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Pulp Fiction: Strange Jewel

© Kaisha Green

I'll be frank with you: Pulp Fiction is not your grandmother's film classic. It has murders, drug use, and a ridiculous amount of swear words. And then there's The Gimp. But stick with me: Pulp Fiction may not be Hollywood's prettiest daughter, but it's one of the smartest.

A winner of the coveted Palm d'Or prize at the Cannes Film Festival, Pulp Fiction revolutionized the modern day film. Don't believe me? The films "Go" and "Out of Sight" are just two of the films that piggybacked on the Pulp Fiction frenzy. Director and Writer Quentin Tarantino turned the film world on its ear. John Travolta's career was resurrected because of this film, and he and co-star Samuel L. Jackson were both nominated for Oscars for their roles. Tarantino and co-writer Roger Avary won the Oscar for Best Original Screenplay for the script--even the Academy acknowledges it's a jewel, albeit a tarnished one.

Using very little traditional storytelling, Tarantino managed to create something that was not only original and stunningly unique, it appealed to moviegoers-to the tune of over 200 million dollars. Many of those saw it multiple times (I saw it twice, and I have a friend who swears he saw it ten times in the theater. Perhaps that's excessive!). In fact, it's on the list of 250 highest grossing films ever. The humor in this film is riotous. The genius of Tarantino's humor is that it is misplaced in the grave and strange environments he puts it in. There is a scene where two hitmen are discussing foot massage right before a hit. They approach the door of their unfortunate victim talking about massage, and then walk down the hall and talk about it some more before doing their, um, job. There are so many instances in this film where a laugh is almost painfully extracted from the viewer, and Tarantino uses the laugh to pull a one two punch when he delivers the aftermath.

"Pulp Fiction" is more "Citizen Kane" than "Gone with the Wind". It does have some traditionally classic elements, like memorable phrases ("Zed's dead, baby, Zed's dead") and memorable music (the soundtrack made millions), but its power lies in the original way the story is presented.

Like "Citizen Kane", Pulp Fiction has its own Rosebuds and irresistible film lore. There is almost a cult following of people who discuss what's in Marcellus' suitcase, why Marcellus wears a band-aid, and how Vic Vega, discussed on the phone, is the Vega in Tarantino's Reservoir Dogs.

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