Friday 20 March 2015

Blind Spot: Pulp Fiction (1994)

This month marks the first time Jenna and I have been able to watch our Blind Spot film together, huzzah! Chinese food ordered, cups of tea made, fire on, the perfect Flick Chicks film night. Pulp Fiction was one of Jenna’s choices, one that I’d completely forgotten about because I had actually seen parts of it before, but couldn’t remember anything other than that couple robbing the diner!

Pulp Fiction is the telling of four connected violent, hilarious, and downright crazy stories following the lives of two mobsters, a boxer, a gangster’s wife and a thieving couple. It boasts one of the most amazing casts I’ve seen, John Travolta, Samuel L Jackson, Bruce Willis, Tim Roth and Uma Thurman just to name a few.


Bear with me here, but man did this film drag! We paused at one point for a drink break thinking that we were near the end, but we were just about an hour in. Not quite even half way at that point. Thing is, all the scenes we had heard about had already happened, so we couldn’t work out what was even going to happen next. Kettle boiled, we were introduced to the Gimp. Oh! Traumatised is not a strong enough word!!

In fact, when the film actually finished, I was feeling pretty ‘meh’ about the whole thing. Sure, I laughed my socks off at many points, and couldn’t fault anything other than how darn confusing the whole thing was, but I couldn’t work out if I enjoyed it or not. It made Fargo seem simple!  Now although I found it really complicated I actually really enjoyed it - I am still running through the scenes now trying to put them into chronological order, i don't think i'll ever manage it.


On the drive home though, and indeed while I was trying to get to sleep, I couldn’t stop thinking about the film, and the more I thought about it, the more I appreciated it for what it was, and then I felt guilty! Did anyone else find this?

I can't really place much commentary on the storyline because i'm still trying to work out what happened, what I do know is that I really enjoyed it and I won't forget it in a hurry. Samuel L Jackson was amazing, I think he has taken a little part of this character and injected it into every character he has played since.  It's typical Quentin Tarantino, bloody confusing but so entertaining that you get over it.

There are so many jokes and memes that make sense to me now. Every time someone mentions the game, Guess Who I put on my best Samuel L Jackson impression to ask ‘Does he look like a b*tch?’ without even realising it’s a reference to Pulp Fiction. There was an episode of Community all about that suitcase that I need to re-watch now, and I’ll never let anyone order an expensive milkshake quietly.  Don't forget the Direct Line advert (for our UK readers) and The Wolf - who knew!!

Don't really know why BUT I loved it...I think I may need to watch it again though to get my head around the storyline!







18 comments:

  1. LOL, I love that you guys kind of hated and then ultimately loved this. It's certainly a confusing and scattered movie, but it works once it settles in, and it's so effortlessly entertaining in a very 'efforted' way (yes, I just made that word up)...like, you can see it working so hard and yet it retains that looseness and 'coolness' that makes it all, well, effortless.

    "Zed's dead baby"...effing love this movie!

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    1. I don't think I've ever gone through so many emotions 12 hours after watching a film! I love 'efforted', I'm going to try and use that as many times as I can now :P
      Really need to see this again now to fully appreciate it!
      - Allie

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  2. lol I love this review. I had a similiar thought process on this. I went from "wtf" to "omg this movie is everything" the first time I saw it too. Ultimately, I freaking love this film.

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    1. I'm so glad that it's a normal reaction! I need to see it again really soon to fully appreciate it! :)
      - Allie

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  3. When it comes to Tarantino - well, I have to say that I don't think he's ever done anything worth watching, Pulp Fiction included. I disliked it when it first appeared and time has only made me feel smug about my assessment. I try as hard as I can, but I cannot think of a redeeming feature of any Tarantino film, apart from a few songs. They mean nothing, they are poorly - almost randomly - directed, the actors have to rely on their own instincts (which often isn't enough) because the director obviously wasn't much help and couldn't spot a three-dimensional character in a pop-up storybook. He was a 12-year old with a camera; Inglorious Basterds proved he is still a 12-year old with a camera but with more pocket money. His view of human nature would be depressing except that he hasn't quite understood that there's a 'human' part to it.
    He isn't challenging because everything he's done has been done before and he isn't innovative because everything he's done he stole from someone else.
    Rant over, I'm glad I stopped by your blog.

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    1. Haha! Well thank you for stopping by, and thank you for ranting! That's the joy about movie blogging, it's great to see everyone has such differing opinions. The world would be a boring place for sure if we all thought the same. What are your favourite movies Ringo? I'm just curious :)
      - Allie

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  4. Great write up! I think Pulp Fiction needs to be seen multiple times. The first time I watched (at like 13 years old) it did seem really slow and often confusing. As I watched it over and over as the years went by, it got better and better. It is not my favorite Tarantino. That would be his next film after Pulp Fiction, Jackie Brown. But it is certainly important. And It really grows on you as you watch it and re-watch it.

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    1. Thanks Kevin :) The DVD should come with a warning label 'You must watch this at least twice to fully appreciate it!'. I'd like to check out more of Tarantino's work now, it's got me curious!
      - Allie

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  5. Definetely a mutiple watch movie for sure.

    I like your blog! having two perspectives in each reviews is great, I should create an imaginry friend and do the same!!

    ... Or not. :P

    Interesting read. :)

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    1. Thanks Jordan! How do you know I don't do that already...? Just kidding, ha!
      - Allie

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  6. The first time most of us watched Pulp Fiction we were like Allie. We were sitting there like "what the hell am I watching?" Then we were like "this is great!" It just has that effect on people. Great work, ladies. Happy you got to see it together, too.

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    1. I don't think I've ever lost so much sleep before over a movie! I almost wanted to creep downstairs at 2am to watch it again, I felt so guilty!
      - Allie

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  7. It's a great film, but I can't deny that Pulp Fiction is possibly one of Tarantino's most disorienting films. The non-linear approach is definitely handled more clearly in Reservoir Dogs and Kill Bill, (the first time I saw it I was a bit confused about how exactly the segment focusing on Bruce Willis was supposed to connect with the earlier scenes) but there's something about it that just seems to work. Also, I love that picture depicting Samuel L. Jackson playing Guess Who.

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    1. I've read about all the connections between Pulp Fiction and Reservoir Dogs, and I think that's going to have to go on next year's Blind Spot list for me now :)
      - Allie

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    2. You haven't seen Reservoir Dogs yet? In that case you should definitely got on that one as soon as possible.

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  8. Great review! One of the things I loved about this movie is the writing, it was well-written. Glad you both liked this one, this film does merit multiple viewings!

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    1. Thank you! It's brilliantly written for sure, and there's so many classic lines I already knew without even knowing they were from Pulp Fiction. It definitely need a rewatch soon :)
      - Allie

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  9. Great post! I'm so glad you both enjoyed this movie -- it is wonderful (and so twisted!) And now I'm never going to be able to play Guess Who with my kid without thinking about that line. :-)

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