Dir. Quentin Tarentino, 1994, USA, 148 mins
Cast: John Travolta, Samuel Jackson, Uma Therman, Bruce Willis, Harvey Keitel, Tim Roth, Rosanna Arquette, Cristopher Walken, Ving Rhames
They fight, they kill, they get high and they.. dance? Welcome to the twisted characters from Tarantino's complex tale of two likeable gangsters (Travolta, Jackson), their seemingly mysterious boss (Rhames), his sexually provocative wife (Thurman), the boxer who betrayed him (Willis) and an unexplained glowing suitcase. From amongst the messed up membrane of the Tarantino's head, Pulp Fiction, became an illuminating hit in 1994 and an immediate cult classic. With the release of the second part of Tarantino's latest extravaganza, Kill Bill Vol.2, what is it that made Pulp Fiction such a huge movie phenomenon?
After its release in 1994, Pulp Fiction was deemed an extraordinarily violent film. However, Tarantino is skilled in making the viewer think they are watching excruciating violence, when all the action actually takes place off-screen. For example, when Vincent and Jules come to collect the suitcase, when they shoot Brett, the camera is focused on the killers and not the victim. Similarly, when Marvin is accidentally shot in the head you see the blood splat against the rear window, but no physical violence. As it is, Pulp Fiction only shows six major deaths, excluding three implied murders. This is balanced by those lives that have been saved. Mia, who was brought back to life from an overdose; Marseillus, who is saved by Butch from an assault; the diners in the café whose lives are spared when Pumpkin and Honey Bunny are talked out of a robbery; and when Jules and Vincent are saved by a supposed miracle when, "God came down from heaven and stopped the bullets".
The most astounding aspect of all, which has acerbated Pulp Fiction's popularity, is its ability to borrow from other films without producing clichés. The most common of this is Tarantino's repetitive fascination with French New Wave. The styles featured in films by Jean-Luc Goddard and other new wave directors is apparent, most notably the use of processed shots, particularly in the scenes where Vincent (Travolta), high on drugs, is driving to Mia's house, and where boxer Butch is escaping from a fight in a taxi.
This is not the only reference Tarantino has made to Goddard. Even the name of his production company, Band A Part, is a reflection of one of Tarantino's clear movie influences, Bande-A-Part as well as being the mother of one of Pulp's most iconic references, the dance scene at Jack Rabbit Slims. Goddard is also to blame for Mia Wallace's hairstyle, which is reminiscent of Anna Karin in A Woman is a Woman. The director also references fifties pop culture as we experience "a wax museum with a pulse" in the form of Jack Rabbit Slims, Tarantino's nostalgic brainchild. It is not just a nod to the era, but a clear thumping head butt with icons such as Marilyn Monroe, James Dean and Ricky Nelson making an appearance, not to mention the director's more off the wall references (Douglas Sirk Steak, Durward Kirby Burger) which all solidify Tarantino's love affair with films. As he said himself, "I always hope that if one million people see my movie, they see one million other movies".
Matthew Clarke
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