journal features

movie review - Pulp Fiction

the journal of Michael Werneburg

twenty-seven years and one million words

Toronto, 1999.03.10

Seeing this again reminded me of just what a slick piece it really was. The scenes with Tarantino (or Travolta, for that matter) never really worked, but what a fine gangster movie indeed. It's a pity that the bullet holes were in the wall ahead of the shooting by the kid in the can, but then miracles aren't real.

I've heard rumors that Marcellus Wallace sports a Band-aid in this flick because he's sold his soul to the devil, a procedure that required extraction through that spot on his neck. This theory is supposedly supported by the divine intervention thing, and the mysterious nature of the contents of the briefcase. I figure it's all gilding the lily as my grandfather used to say. A tale this good doesn't need theories.

A favorite. Strongly recommended.

rand()m quote

In the wake of 9/11, we [in America] have made the decision as a society that we can never again create something in which we can take pride, for fear that someone will destroy it. Moreover, we must suppress any trace of individualism, lest someone have the desire to rise above the bland sameness that protects us. I have, alas, no idea how to recapture our courage.

—Anonymous post to boingboing.net, 2009