Written by Briah Krueger
Next stop on the 100 Movie Bucket List express is arguably one of Quentin Tarantino’s best films; ladies and gents get ready to twist for the 1994 cult classic Pulp Fiction.
A small disclosure before we begin, this movie is rated R and contains heavy language, drug content, and graphic scenes. Alright, now let’s party on!
This movie lived up to its hype and “movie street cred” with its matchless storyline and Tarantino’s classic touch on the cinematic world. You can spot a Tarantino movie within the first few minutes; he loves playing with plots and tossing in charismatic stories that may not impact the plot itself greatly, but we as an audience greatly appreciate it.
Pulp Fiction follows the story of several characters; the whole movie itself consists of overlapping stories all intertwining together to make a one-of-a-kind movie experience featuring snappy and clean camera work, a timeless soundtrack, and classic 90s charm.
The film fades in with the definition of the word Pulp, which I thought was clever and intriguing. And to ease your curious minds here it is:
Pulp/’pelp/ n. 1. A soft, moist, shapeless mass of matter.
- A magazine or book containing lurid subject matter and being characteristically printed on rough, unfinished paper.
American Heritage Dictionary
New College Edition
Now that we have our short literary lesson out of the way, back to the eccentric world of Tarantino.
The stories entangled together in this film are mainly from three characters: Vincent Vega (John Travolta), Jules Winnfield (Samuel L. Jackson), and Butch Coolidge (Bruce Willis). Travolta and Jackson’s characters are the diamonds of the show, portraying two hitmen working for a successful man by the name of Marsellus (Ving Rhames). And Willis plays a Boxer who gets himself into a world of trouble after disregarding an order made by Rhames.
Though the stories aren’t in order, everything is tied up in a nice little bow by the end of the film, leaving you wanting more of this spectacular world. The suspense and intrigued nature of the film is held onto throughout each scene and every line of dialogue. The script itself is brilliant, it could stand alone without the video and still be absolutely amazing; but Tarantino gives us an intense and excellent cast to bring it to its outstanding and violent life. A collection of superb cast members powers this film, delivering us with immediately liked and fascinating characters. (Some honourable mentions: Uma Thurman and Christopher Walken). Tarantino also has a small role in arguably one of the funniest and best scenes in Pulp Fiction.
Now, onto the scoring. I actually watched this movie twice with a bit of time in between each viewing. I sincerely enjoyed it the first time I watched it, but the second time I truly fell in love with the movie and its witty banter, and hilariously catchy dialogue. This movie is like no other, all in all Tarantino is a master story teller and deliverer of adrenaline. With that said, Pulp Fiction earns 9 bullets out of 10.
If you’re in search for an action pumping movie about crime and miracles with a heavy dose of intelligent and hilarious interactions between charismatic characters, you’ve found the perfect film to quench your hankering. Plus, if you’re a Netflix-goer, it’s currently available!
The recipe for Pulp Fiction is: Rockin’ threads, burgers, lots of guns, cigarettes, a couple cups of gourmet coffee, and one shiny birthright gold watch.
And as promised here is our scratch-off image from the 100 movie bucket list poster!
If you’re interested in getting this poster for yourself or another fellow movie lover you can find it on Amazon! There are also several posters like this one, such as: 100 Books Bucket List, and 100 Things to Do Bucket List. Let the 100 Bucket List Movie journey begin!
