Twisted, perversely funny, captivating - a cornerstone of modern film-making

Rating: 10/10 (25 August 2006)

When a previously unknown young filmmaker named Quentin Tarantino barged onto the movie-making scene in 1992 with a unique, quirky, disturbing and groundbreaking film called Reservoir Dogs, a noticeable change could already be seen soon after in the film industry on the whole. Cheap imitations of Tarantino's hit began to be seen, films with more stylized dialogue, harsher senses of humour usually coupled with brutal violence became much more commonplace and acceptable in the mainstream cinema. (a prime example being Tony Scott's 1993 hit "True Romance", also written by Tarantino) Yet if Reservoir Dogs was a hit, than Pulp Fiction was something entirely more, snatching up the prestigious Palme D'Or award at the Cannes film festival and making a huge smash impact on movie viewers and the film industry on the whole, spawning generations of cult followers and would be imitators.
Despite the relentless praise Tarantino and his most prized film have been awarded, upon viewing over a decade later, Pulp Fiction still manages to intrigue and fascinate, with its blinding originality of narrative, and wonderfully convoluted screenplay. No matter how terrible or disgusting the myriad of characters on display here, we never fail to be utterly fascinated by them, and after the movie has run its two and half hour course, we are left only wanting more darkly comical and fiendishly interesting pulp tales to feast our eyes and ears upon. One also remarks on how deeply the movie has permeated modern pop culture simply by noticing all of the scenes that are referenced, whether it be by the Simpsons, Saturday Night Live or other movies, such scenes as the 50s dance scene with Travolta and Thurman,the "you know what they call a quarter pounder with cheese in France?" scene with Jackson and Travolta and Bruce Willis and Ving Rhames being bound and gagged by red rubber balls, only by seeing the movie will one truly understand how often it is referenced by so many sources.
The movie truly defines the meaning of the term "ensemble cast" as well, with superb and incredibly memorable performances all around. John Travolta is great as spaced out, almost child like Vincent, who seems constantly on a different page as all surrounding him in the role that single-handedly re-ignited his career, and breakout star Samuel L. Jackson is similarly terrific as his partner with a tendency for religious rants, fully deserving their Oscar nominations. Tarantino favourite Uma Thurman is also terrific as a spoiled mobster's wife, and Bruce Willis gives an excellent, engaging performance as 40s style boxer Butch. Then there's the myriad of excellent supporting players, with such familiar faces as Harvey Keitel, Tim Roth, Ving Rhames, Amanda Plummer, Tarantino himself... even a tiny cameo from an unrecognizable Steve Buscemi as Buddy Holly the waiter in the wonderful 50s dance club scene, and Christopher Walken delivering his utterly unforgettable monologue, one of the best and most memorable of all time.
All in all, it goes without saying that Pulp Fiction is a modern classic of film-making, and despite all of the hype and endless praises, one still walks away from it remarking on how unique and wonderful a film it is. For those not deterred by the strong violence, frequent swearing and racial slurs that tend to be Tarantino trademarks, Pulp Fiction should qualify as a "must see", if only to understand all of the references in modern pop culture and see what everyone is talking about. Rest assured you will almost certainly not be disappointed.
-10/10