Tarantino is my God

And who is Tarantino you ask? Why, he's the director of Pulp Fiction. (He also acts a small part in the film as well) Rarely, in fact never, have I seen a film that gripped me as much as Pulp Fiction. Tarantino does not follow convention at all. I doubt if he even knows what the word "convention" means. Which makes for the most entertaining two hours of moviedom ever created.

Right from the first scene in the restaurant where a lovey dovey couple plan to rob a diner, you are totally caught up in the film. The first thing that strikes you is the liberal use of the word "fuck". Its a little off putting at first, but he uses it so often in the dialogs that after some time you get used to it. :-) By this time the second revelation hits you --- the dialogs. Most films feature plots, around which dialogs are weaved. Not our friend Mr. Tarantino. Oh no. Tarantino's films feature dialogs, around which plots are weaved. And really, what dialogs. The characters in Pulp Fiction are in love with the language. They woo it, caress it, seduce it. Or brutally plunder it. As they deem fit. Smart puns, clever word play, "cool" lines (check out Samuel L. Jackson preaching from the Bible before planting a bullet in a protagonists head). All the characters in the film use language to try and score brownie points over each other. This film is full of quotable lines. Full of it.

Then you notice the camera work. Intense. Long slowly panning shots, letting you get a feel of the atmosphere. Close ups of the protagonist's faces, showing fear, indifference, hate, interest. And the constantly shifting story line, running three complexly interweaved stories in parallel. In fact, the three stories seem to run a parallel course of their own, each completely unconcerned with the other, coming together explosively only in the end.

John Travolta as the drug taking, completely unconcerned about the sanctity of life, gangster is absolutely convincing. As are all the other actors. Samuel L. Jackson, a Bible quoting murderer, who finds God (in his own paradoxical way) at the very end. (He also has some of the best lines in the film by the way). Uma Thurman, a bored woman, looking for some kicks and excitement. Bruce Willis, as an out of luck boxer, hoping for a single hustle that will set him up for life.

Pulp Fiction is a character and a dialog based film. None the less, it is incredibly fast paced. It seems very violent at first viewing, however, actual incidents of violence shown are very few. The violence stems not from incidents shown onscreen, but from the characters themselves. Power, raw naked uncontrollable power seems to ooze out from each and every pore on their bodies. Like I said, its a character based film.

This is one of the few films that has a high replay value. You watch it once. Okay. It keeps on nagging you though. You can't forget it. Even after a few days. So you watch it again. After a few days, you still can't get it out of your mind. So you watch it again. And then, after a few days .....

On the negative side, it may offend quite a few people. Also, be aware that the movie does not follow the predefined patterns of general movies -- it possesses no definite structure. The story line (if you can call it that) shifts from one incident to another, seemingly randomly. Pulp Fiction is an exercise in artistic style. It seems that the director is in love not just with the movie, but with the movie making process. Which causes him to take a few liberties.

It may not be a film for everyone. Its hard and tough, and if you are looking for a nice quiet way to spend an evening and rest, well, look somewhere else. If you're looking for a film that grabs and rivets you, and having once grabbed, never lets go, well, look no further. Your search ends here.

View it.

IT MAY BE ONE OF THE BEST THINGS YOU EVER DID