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Pulp Fiction (1994)

Rate: 9
Viewed: 11/03, 1/05, 4/06, 6/11

PulpF
4/06: The performances, the conversations, the style, and the cult feel are what Pulp Fiction is all about.

I saw the film at a theatre in 1994, and it blew me away. John Travolta is perfect. It's the second greatest performance of his career. He should've won the Oscar. Nobody was better than him in 1994. Uma Thurman is amazing while Samuel L. Jackson is special, too.

My favorite scene is John Travolta and Uma Thurman doing the dance. It's timeless just like the beach scene in From Here to Eternity. A close second best is quickly followed up with the drug overdose scene. Oh, the lines, are they ever quotable:

"English, motherfucker, do you speak it?"

"They call it a Royale with cheese."

"Lance! The goddamn phone's ringing!"

"That's thirty minutes away. I'll be there in ten."

"Then you know what I'm sayin'!"

"I'm American, honey. Our names don't mean shit."

"The night of the fight, you may feel a slight sting. That's pride fucking with you. Fuck pride. Pride only hurts, it never helps."

"Say 'what' again. Say 'what' again, I dare you, I double dare you motherfucker, say 'what' one more goddamn time!"

"It's a chopper, baby."

"Which one's Trudi? The one with all the shit in her face?"

"Does he look like a bitch?"

"Zed's dead, baby. Zed's dead."

"I do believe Marsellus Wallace, my husband, your boss, told you to take me out and do whatever I wanted. Now I wanna dance, I wanna win. I want that trophy, so dance good."

"Then why you tryin' to fuck him like a bitch, Brett?"

"Any of you fucking pricks move, and I'll execute every motherfucking last one of ya!"

"Lance! It's Vincent. I'm in big fuckin' trouble, man. I'm coming to your house."

"Yes, you did. Yes, you did, Brett! You tried to fuck him."

"So you gotta pierce through that. So what you have to do is, you have to bring the needle down in a stabbing motion."

"It's the one that says 'Bad Motherfucker.'"

"This watch."

"I-I gotta stab her three times?"

"Be cool, Honey Bunny!"

"Pig."

"I'll be there in two shakes of a lamb's tail."

"What happens after that?"

"I'm prepared to scour the Earth for that motherfucker. If Butch goes to Indochina, I want a nigger hiding in a bowl of rice ready to pop a cap in his ass."

"I'm Winston Wolf. I solve problems."

"I'm kinda curious about that myself..."

"A little black fuckin' medical book! It's like a textbook they give to nurses."

"Well, there's this passage I got memorized. Sort of fits this occasion. Ezekiel 25:17. 'The path of the righteous man...is beset on all sides by the inequities of the selfish...and the tyranny of evil men. Blessed is He who, in the name of charity and goodwill, shepherds the weak through the valley of darkness, for He is truly his brother's keeper...and the finder of lost children. And I will strike down upon thee with great vengeance...and furious anger...those who attempt to poison and destroy my brothers! And you will know my name is the Lord...when I lay my vengeance upon thee!'"

"I'm sorry, did I break your concentration?"

All in all, it's too bad about what happened to Quentin Tarantino.

6/11: I've decided to drop a point from my rating for Pulp Fiction.

I feel it has become an overrated flick that's losing slightly against the test of time. Sure, there are plenty of classic scenes, but it never operates like a single film altogether. Also, the dialogue has started to lose the appeal. Even worse is the decay of shock value which seems to be done in poor taste.

Ever since the film's success, Quentin Tarantino has become an overrated director, failing to be the same again. It has hurt the film's lasting power. No matter what, John Travolta is still brilliant as Vincent Vega. Uma Thurman and Samuel L. Jackson are special, too.

All in all, Pulp Fiction is coming apart a bit.