The film Pulp Fiction (1994), directed by Quentin Tarantino, is highly renown for it criticism of modern media. The film “purposefully exaggerates the ever-criticized aspects of movies, such as jumping from scene to scene with no apparent reason, and throwing together a mishmosh of genres” (The Human Fiction). Tarantino disregarded the normal chronological plot of movies and took four different plots and jumbled them into series of events. The four different plots follow; first, two diner robbers, Ringo “Pumpkin” (Tim Roth) and Yolanda “Honey Bunny” (Amanda Plummer), who we see at the very beginning and end of the film. The next plot follows Vincent Vega (John Travolta) and Mia Wallace (Uma Thurman) going out on a date at the request of Vincent’s However, at the beginning of the second plot title “The Gold Watch” we are introduced to a young Butch Coolidge in his home. In this scene Captain Koons (Christopher Walken), a friends of Butch’s, presents a gold watch to Butch and tells him the story of how it got from his father in Vietnam to Butch. During the story Captain Koons says to Butch, “The way your dad looked at it, this watch was your birthright. He'd be damned if any slopes gonna put their greasy yellow hands on his boy's birthright, so he hid it, in the one place he knew he could hide something: his ass” (Pulp Fiction). Not only is this watch of sentimental value to Butch because it has been passed down from generation to generation it also symbolizes the traits of honor, courage, and masculinity being passed down to him. The non-linear plot of the movie causes the viewer to get one idea of Butch and then it discredits that after that particular emotional scene. After this scene we know that Butch feels the duty to act with honor and masculinity because it is his birthright. Butch’s need to act with honor and courage causes him to have a great pride in maintaining these traits throughout his everyday life. This pride causes him to win the fight he agreed to throw because losing a fight on purpose is metaphorically the same thing as surrendering in war, which none of his forefathers did. Therefore, he feels the obligation to win in order to maintain his honor. Throughout his life the watch becomes an extension of Butch through its symbolism and importance. This need for the watch comes into play later in “The Gold Watch” because without it Butch metaphorically loses his honor and masculinity, which he needs to live his
The only real way to truly understand a story is to understand all aspects of a story and their meanings. The same goes for movies, as they are all just stories being acted out. In Thomas Foster's book, “How to Read Literature Like a Professor”, Foster explains in detail the numerous ingredients of a story. He discusses almost everything that can be found in any given piece of literature. The devices discussed in Foster's book can be found in most movies as well, including in Quentin Tarantino’s cult classic, “Pulp Fiction”. This movie is a complicated tale that follows numerous characters involved in intertwining stories. Tarantino utilizes many devices to make “Pulp Fiction” into an excellent film. In this essay, I will demonstrate how several literary devices described in Foster's book are put to use in Tarantino’s film, “Pulp Fiction”, including quests, archetypes, food, and violence.
Once a successful novel hits the market, producers are inclined to adapt the story into a movie. Since imagination, symbolism, and character psyches are explored in a novel, the movies tend to lack the luster of the original text. Using their imagination, readers are able to conjure up characters and scenes that are unique. This is the case with Tim O’Brien’s, “Sweetheart of the Song Tra Bong.” This is a story where love and war collide after a soldier brings his sweetheart to his Vietnamese post. On the whole, this chapter in The Things They Carried is far superior to the film, The Soldier’s Sweetheart, because it has thorough descriptions of characters’ feelings, including symbolism concerning objects and important events. When the audience is able to draw it's own story around an author's narrative, the experience is more satisfying than when every detail is presented through the cinematic medium - an active audience is happier than a passive one.
The central theme of the story is the age-old conflict of life and death. On a more personal level with First Lieutenant Jimmy Cross, the round character and protagonist of "The Things They Carried", it is a conflict of love, his antagonist and of war.
of Sal. It for the most part pawns him off as a racist. On the
When we think of high school dropout we automatically start thinking, “Wow, that must’ve been some druggie.” Now what would you say if he dropped out to pursue a dream of his? Would you change your mind? What if he lied on his résumé to ‘compensate for his lack of experience in the film industry’, would you hire him? He gathered all of his knowledge while working at The Manhattan Beach Video Archives. There, he was able to work on some of his earlier scripts such as, True Romance (1993), and Natural Born Killers (1994). Looking to direct his first movie, he was able to get ahold of distribution company, Miramax Films, with Lawrence Bender set in place for production, who was able to secure funding for Reservoir Dogs (1992). Through this, he, Quentin Tarantino was then able to direct his first movie, having grossed 2.8 million from a budget of 1.2 million. He was able to make the difference of the two, 1.6 million, in just eight weeks. In 2009, just seventeen years after his directorial debut, he wrote and directed his first World War II film, Inglourious Basterds. Having set a budget of 70 million, Inglourious Basterds set a domestic gross total of 120.5 million, with a difference of 50.5 million. A huge step from his first. There have been several rumors that have risen since the end of Inglourious Basterds that deals with the films that Tarantino may cover. One specifically deals with a spaghetti western, with a working title of ‘Django: Unchained’.
Genre and Narrative Establishment in the Opening of Pulp Fiction, The Krays and Goodfellas In this piece of coursework I am going to study, compare and evaluate three films in order to show how the genre and narrative are established in the opening five minutes of each. The three films I have chosen to study are 'Pulp Fiction', 'The Krays' and 'Goodfellas'. Pulp Fiction was released in 1995, it was written and directed by Quentin Tarantino and was star studded with the likes of John Travolta (Vincent Vega), Uma Thurman (Mia Wallace), Samuel L Jackson (Jules) and Bruce Willis (Butch). Pulp Fiction has a non-linear narrative; the film follows Vincent's life and the scenarios he transpires within just a few days.
The film “Anatomy of hate” examines hate and prejudice towards different race or minorities in the modern society, through the examples of multiple groups which have specific ideologies or participate in violent conflicts. The director of the film Michael Ramsdell, spent six years working and filming such groups like: White Supremacist movement, Muslim extremists, the Westboro church Christian fundamentalists, Israeli-Palestinian movement, and US soldiers operating in Iraq.
In his essay, “Why We Crave Horror Movies” King attempts to bring understanding to the phenomenon of the horror film genre. He states “sanity becomes a matter of degree” eluding to the theory that sanity is relative and that all humans are relatively insane. Jack the Ripper and the Cleveland Torso Murderer were the examples of humans on one extreme of the spectrum of sanity; saints represent the other safe end of the sanity spectrum. He illustrates the thought that in order for human kind to stay functionally sane there needs to be some sort of outlet for our violent “mad” thoughts. In King’s view horror movies provide a stable outlet and mental relief for innate madness. King argues that his insanity/ant civilization emotions are ingrained
Director and actor Spike Lee presents his "truth" about race relations in his movie Do the Right Thing. The film exhibits the spectacle of black discrimination and racial altercations. Through serious, angry, and loud sounds, Lee stays true to the ethnicity of his characters, all of which reflect their own individualism. Lee uses insulting diction and intense scenes to show how severe racism can lead to violence. The biases reflected through Do the Right Thing model those of today which has kept society in a constant feud for so long. In Oprah Winfrey's dynamic episode, "The Color of Fear", Mr. Mun Wah projects his strong opinion when he states, " . . . that racism is still going on today, that we've got to stop to hear the anguish and the pain that goes with that and then we'll survive." (3) People do not realize the severity of their own words. In the scenes of the movie that emphasize the shocking reality of failed interracial communication, racial stereotyping, trust or lack of trust, and acrimonious violence mirror the current concerns about race in America as reflected in "The Color Of Fear."
The second scene of the film opens up to Vincent Vega and Jules Winnfield drivi...
“Do the Right Thing” is a film directed by Spike Lee, which was released in 1989. The film takes place in a small predominately African-American neighborhood in Brooklyn, New York. The protagonist of the film named Mookie works in a pizzeria located in his neighborhood named, Sal’s Famous Pizzeria. Throughout the film, we see different characters who visit Sal’s pizzeria, including Buggin ' Out, who is a neighborhood local who feels offended when he sees the lack of diversity on the pizzerias wall; which only displays famous Italian-Americans. The lack of African-American culture in the neighborhood leads to a building up of tensions, which eventually explodes into a fight between the owner of the pizzeria Sal, his two sons and the locals.
Kurt Vonnegut was born on November 11th 1922 in Indianapolis, Indiana. His parents, Kurt Vonnegut Sr. and Edith Leiber Vonnegut were hit particularly hard by the great depression and his family was financially unstable for most of his childhood. Vonnegut studied at Cornell University, where he double majored in chemistry and biology. Shortly after graduation, Vonnegut enlisted in the United States Army and was deployed to Germany once America entered World War II. Around this time, Vonnegut’s mother committed suicide. Vonnegut was deeply traumatized by the event and never truly forgave his mother during his lifetime. In 1944, he was captured by Nazi troops and placed in a prisoner of war camp in Dresden, Germany. Vonnegut was a survivor of
There are movies that make you laugh, that make you cry, that blow you away with jaw-dropping, ever-so-satisfying action sequences. And there is Pulp Fiction, Quentin Tarantino’s masterpiece, an homage to the old Pulp Magazines and crime novels popular in the 1950s. Known for their incredibly dense and complex dialogue and excessive violence, Tarantino adds his trademark nonlinear chronology and thorough character development to create a movie that celebrates the fact that chance governs all of our lives. The film consists of multiple stories that tell of the criminals, gangsters and outliers of Los Angeles, the underbelly of society. It follows Vincent Vega and Jules Winnfield as they embark on their mission to recovering a briefcase that
Throughout the story Bonfire of the Vanities, Tom Wolfe challenges many aspects of society and humanity through the use of social dynamics and perceptions. A technique Wolfe uses is introducing controversial themes that test characters in physical and social emotional ways. One of these controversial ideas is the Favor Bank. This idea is extremely important in the story because of its effect on the interactions, reactions and outcomes of the characters across the plotline. . Wolfe uses the Favor Bank as a connection between the readers and the New York society he creates because so many can relate to it, and oin many ways, this idea can be straightforward because we can recognize and regularly see it in our everyday life, “The Favor Bank is a universal human phenomenon that has existed for as long as there have been people and
The title of the story represents irony when the true essence of the title is completely different from what the reader might think it to be.