes his gold watch -- which has been in his family for generations -- is still in his apartment. Knowing there are more than likely gang members there, he goes back to retrieve the valuable item.
This leads him to find Marsellus on the street. They get into a fight, and Butch almost kills the gang leader before being stopped by a perverted pawn shop owner named Maynard (Duane Whitaker) who captures them. They end up in his basement where they are to be taken advantage of sexually by the captor and a cop named Zed (Peter Greene).
Marsellus goes first, and Butch manages to escape. He is just about to leave the shop when he realizes that there are some horrific things happening to a human being downstairs. Even though he has had some disagreements with that particular person, he goes back and saves the man. Because of this, the gang leader promises Butch that he will not send anyone to look for the fighter under the condition that he leave the city that day and never return. Had Butch not helped Marsellus, the gang leader's men would have eventually tracked and killed him. In the end, the fighter's good deed is rewarded.
Like my Facebook page: www.facebook.com/criticalchristopher
Follow me on Twitter: @ChrisCampbell02
Quentin Tarantino Month:
Introduction
Kill Bill: Vol. 1
Kill Bill: Vol. 2
Django Unchained
Inglourious Basterds
Jackie Brown
Reservoir Dogs
One story is about two hit men, Jules (Samuel L. Jackson) and Vincent (John Travolta), who have to retrieve a briefcase from an apartment. Another story is about Vincent taking Marsellus's wife, Mia (Uma Thurman), out to dinner at the gang leader's request. The third story is about a boxer named Butch (Bruce Willis) who is told by Marsellus to throw the next fight but decides not to do so.
To someone casually watching, the stories seem completely random. In fact, when I saw it, I was not sure what they have to do with each other. After some thinking, I figured out that the movie has one central theme of redemption, which can only be understood after watching the movie in its entirety. In each story, something goes wrong, and the characters have to deal with it. Each person has a different motivation for wanting to do the right thing. Only one has selfish motivations behind his actions, and his fate is different than the other two. More about this is explained in the spoiler section of this review.
I have heard people say they get bored watching this movie. I assume this is because most of the film is dialogue. There is some action, but it is mostly people talking. It is not the type of movie to watch with chatty friends who make it hard to focus. In order to get the full experience, one needs to listen to every word the characters say.
Like in his other films, Tarantino uses dialogue to establish characters and detail situations. Although a lot is exposition, it never feels forced because it is in the form of banter between two people. An example of this is in the beginning. Vincent and Jules are introduced as regular guys going to work. They do not talk about what they are going to do so much as they are talk gossip about what happened to a certain gang member for overstepping some boundaries with Marsellus's wife.
Not only does this detail why Vincent is nervous about taking Mia out to dinner, it establishes the culture of the gang as something relatable. It is not just gangsters who gossip, it is any group of people. It reminds me of when I served a Mormon mission. I had a lot of conversations about issues going on with other missionaries.
My favorite story is the one in which Vincent takes Mia out. I consider myself a movie fan, but there are often a lot of aspects about I overlook. One such thing is set designs, but there is one set in this movie that I am impressed with. It is the restaurant where the two characters eat. It is a beautifully-crafted set, and Tarantino takes time to show everything in it using one long take of the camera following Vincent.
It does not hurt that Uma Thurman's Mia character is in that scene as well. A combination of the way her character acts and the way she looks makes her attractive. She is an outgoing woman with a fascination for understanding the world around her. There is an extra layer on her that is never really explained. She never says she is dissatisfied with her marriage or her husband's decisions, but her excessive drug use paired with her flirtatious attitude with Vincent suggest that she might be a little sad about the way her life has been going. Part of what makes her character great is the fact that it is never explained. It is one of those things the artist puts out there to let audience members interpret themselves.
There is one scene in the Vincent story that is both intense and hilarious. It is set within a drug dealer's house as characters are frantically trying to take care of a situation. Tarantino adds to the intensity by taking one long take in which the camera is constantly moving to every character when he or she speaks.
Every performance is phenomenal. In the Blu-ray special features, John Travolta expresses gratitude to Quentin Tarantino for casting him in such a great role. It was filmed in the early '90s when Travolta's career was not very good. The movies he was being cast were dumb "Look Who's Talking" films, and since "Pulp Fiction," he started to get taken more seriously. Judging from his performance as Vincent, he deserves to be successful. He does a great job as a hit man who is just trying to do his job without any trouble.
Samuel L. Jackson is another actor who needs to be recognized for this movie. He brings a lot of personality to his character, especially when he confronts the men in the apartment. Jules is intimidating to them, but to the audience, it is obvious he is playing. Jules undergoes a rapid change that transpires after a certain event. Jackson does a great job showing this change in a way that does not seem forced.
It helps to watch "Pulp Fiction" multiple times. The stories are out of chronological order, and part of what makes it fun is realizing how consistent every little detail is. For example, there is a part in which Jules and Vincent go into a bar wearing gym shorts and t-shirts as opposed to their classy tuxedos in previous scenes. There is a reason for this, but it is never shown until later in the film.
The message of redemption (spoilers)
When I first saw this movie, I liked it. It is an example of how entertaining a film can be without blowing a huge budget on expensive action scenes. However, I knew there is a lot that I did not completely understand. The main question I had was "Why are these particular stories in the movie?" As stated earlier, this question is something I thought about the next day, and I came up with a tentative answer that it is about redemption. This section goes more in depth with this. It may not be what Tarantino meant, but it is my interpretation of it as an audience member.
When Vincent and Jules are in the apartment, they shoot everyone in the room except for one man named Marvin (Phil Lamarr). Meanwhile, there is another person in a different room listening to the whole incident. Enraged, he jumps out and fires six shots in close range at the hit men. All six miss and hit the wall behind them.
Jules is amazed. Not one bullet hits them. He sees this as an act of God, a miracle. Vincent, however, does not believe it. He thinks it is a strange coincidence but not divine intervention. Jules tells him he cannot be so picky about miracles. What God chooses to show is not always some big flashy sign.
In the end, Jules decides to give up his life of crime. He shows he is a changed man when he helps two bandits realize they should change their lives too.
Vincent should have changed because of the miracle at the apartment, but he stays the same. He is a heroin junkie, who only cares about himself. He finds Mia attractive, and he is afraid of succumbing to his sexual desires. This is not because he feels adultery is morally wrong but because he is afraid of what Marsellus would do if he found out. She ends up overdosing on Vincent's heroine, thinking it is cocaine. This worries him, but it is more out of worry for his own life than out of general concern for her. His reward for being self-absorbed and not changing his ways is he gets shot by Butch.
Butch's story is seemingly the most disconnected from the rest of the film, but even it is about being the better person. Not only does Butch win the fight, he accidentally kills his opponent. Marsellus is angry, and Butch knows it. In fact, he has an escape plan. He and his girlfriend are hiding in a motel, and they are to run away in the morning. Things get complicated when the fighter realizes his gold watch -- which has been in his family for generations -- is still in his apartment. Knowing there are more than likely gang members there, he goes back to retrieve the valuable item.
This leads him to find Marsellus on the street. They get into a fight, and Butch almost kills the gang leader before being stopped by a perverted pawn shop owner named Maynard (Duane Whitaker) who captures them. They end up in his basement where they are to be taken advantage of sexually by the captor and a cop named Zed (Peter Greene).
Marsellus goes first, and Butch manages to escape. He is just about to leave the shop when he realizes that there are some horrific things happening to a human being downstairs. Even though he has had some disagreements with that particular person, he goes back and saves the man. Because of this, the gang leader promises Butch that he will not send anyone to look for the fighter under the condition that he leave the city that day and never return. Had Butch not helped Marsellus, the gang leader's men would have eventually tracked and killed him. In the end, the fighter's good deed is rewarded.
Like my Facebook page: www.facebook.com/criticalchristopher
Follow me on Twitter: @ChrisCampbell02
Quentin Tarantino Month:
Introduction
Kill Bill: Vol. 1
Kill Bill: Vol. 2
Django Unchained
Inglourious Basterds
Jackie Brown
Reservoir Dogs
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