QuentinTarantino’s Pulp Fiction isconsidered by many modern critics and audiences alike to be one of the mostinfluential and iconic films of all time. With its progressive narrativestructure, witty and pop culture laden dialogue, great acting, and use ofextreme violence, it transcends many conventional Hollywood genres and becomesits own sort of mash up film. This, in addition to its odd subject matter, madePulp Fiction a national cinematicphenomenon immediately upon its release in 1994. As esteemed film criticRichard Collins writes in his review of the film, “ Pulp Fiction towers over the year's other movies as majesticallyand menacingly as a gang lord at a preschool.” The film won the prestigiousPalm d’Or at the Cannes festival, and even garnered Tarantino his first academyaward for best original screenplay. Even now, 17 years later, the film’s legacystands and it remains in the eyes of many to be Tarantino’s seminal work.
Whathas really made the film stand out is Tarantino’s unique application of styleand manipulation of a variety of cinematic techniques throughout. As Ken Dancygerwrites in his 2002 book, The Technique of Film and Video Editing: History,Theory, and Practice, Tarantino’s use of style in Pulp Fiction represents “a new phenomenon, the movie whose style iscreated from the context of movie life rather than real life. The consequenceis twofold—the presumption of deep knowledge on the part of the audience ofthose forms such as the gangster films or Westerns, horror films or adventurefilms. And that the parody or alteration of that film creates a new form, adifferent experience for the audience.” (203).
Quentin Tarantino s 1994 epic Pulp Fiction is easily one of the greatest films to come out in my lifetime. That is a bold statement, but one that I am incredibly comfortable making. There wasn t a.
Throughout PulpFiction, Tarantino effectively manipulates editing, cinematography,Mise-en-scene, and sound to create his own distinct style through which heforeshadows coming events, reveals character traits, creates suspense, and entertains. Pulp Fictionis, at its core, a mixture of tales about the intertwining lives of two hitmen, Vincent Vega (John Travolta) and Jules Winfield (Samuel L. Jackson), anaging boxer, Butch Coolidge (Bruce Willis), a mob boss, Marsellus Wallace (VingRahmes), and his wife, Mia Wallace (Uma Thurman). It follows all of thesecharacters as they get into a number of very memorable, odd, funny, disturbing,intense, and emotionally charged situations. As Roger Ebert explains in hisoriginal review of the movie, “ PulpFiction is a comedy about blood, guts, violence, strange sex, drugs, fixedfights, dead body disposal, leather freaks, and a wristwatch”. Although thismay seem like a strange mixture of plot events, Tarantino handles each distinctscene maturely and with very close detail to multiple cinematic components thusmaking the movie sophisticated, and memorable.
Oneof the scenes in which Tarantino uses editing, cinematography, Mise-en-scene,and sound effectively to warn the audience of certain coming events, informthem of hidden character traits, and create suspense and anticipation, is the one in which Vincent goes to theWallace house to pick up Mia for the night. The scene begins with a trackingshot of Vince walking up to the glass front door, in which his body makes adark shadowy silhouette, and finding a note taped to it.
There is then a closeup of the note accompanied by Mia Wallace’s voice over narration of itscontents. The second Vincent enters the Wallace house, many of Tarantino’s choicesregarding Mise-en-scene are apparent. The first overtly noticeable thing is thehouse’s color scheme.
Nearly everything that is visible is white. This includesthe couch, the lamps, the carpet, the walls, and even Mia’s shirt. Toaccentuate this stark white color scheme even further, the scene employs highkey front lighting.
This is ironic because generally in film language, white isclosely associated with purity, and yet, the inhabitants of this particularhome, Mia and Marsellus Wallace are anything but innocent. One is a crackaddict while another is a hard headed mob boss. In addition to this, such acolor scheme also creates juxtaposition between Vincent, who is wearing a blacksuit, and the rest of the house. This shows that he doesn’t belong at the houseand may be foreshadowing the fact that something bad will happen if he staysthere. You can also tell that the houseis very modern through its incorporation of many different kinds oftechnologies such as intercoms, and video cameras that watch over the mainrooms. WhileVince is walking around the house for the first time, and Mia watches him via acamera viewing station, Tarantino incorporates a very important piece ofseemingly non-diegetic ( we later find out that it was coming from a recordplayer but we are given no indication of that before the end of the scene)sound into the film. This would be Dusty Springfield’s hit song, “Son of aPreacher Man”.
This song is about a girl who only likes one guy who is the sonof the local preacher (again playing with the theme of innocence). One of thelyrics in the song is, “Being good isn't always easy, No matter how hard Itried, When he started sweet talking to me, he'd come tell me everything isalright, he'd kiss and tell me everything is alright, Can I get away againtonight?” The first line of this verse relates directly to Mia’s drug addictionand the last line deals with the fact that she is going out with a man otherthan her husband Marsellus. While the song is still playing, the Tarantinoalso adds alternating close ups of Vince making a drink, and Mia snorting Cocaine.This is establishing the vices of both characters and will come into play laterin the film. When Mia finally comes downstairs to join Vincent, she simplyturns the record player off and says, “Let’s go”. This creates suspense due tothe fact that the audience has no idea where the characters are going and there has already been so much build up to theirnight out. It is worth noting that throughout this entire scene, we never fullysee Mia’s face.
We see her lips when she talks into the intercom, her arms whenshe’s in the intercom room, the back of her head when she snorts crack, and herfeet when she goes downstairs, but never a full shot of her body or face. Thiscreates even more confusion because the audience has no idea what she lookslike. This tells us that Mia is a very complex character who doesn’t like toshow her true self to others and hides behind many different walls.
All of thiscreates anticipation for the next scene in the film. After close analysis, it is quite evident thatTarantino uses editing, sound, and set design, to establish certain charactertraits in Mia and Vincent foreshadow forthcoming events, and create suspensewithin the audience.
Yetanother one of the many scenes in PulpFiction that uses cinematography, mise-en-scene, editing techniques effectively to create suspense and isthe scene in which Mia Wallace overdoses and Vincent Vega must drive her to hisdrug dealer Lance’s (Eric Stoltz) house and revive her by stabbing her with anadrenaline needle. The scene begins with a long shot of an empty highway.
Itthen cuts between medium shots of Lance, in his messy apartment which is shownin low key lighting and with yellowish color hues which represent the filththat is within it, and Medium close-ups of Vincent calling him while driving.Once Lance picks up the phone, the Medium close-ups of each character alternatein accordance with their conversation and who is speaking. After they talk onthe phone, a long take begins when Lance hears Vince’s car barreling down hisstreet. When he opens his blinds, he sees the car speed by and crash into theside of his house, angered, he storms out of the door and confronts Vincent. Theythen proceed to argue in the lawn about whether or not Vince can bring therecently overdosed Mia into the house. This part of the scene was shot on asmall handheld portable camera.
This can be discerned by the cameras extrememobility and the small amount of shaking that is evident in the frame throughoutthe take. Yet another long take follows in which, Lance’s wife Jody wakes up tothe commotion outside and demands an explanation, meanwhile, Lance and Vinceare still arguing. As each of the three characters speak, or in this case yell,the camera pans back and forth between them. By using this technique, Tarantinocreates a great sense of space for his audience.
They know where everyone islocated and are aware of both the off-screen and on screen space. Also, thisextremely long take lasts for over one and a half minutes, which was extremelyrare in an age in which the average shot length in most films was around 5-7seconds. Tarantino employs the use of multiple long takes in this sequence topresent the proceedings in a very visceral manner and convey the gravity of thesituation. Also, the long takes make every action seem to last longer, seeingas though Mia is quickly dying, this elongation of events unsettles theaudience and begins to instill fear in them. Inthe next few shots, Tarantino shows extreme close-ups of Mia’s chest area(Vincent is looking for where her heart is), the unwrapping of the adrenalineshot, and then he takes a smartly balances the frame by putting one of thethree characters who are trying to revive Mia, Vincent, Jody, and Lance, in onethird of the frame, while they are all looking over her. This balances theframe well and provides spatial continuity. The extreme closes ups thencontinue, one of an adrenaline bottle, and then one of Vincent drawing a reddot over the general area of her heart.
In the moments right before Vincentstabs her with the needle, this pattern repeats again. The difference is, thistime the shots are all zooming in to represent the intensity of the situation.There’s zooming extreme close ups of Mia’s bloodied face, the dripping needle,Vincent’s sweating face, the red dot on Mia’s chest, and Jody’s excited face. Tofurther increase the suspense, Lance is counting down from three while theseshots are projected. Vincent then proceeds to inject the adrenaline into herand she is revived. Within this scene, Tarantino also uses mise-en-sceneeffectively.
Although it is a very intense scene, he injects little bits ofhumor into it to both amuse and entertain the audience. For example, duringmany parts of the scene, two classic board games can be seen resting on Lanceand Jody’s shelf, The Game of Life and Operation. This is very ironic becausethey are fighting to keep a person alive throughout the scene and they must beextremely precise in their actions to do so. Lance is also wearing a SpeedRacer shirt in the scene, which alludes to the dangerous way in which Vincent droveover to the house and to the kick that the adrenaline would eventually giveMia. Pulp Fictionis a masterpiece by almost all standards. Tarantino’s supreme use of cinematic techniques,such as mise-en-scene, editing, sound, and lighting, throughout to inform,control, and entertain the audience make the film stand out and is a mainreason why it is still revered today.
Even now, after Tarantino has directedfive more films ( Jackie Brown, Kill Bill Vol 1,2, Death Proof, and IngloriousBasterds), almost all of which were well reviewed, Pulp Fiction remains his most popular and acclaimed. It is also hismost stylized film, and can serve as a reminder to all about how throughextreme attention and manipulation of detail, filmmakers can excite, upset, andultimately influence us.
ˈmikstāp/nounA compilation of favorite pieces of music, typically by different artists, recorded onto a cassette tape or other medium by an individual.There’s a throwaway gag in Space Jam, the 1996 Warner Bros. Marketing tentpole, wherein Elmer Fudd and Yosemite Sam begin shooting pistols at a basketball-playing alien. In that little moment, the gun-slinging duo are not only dressed in black suits a la Jules and Vincent, but Pulp Fiction’s iconic theme song, “Misirlou” by Dick Dale & His Del-Tones, starts slamming in the background. Just from the song’s super-speedy strumming, audiences everywhere recognize the reference.Quentin Tarantino’s Pulp Fiction turns 20 this year, and yet the film remains lodged in everyone’s head.
Royales with cheese, Big Kahuna burgers, golden briefcases, wallets that say “Bad Motherfucker,” watches, foot massages, the “Gimp,” Zed, poor Marvin, The Wolf, what Marsellus Wallace looks like, furious vengeance, the sting of pride, a needle in the heart, Honey Bunnies, Pumpkins, Kitty Kats, and Daddy-Os — all fractions of Pulp Fiction’s seemingly ceaseless linguistics about the minutiae of kitsch and pulp.It’s a film comprised entirely of great moments. Curious, clever, vulgar, and altogether thrilling moments. But part of what burns those images into our head is how Tarantino turns each scene into a brilliant marriage of sound and vision, thanks to his trademark dialogue and his penchant for unique soundtracks. These are two qualities that have shined throughout his entire career.In 1992, Reservoir Dogs showcased an infamous torture scene with an ear being cut off to the tune of Stealers Wheel’s goofy “Stuck in the Middle with You”. In 1997, Tarantino announced the arrival of his titular Jackie Brown with Bobby Womack’s groovy, melancholic “Across 110 th Street”. He’s even been able to retrofit old Ennio Morricone scores into his intoxicating historical revenge fantasies, specifically 2009’s Inglourious Basterds and 2012’s Django Unchained.He’s so sharp with music, in fact, that he found a speedy, horn-based version of “Flight of the Bumblebee” for 2003’s Kill Bill Vol.
An opera number composed in 1899, the inclusion felt like something new in 2004. It’s not the first time that the song has re-emerged in pop (fun fact: it was the theme song for The Green Hornet’s old radio show), but Tarantino used it in such a dizzying, fresh way — a trick he learned with “Misirlou”.The song dates back to 1927 as a, and Dale decided to surf-rock it up in the early ‘60s.
That right there exemplifies Tarantino’s entire way of doing things. He’s always been good at re-purposing. He’s basically a gifted digger who can find a golden nugget under loads of dust and resuscitate it to new levels of mass appeal. Remember, this is the same guy who had Samuel L. Jackson turning scripture into an amazing harangue seconds before an execution.But really, “Misirlou”.
How in the hell did this become the film’s calling card? It’s only in the film for roughly a minute, but it comes on fast, hard, and confident. It’s like a bolt of lightning on the beach, a perfect declaration of this movie’s arrival. Or, as Tarantino said it best in 1994, the song “throws down a gauntlet that the movie now has to live up to.” True, but it also cracks open the soundtrack, which is more or less a groundbreaking mixtape. Notice how the film doesn’t have a score; it’s unnecessary. Instead, the soundtrack tweaks the little things, the perfect placements.Like Lew Dewitt’s “Flower’s on the Wall”, which plays on the radio as Butch Coolidge (Bruce Willis) thinks he’s home-free after double-crossing his own flimsy boxing bet with the big bad Marsellus Wallace (Ving Rhames).
Of course, he ain’t free just yet, and the cheery irony is killer. It’s not even one of the more popular tracks, but it’s a total mastery of sound on screen. Bringing up Elvis Presley and Mamie Van Dorn isn’t just a reference, but a character trait and state of mind in Tarantino’s world.
In Pulp Fiction, Tarantino found zen between old surf-rock tunes and sexy songs.However, “Misirlou” lends to the film’s West Coast vibe and Tarantino’s affinity for nostalgia. The Lively Ones’ “Surf Rider” closes the film not unlike the way it opens: with beach blanket guitar sounds, this time slower and reflexive. The Revels’ jaunty “Comanche” is rendered wicked ominous as its scratchy-sounding horns become the soundtrack to a chanced-upon S&M dungeon. Even on the soundtrack album, “Comanche” is preceded by dialogue about bringing out “The Gimp” because the words and music are so entwined.Chuck Berry’s place in the movie is also the stuff of movie music magic, as his “You Can Never Tell”, a spirally rock song fueling Vincent Vega (John Travolta) and Mia Wallace’s (Uma Thurman) dance competition routine.
Rockabilly Barry and Travolta’s two fingers sliding across his eyes are now undeniably linked because of this film. It’s odd to say, and acknowledge, but you remember that scene.Let’s also not forget the smokier cuts. Al Green’s “Let’s Stay Together” becomes Marsellus Wallace’s unofficial anthem as we listen to it introduce him. The track not only sounds cool, but foreshadows a splitting of ways between Wallace and his palooka boxer Butch. Dusty Springfield’s “Son of a Preacher Man” also takes on theme-like qualities when it arrives with Mia Wallace, alluding to her good-girl-gone-bad tendencies.
Later, Urge Overkill’s cover of Neil Diamond’s “Girl, You’ll Be a Woman Soon” feels like a broken heart ballad, and is beyond perfect when Wallace has an unfortunate run-in with a bag of heroin.The songs themselves are all very good, but the way they pair with every one of Tarantino’s scenes is flawless. They’re placed in ‘50s to ‘70s hangout subcultures, music without any specific context to it.You see Tarantino accept an Oscar for writing, and it makes sense that a guy this dorky and socially inept has such unique tastes. He’s the product of a pop culturally obsessed generation, constantly looking for something truly worth sharing.
He’s like an even dweebier, more spastic son of Scorsese: violent, juicy, and with a less obviously Stones-inclined sound.Not surprisingly, the soundtrack was a smash hit, going on to sell nearly two million copies by 1996. That’s small potatoes when looking back at that year’s sales for Forrest Gump or The Lion King, but for an indie flick, those numbers were huge. In hindsight, one might argue that Pulp Fiction has more significant cultural capital than either of those hits. That’s probably why “Misirlou” shows up again and again in homage and parody. And partly why Tarantino continues to carve out soundtracks full of music nobody has popularized yet.Think about it: Could you imagine any other song cracking open Pulp Fiction? Of course you couldn’t.—On a parting note, Tarantino’s made such a name for himself as a soundtrack star, it’s easy to forget he had two music supervisors working with him on this.
It’s a postmodern sprawl of music, only made possible by unsung heroes Kathy Nelson (195 music credits on IMDB, including supervising Reservoir Dogs and Scott Pilgrim’s tunes) and Karyn Rachtman (55 credits, including Boogie Nights and Bulworth).Music supervision is a thankless job: trying to line up songs for idiosyncratic visionaries as you’re low-balling indie bands or trying to cut hard deals with big labels. Sometimes it’s the abuse of interns and contracts, compromising between remixes and masters, or getting let down trying to get that specific Zeppelin song that would tie a movie together. Yet, Nelson and Rachtman really made Tarantino sound good.At the 2013 Tallgrass Film Festival in Kansas, Rachtman showed up for a special 35mm screening and provided insight into the musical process.
Chronicled this. Tarantino would say he was writing the movie with songs in mind, giving her illegible handwritten notes with song requests, forcing her to go to his apartment at the time and figure out what he wanted.Originally, Tarantino wanted “My Sharona” for the “Gimp” scene, but it was already being used in a movie under Rachtman’s supervision ( Reality Bites). This would happen. To counter, Rachtman would come up with suggestions and guide Tarantino on set when he couldn’t make up his mind about the music.
Apologies if this is coming a little late, but way to go Nelson and Rachtman – you braved Tarantino and iconized Pulp Fiction.