Summary:
A series of violent and redemptive stories that intertwine the lives of LA mobsters, drug dealers, bandits and a boxer.
My Thoughts:
Was there ever a more iconic film to come out of the 1990s than “Pulp Fiction”? I would honestly be hard pressed to find a film that even holds a candle to this films influence. This movie is a masterpiece; it’s equal parts hilarious and intense; chaotic and calm; and poignant and unpredictable. It also has some of the most enjoyable characters ever grace the silver screen, and I look forward to spending time with all of them every time I pop this movie in. This film was a harbinger of great things to come; though this was only Tarantino’s second film, with it he announced to the world just how strong and unique his voice was. Tarantino is one of the few directors working today that, no matter what project he works on, I know I’ll see it. Take it a step further; compare him to whatever auteur from any part of film history, and I believe he holds his ground. Tarantino is the modern day Orson Welles, and “Pulp Fiction” might just be his “Citizen Kane”.
As this is an anthology film that tells a few stories all involving the same characters, I find the best way to talk about this film is to break down those stories individually and talk about them one by one. As I’ll be going through pretty much every scene in this movie, you can expect there will be plenty of spoilers, though, in my opinion, this is one of the few movies that is truly spoiler proof; even if you know what happens, it’s still a blast to see it play out before you.
“I love you, honey bunny.”
The opening scene takes place in a diner with two diner patrons known primarily by their pet names, Pumpkin (Tim Roth, “Rob Roy”) and Honey Bunny (Amanda Plummer, “The Fisher King”). As they sit in their booth they discuss (quite openly) how their previous robbery endeavors have almost gone awry due to a number of different circumstances, and how robbing a diner might be a great idea because no one really robs diners; they typically rob gas stations or banks. The two agree to rob diner and immediately jump up screaming, “Everybody be cool, this is a robbery!”
I think this is a pretty perfect way to start off this film. Tarantino’s snappy dialogue takes front and center stage as the two actors run through their lines quickly and with incredible realism. I think that’s what I love so much about this film; the realistic nature of the dialogue. The dialogue allows time to slowly move from one topic to another, covering seemingly pointless topics in between; but as we listen to these characters speak, we get a sense of who they are and where they’ve been. It had been a while since I had watched this film, and in between my last viewing and this one, I read Dostoyevsky’s Crime and Punishment. The protagonist Rodion Raskolnikov immediately came to mind as I watched Tim Roth’s character talk about how he wanted to go about committing his next crime. He is intent on doing it, but he’s more intent on discussing why and how he wants to do this crime; the actual action of doing the crime is done rashly, almost without thought. It’s not until Yolanda/Honey Bunny says, “Let’s do it, right now, right here,” that Roth really gets up the courage to jump up and start the robbery, and then we cut to the title card. We’ll come back to them later, but that opening scene is absolutely fantastic in setting the tone of the whole film. “Pulp Fiction” begins like a match lighting a fuse.
“The path of the righteous man is beset on all sides by the inequities of the selfish and they tyranny of evil men.”
The next story follows hitmen Vincent Vega (John Travolta, “Carrie”) and Jules Winnfield (Samuel L. Jackson, “Django Unchained”) as they make their way over to see their hits, including Brett (Frank Whaley, “The Doors”) and Roger (Burr Steers, “The Last Days of Disco”). Honestly, that’s all there is to it; Vince and Jules drive to Brett’s house and get ready to cap the mother*ckers… but as they drive over, Vince tells Jules about his time in Amsterdam and they joke about their boss getting mad at some guy they both knew and throwing him off a balcony; they talk about the implications of giving a foot massage. Again, the dialogue feels so at ease, natural, and realistic that we almost forget that they’re at this apartment just to kill some people. Their dialogue gives us insights into their character’s backstories, personalities, interests, points of view, and, towards the end of the scene, even their religious beliefs.
If I had to pick the most iconic dialogue from this movie, it would probably be from the interactions between Jules and Vincent. They have so many great moments together, and some of their dialogue in these opening scenes is probably the most memorable of the film overall, particularly Jules’ biblical monologue, which lays the foundations for the major themes of the film. But some of the more memorable dialogue comes when essentially nothing is going on. I remember the first time I watched this film I was glued to the screen watching these two hitmen discussing the differences between McDonalds in Europe and McDonalds in America (“You know what they call a quarter pounder with cheese in France?”).
This scene also introduces Marsellus Wallace’s briefcase, the contents of which has become one of the more debated items in popular culture. Does the briefcase hold the diamonds from “Reservoir Dogs”? Does it hold Marsellus Wallace’s soul? Or, does it even really matter what the briefcase holds? I’ve never put much stock into what the briefcase literally holds; to me it’s more symbolic. It represents everything you’ve ever wanted but never were able to attain.
“Three tomatoes are walking down the street…”
Before the next story begins in earnest, Tarantino introduces us to two characters that will eventually become very important: mob boss Marsellus Wallace (Ving Rhames, “Mission Impossible: Fallout”) and aging boxer Butch Coolidge (Bruce Willis, “12 Monkeys”). When we meet them, they are having a conversation about Butch’s future (“In the sixth, your ass goes down”); Butch seems pretty acquiescent about the whole affair.
Butch and Marsellus finish up their conversation at a bar and in walks Vince and Jules. It’s told to us that Vince will be escorting Mia Wallace (Uma Thurman, “The House that Jack Built”) while Marsellus is out of town, but, before this happens, Vince visits his heroine dealer Lance (Eric Stoltz, ”The Prophecy (1995)”). Vince and Mia go to Jack Rabbit Slims, a 50s style diner with waiters and waitresses dressed like famous movie stars. After Mia and Vince eat and dance they return to Mia’s house where she snorts Vince’s heroine (thinking it’s cocaine), and overdoses. Vince freaks out and drives Mia to Lance’s house where they quickly administer an adrenaline shot and save Mia’s life.
This is my favorite of the “Pulp Fiction” stories. I think Lance’s character is hilarious; I think Mia and Vince’s relationship is brilliantly written; and I think this story perfectly balances humor and mind-numbing intensity. For this story’s impact to really hit home, it needed the dialogue from the previous scene where Vince and Jules talk about foot massages and their intended purposes; we needed to hear about Marsellus Wallace throwing Tony Rocky Horror out a window supposedly for giving Mia a foot massage. This is a date night where, if things go wrong, someone will end up dead.
At first, the way the two converses is as if they’re always trying to get the better of one another or have the upper hand in conversation, until, they start to realize that they sort of like each other. Their conversation comes easily to the point where they start to realize there is a bit of sexual tension between them (“Is that what you call an uncomfortable silence?” “I don’t know what to call that…”), but Vince, thinking of Tony Rocky Horror, knows that he can’t go any further with Mia; he’s torn as to what to do as illustrated by his conversation with himself in the bathroom. It’s a wonderful character moment that puts both characters on edge before the trouble even starts; then, once Mia snorts the heroine and ODs, things explode into chaos.
When Vince and Mia end up back at Lance’s house, the situation gets even more ridiculous as they house explodes into a frenzy trying to find little black medical books and adrenaline needles. It’s a madhouse until they finally jab the adrenaline into Mia’s chest, and then all at once things come to a screeching halt. Tarantino’s choice to finish this scene off with Mia telling her stupid tomato joke and nobody laughing at it is one of the funniest moments of the film for me.
From ‘A’ to ‘Zed’
We flashback to long ago when Butch Coolidge was a child and was visited by Captain Koons (Christopher Walken, “Annie Hall”), a man who knew Butch’s father whom died in a prison camp in Vietnam. Koons recounts the long history of the watch; from its original creation to the history it garnered worn by the different members of the Coolige family as they went into various battles throughout history.
Back to modern day Butch Coolidge, the aging boxer. Butch flees the ring after winning a match he was supposed to loose (remember Marsellus, “In the sixth your ass goes down.”). He knows he’s in trouble with the mob, should they ever find him, but he’s also planning to make a lot of money from gambling on the match, and as soon as he gets that money, he and his girlfriend Fabienne (Maria de Medeiros, “April Captains”) plan to flee LA. However, after consulting with Fabienne he realizes that she forgot his most cherished possession at their apartment; his father’s wristwatch. Butch decides that, even thought mobsters are now certainly after him, he must go back for the watch; it means that much to him. When he goes back to his apartment he retrieves his watch and also kills Vincent, whom was in the bathroom when Butch arrived home. As Butch drives back to Fabienne he runs into Marsellus at an intersection; Butch runs over Marsellus as Marsellus begins shooting at him, and soon both of them are on foot, running bloody through the streets of LA.
They eventually run into a pawnshop run by Maynard (Duane Whitaker, “Feast (2005)”), whom pulls a gun on them and tells them to chill out until his buddy Zed (Peter Greene, “Under Siege 2: Dark Territory”) gets there. Zed and Maynard take Marsellus and Butch downstairs and proceed to rape Marsellus. Butch escapes and almost leaves Marsellus to his fate, but he changes his mind and returns to rescue Marsellus, who, in turn, forgives Butch for screwing him over in the boxing match. Butch returns to Fabienne and the two get the heck out of dodge.
While I really do enjoy all of the stories in “Pulp Fiction”, this one tends to have the least amount of impact on me. It has some absolutely great moments, like when Butch returns with the samurai sword to slay Maynard (some say that it’s a Hattori Hanzo sword), and I do like the way that this story sort of wraps everything up, as chronologically speaking this is the last story in the film, but, strictly from a character perspective, I find Butch to be one of the less interesting characters up until he decides to save Marsellus.
“Blessed is he who, in the name of charity and good will, shepherds the weak through the valley of darkness, for he is truly his brother’s keeper and the finder of lost children.“
We come back to Vincent and Jules moments after they’ve killed Brett, and we learn that there is another man in the bathroom with a revolver, and in a blaze of glory he comes out the bathroom and unloads six shots at Jules and Vincent, missing every time. The two hitmen kill the man who fired at them and take offer differing opinions as to what has just happened. Vince believes it was just dumb luck that they survived, while Jules believes that God must’ve stepped in and intervened. That conversation about miracles vs dumb luck is where the film begins to transcend itself and become more than just a comedic drama about mobsters and become a film about the choices you make in life and the path you decide you’ll take.
As the film continues, Vincent shoots their contact Marvin (Phil LaMarr, “The Lion King (2019)”) in the face in an incredibly bloody and hysterical accident, and he and Jules are forced to seek shelter at Jules’ partner Jimmie’s (Quentin Tarantino, “From Dusk till Dawn”) home. Jimmie warns Jules and Vincent that they only have a short time before Jimmie’s wife gets home, and if that happens, Jimmie’s wife will divorce him. Jules calls Marsellus for help, and Marsellus calls The Wolf (Harvey Keitel, “The Grand Budapest Hotel”), a professional fixer. The Wolf helps Jules and Vincent clean up the body, and then hitmen go out for breakfast at a diner, where they encounter Honey Bunny and Pumpkin.
They enter into a Mexican standoff; tensions are high and it seems that everyone could die if something were to go wrong. Jules tells Pumpkin to sit down and they talk about the (fake) verse that Jules has repeated multiple times throughout the film, Ezekiel 25:17. The verse talks about good and evil men and the fates of both, and in this scene, Jules weighs his options and says that he wants to try to be the shepherd; he wants to try to do good.
While my favorite story in “Pulp Fiction” is the Mia and Vince story, my favorite moment of this film (perhaps of any Tarantino film) comes here in the midst of all of the violence, when Jules and Pumpkin stop to have a quiet conversation about the consequences of their actions. We don’t know if Pumpkin will change his ways, but he might. We do know for a fact that the events of the film have changed Jules, and we know he plans to walk the earth in a kind of walkabout, “Like Caine from Kung Fu,” Jules says. Vince’s fate we learned in the previous story; he doesn’t change his ways and ends up getting shot in Butch’s bathroom. By revealing Vince’s fate, and insinuating that Jules gets out of the business and thus saves himself, we see a morality point that Tarantino is trying to illustrate, and we also start to see how the presence of God’s hand (or, in this case, Tarantino’s) and plan is everywhere in this film.
Were it not for God’s grace, would Mia have died during her overdose? Shouldn’t Jules and Vince have died when they were shot at? Why is it that Marvin died in such a freak way? What are the chances that Butch and Marsellus would really run into each other in the streets? There are so many things in this film that are so coincidental or circumstantial that you have to wonder if Jules has a point, if there is some kind of miraculous hand guiding all of the decisions being made. Tarantino makes his point and absconds.
The standoff ends; everyone leaves. Roll credits.
Verdict:
Though cretins and lowlifes populate this world, I think this is Tarantino’s most spiritual film. I’ve probably seen this movie more than any of Tarantino’s films and there’s good reason for it. I think Vince and Jules are the best duo Tarantino has created (though Dr. Schultz and Django come close); I think the way Mia and Vince’s story plays out is both hilarious and its one of the most original stories I’ve seen put to screen; and I think that overall the message that Tarantino is trying to send is better than most of the themes in his other films. This movie is darn near perfect.
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