Pulp Fiction

I credit Pulp Fiction for getting me into movies in the first place. I checked it out from the library in high school and I was hooked from the opening scene. The snappy dialogue, the gratuitous violence, and the various homages to film (whether I fully understood them or not) all added to my enjoyment of the film. I wish I could go back and capture my initial reaction to the film. But one of the great things about Pulp Fiction is that you tend to pick up something new every time you see it.

Pulp Fiction is like a swift kick to the head and an overdose of caffeine. There is so much energy in this film that you can't help but be pulled in. The film is mainly driven by dialogue. There are a lot of quotable scenes here, from the opening scene where Tim Roth explains why robbing a restaurant is a much better proposition than most give it credit for to the final scene where he gets his just reward from Samuel L. "Jules" Jackson. 

My favorite thing about Quentin Tarantino films is how well he can build tension in a scene. The first thirty minutes of the film follow Vincent and Jules as they do a hit job for their boss. The tension slowly builds as the two talk to one another about T.V. pilots and foot massages and they toy with the two men they've been sent to "take care of." It all builds until Jules finally loses it, gives a very memorable monologue, and finishes the job. This kind of thing is done several times throughout the movie and it always has you on the edge of your seat.

I really liked the casting here. I can't imagine anyone other than Samuel L. Jackson playing Jules. John Travolta was an interesting choice for Vincent Vega. He wasn't a very popular actor at the time and hadn't had a real hit since Saturday Night Fever and Grease in the 70's. It was a bold move on Tarantino's part. My favorite acting job here was Uma Thurman. When I saw Pulp Fiction for the first time, I had only seen her in Batman & Robin. It was nice to know that she really could act and play a vivacious character without having it feel forced. On a side note, I have to say that, although he is a fantastic director, Quentin Tarantino can't act to save his life. His cameo toward the end of the film feels forced and it took me out of the story and reminded me that I was watching a movie. It might have been better if he'd had a non-speaking role in the film.

The only negative thing I can say about this movie is that it's impossible to fully appreciate it without having seen a lot of the films that Tarantino is paying homage to. There are a lot of obscure movie references here done through dialogue and camera shots, and I still haven't picked up on many of them. But this is a big part of why this movie made me love film so much. Quentin Tarantino's passion is made very apparent in his films and it is infectious to say the least.

This movie is fantastic. I consider it to be one of my favorites and it deserves its top ten spot on the IMDB Top 250.

Score: 9.5/10