Review of Pulp Fiction (94)

It was Christmas morning. The presents were already open and we didn't have anywhere else to be for several hours. We decided to pass the time the best way we could think of and threw in the family-friendly holiday classic, Pulp Fiction.

Plot
Jules Winnfield and Vincent Vega are two hitmen who are out to retrieve a briefcase from their mob boss employer, Marsellus Wallace. Wallace has also asked Vega to take his wife, Mia, out while he is out of town. Butch Coolidge is an aging boxer who is paid by Wallace to lose his next fight. The lives of these seemingly unrelated people are woven together comprising of a series of funny, bizarre and uncalled-for incidents.

Jason's Thoughts
Pulp Fiction has it all -- blood, violence, swearing, dancing, an heirloom, a drug overdose and a gimp. Really, what more does one movie need?

Seriously, when I first watched this movie a long time ago, the non-linear style of the movie really turned me off. I eventually decided to give Pulp Fiction another shot, and every time I have watched it since then I ended up enjoying it more and more. I love how all three seemingly unrelated stories are tied together. Each story on its own is good, but when they are all put together into one nice little package, it makes the movie so much better. As for the non-linear style that I disliked - I cannot imagine this movie being any other way. I would hate to see the events unfold in chronological order, as the out of sequence storytelling is what made Pulp Fiction what it is.

Of course, the dialog helped make the movie as well. Quentin Tarantino has shown that he is the one of the best when it comes to writing dialog - which at times can even be a hindrance (Death Proof) - and the dialog in Pulp Fiction is top notch. At least half of the movie has the characters going on about something for no real good rhyme or reason. Upon my first viewing, this was another area in which I really didn't like. As I have become more familiar with Tarantino's movies, and this one in particular, I realized the unnecessary speech is used as a way to show characters personalities and quirks Sure, it isn't needed, but it adds an extra dimension to the characters, and in this case, gives me reasons to love what are basically evil men doing evil things.

The downside of all of the dialog in the movie, which clocks in at almost two and a half hours, is that the real story can at times fall through the cracks. The plot is always there, you just may have to dig for it. Once you have found it and can hold on to it for the duration of the film, be prepared for an exciting and entertaining ride from one of the greatest movies to come out during the 1990's.

My only real problem is that this isn’t higher up on the list than its position at #94.

Crystal’s Thoughts
First, I want to start with a comment to my husband's very first paragraph - the gifts were all opened because he is like a little kid and could not wait until Christmas morning... ;-)

As for Pulp Fiction, I think I had imagined a way different movie in my mind. Unlike Jason, this was my first viewing and while it wasn't horrible, I don't think there will ever be further viewings. For one, I am not a John Travolta fan and having to see him for 2.5 hours just was not my cup of tea. I also did not feel that there was really a point to the movie. Sure, it showed you can turn your life around and that based on choices, life can be drastically different. But for me, that was figured out rather quickly and from there on, the movie seemed to drag.

I will admit, the writing for this movie was exceptional. As a writer, I know how difficult it was to continuously switch between story lines as well as have three (strong) stories flow into one. Usually one story line would be lacking or just not fit in a way, but that was not the case. Tarantino did a fine job with flow. Unfortunately, I am not sure that qualifies this movie to be on a top 100 list as such. Perhaps a top 100 violent movie list, but not this one. It was ok, and while I am in no way a girly-girl, this movie belongs in the Guy Movie category. Chicks beware!

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