Pulp Fiction's Recent Activity - Spout

Film:Pulp Fiction

Sun, 16 Aug 2009 19:22:27 GMT

Title: Pulp Fiction
Year: 1994
Director: Quentin Tarantino
Plot: Outrageously violent, time-twisting, and in love with language, Pulp Fiction was widely considered the most influential American movie of the 1990s. Director and co-screenwriter Quentin Tarantino synthesized such seemingly disparate traditions as the syncopated language of David Mamet; the serious violence of American gangster movies, crime movies, and films noirs mixed up with the wacky violence of cartoons, video games, and Japanese animation; and the fragmented story-telling structures of such experimental classics as Citizen Kane, Rashomon, and La jetée. The Oscar-winning script by Tarantino and Roger Avary intertwines three stories, featuring Samuel L. Jackson and John Travolta, in the role that single-handedly reignited his career, as hit men who have philosophical interchanges on such topics as the French names for American fast food products; Bruce Willis as a boxer out of a 1940s B-movie; and such other stalwarts as Harvey Keitel, Tim Roth, Christopher Walken, Eric Stoltz, Ving Rhames, and Uma Thurman, whose dance sequence with Travolta proved an instant classic. ~ Leo Charney, All Movie Guide
Times Tagged: 239
Number of Lists: 220
Number of blog posts: 25
Number of discussion threads: 39
SpoutRating: 4

Spout Post: Re:Which of these films that excessively use the word "fuck" or one of its derivatives is your favorite?

Thu, 23 Apr 2009 15:05:44 GMT

Post By: Risselada
Post To: Movie Polls
Post Date: 4/23/2009 11:05:44 AM
Body: [quote user="Phantasma-gore-ia"] Was there some unknown problem with Pulp Fiction and it's close to 300 uses of the said word? Or is it just me? [/quote] What do you mean by an "unknown problem"?? If you are asking why Pulp Fiction didn't make the poll I can kind of go through my procedure for picking. I found this link on wikipedia first of all: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_films_that_most_frequently_use_the_word_%22fuck%22 According to that link Pulp Fiction uses the word a notable 265 times. But I was looking at movies that used the word the most frequently rather than the most overall. So although the film uses the word nearly as many times as the other movies listed, it has an over 2 and a half hour running time which is fairly long, so the number of uses per minute is 1.72 which doesn't quite measure up to the other films on the list. Some other notable films that actually use the word more requently than Pulp Fiction: Jay and Silent Bob Strike BackMenace II SocietyCasinoSummer of SamThe Big LebowskiThe Boondock SaintsGoodfellasSpunTrue Romance (another penned by Tarantino)American History XThe Blair Witch ProjectBad Santa

Spout Post: movie year countdown - round #2 - #27 - 1954-5 - Kiss Me Deadly

Fri, 10 Apr 2009 15:51:24 GMT

Post By: Risselada
Post To: Risselada Blog
Post Date: 4/10/2009 11:51:24 AM
Body: This blog entry is part of my "movie year countdown round #2". Read more about that here. Kiss Me Deadly The Mike Hammer of this film is one of the most selfish, sleaziest protagonists I've seen, even for film noir. I was kind of surprised and amused at the excessive use of violence. Not that things don't usually end up violent in film noir of this type, but Hammer fairly quickly in his series of investigations, progresses to the point where if someone doesn't give him the info he wants right away, he jumps almost straight to bribes. And if they don't accept the first offer he jumps straight into violence. There is little time wasted in escalating from verbal threats to violence if he doesn't get what he wants immediately. It makes him look a lot more like a brute but it sure does work! The film jumps around from different genres of the period in ways I wasn't expecting either. From a detective film noir to an atomic age sci-fi film. In a ways the jump is exciting but in some ways also jarring. There are some very striking images here. I love the way the film is shot. Sometimes the progression of events or the motivations of the characters just seem so out of place or unbelievable from one scene to another that I can't quite rank it amongst my favorite film noirs. The glowing briefcase must have been an inspiration for many other films though. It's impossible not to think Tarantino was picturing this film when making his briefcase in Pulp Fiction. In fact I'm sure this is a movie that Tarantino must love all around. Rating: 8/10

Spout Post: A "Curious" Defense of an Exceptional Film

Fri, 23 Jan 2009 03:30:25 GMT

Post By: Tenenbaums
Post To: Tenenbaums Blog
Post Date: 1/22/2009 10:30:25 PM
Body: David Fincher's The Curious Case of Benjamin Button is a remarkable film and the best of 2008. It's been nominated for 13 Academy Awards, more than any other film this year, and deserves at least one more for Cate Blanchett. Yet despite being the 6th most positively reviewed film of the year, there has been an inordinate amount of critical backlash toward it.For all the snobiness inherent in so many film reviewers, the hatred makes sense. Buzz has been surrounding the film for nearly a year when the first trailer appeared and Benjamin Button was anointed the Best Picture front runner long before its release date. Critics hate hype, especially when it comes from a star-studded, big budget film begging to be lauded with awards that it may or may not deserve. A film like that is the equivalent of the Patriots in last year's Super Bowl: no one, besides die hard Patriots fans, wanted an undefeated, record-setting team to win. The team was too loaded, just like to many critics Benjamin Button is too loaded to warrant being a respectable film. "Real" sports fans retained their reputation by bashing the Patriots and critics who champion purely independent and foreign films have already begun the crusade against Benjamin Button. They want to see the film fail and they'll take any shot possible to knock it down.The current favorite critical noogie is to closely link Benjamin Button to Forrest Gump and claim that little separates the two. Critics make this claim because the films share a screenwriter (Eric Roth), and, according to Spout's Karina Longworth, they "both put groundbreaking special effects to the service of sprawling stories, spanning many decades and weaving a breadcrumb trail through modern American history, in which a man holds a torch for a woman who can’t reciprocate his love until her dreams of autonomy are spectacularly dashed."For Longworth, "the Gump comparison is a pejorative, a shorthand way to say, 'This film will likely make a lot of money and win a lot of awards, and yet is so phony and cloying and gimmicky that its success will some day be seen by some as a tragedy,'" just as "true" cinema fans (myself included) cry foul that Gump beat out their beloved Pulp Fiction for Best Picture in 1994. Longworth furthers her attack by saying that "[i]t’s a film about the feat of its own whiz-bang, Frankensteinian digital imagery, drunk on its own accomplishment to an extent that feels quasi-ethical."While the effects are stunning, critics like Longworth are missing the point of the film. In turn, these viewers deny themselves the wondrous discovery that The Curious Case of Benjamin Button is far too complex to be a child of Gump.Exceptional effects are capable of furthering a film's story and making audiences feel deeply about the characters. In a story as unusual as Button (for those who don't know, Benjamin, played by Brad Pitt, is born an old man the size of a baby, and gets younger on the outside as he grows older) , why shouldn't the effects play a major part? How else are we to experience the unique feeling of being around Benjamin without us, too, being in awe of him? Never is this more true than when he shows up in Daisy (Blanchett)'s studio as a beautiful-faced teen. Benjamin is a one-of-a-kind human being, and it takes likewise original effects to fully flesh out his story.Additionally, Longworth is perturbed by very small pieces of the film, including the 4-second scene of Benjamin and Daisy resting on his sailboat off the Florida coast while a NASA launch is seen behind them. However, it's scenes like this that distance Benjamin Button from its Best Picture predecessor. Forrest Gump hit audiences over the head with its protagonists' interaction with history. In Benjamin Button, the references, like the NASA launch, are far more subtle. Additionally, Benjamin and Daisy watch the Beatles on "Ed Sullivan" from their living room and, as discussed later, Benjamin has a refreshingly anonymous brush with war. In Gump, Vietnam took up a bulk of the film, and if placed in Benjamin's situations, Forrest would have accidentally blasted into space or accidentally kept an astronaut from going on a doomed mission, and would certainly have made a dim-witted reference to insects to inspire the Beatles' name. Even telling the story from Daisy's death bed via Benjamin's journal with Hurricane Katrina rapidly approaching (another of Longworth's thorns) is more of a tribute to New Orleans, the story's primary setting, than an arbitrary plot device. No other piece of the city's history is worthy to be symbolically linked to the end of Benjamin's (as filtered through Daisy's) life. Each was a titan in its own right, and the demise of both is notably tragic. When minute details begin to affect one's reviews, it's time for such critics to stop nit-picking and focus on why they love film in the first place.Ironically, one of the more remarkable things about Benjamin is that he never does anything that remarkable in the sense of teetering on celebrity. Unlike Gump, he doesn't come across many famous people. Instead, they're mostly ordinary folk, many of whom are poor blue collar workers. When WWII hits, Benjamin accidentally becomes a part of the combat and is involved in only one major scene. Even there, the heroism is largely accidental and Benjamin is refreshingly quick to deflect chances to wax nostalgic (as opposed to Forrest's "Jenny and the sky" montage). With the exception of the lone rousing battle scene, all we see of Benjamin's time "in" the war is his affair with Elizabeth Abbott (Tilda Swinton), a clear indication that Fincher is concerned with the nuances of his characters and not merely CGI. Additionally, it is through Benjamin's first major interaction with someone outside of his New Orleans bubble that the film introduces its primary conflict: Benjamin's role in the world.As such, the underlying piece of fascination is how Benjamin is able to stay below the social radar. His condition is one that the media (or the circus) would love to get a hold of, and yet he is able to live a somewhat normal life.How is one who knows Benjamin supposed to act? Is his "curious case" one that should be shared or kept secret? Apparently, it's the latter. As it happens, Benjamin surrounds himself with a cluster of loyal friends who keep his secret (though he doesn't ask them to) and people who either die (the old folks' home residents, who give him ideal cover, and his tugboat employer, Captain Mike, played by Jared Harris) or who he never sees again (Elizabeth Abbott; Daisy's husband) and therefore cannot discover his secret. Most significant is Daisy. The secret is the center of her life, yet she keeps the truth from her daughter until she's on her death bed. That's dedication! Benjamin's general course of action is that he lives a fitting life in his current backwards age situation, lets it run its course, and then moves on so that he isn't discovered. His resulting inability to make many lasting relationships is as heartbreaking as his unusual demise.There is a lack of strong sadness in the film, with the exception of the final, tearful few minutes, but therein lies one of the film's strongest pieces. Director Fincher, he of such dark fare as Se7en, Fight Club, and Zodiac, and, interestingly, sentimental target Roth (perhaps weaned off the sap by working on The Insider and Munich) are to thank for that. Growing up in the old folks' home, Benjamin becomes accustomed to death, and when it strikes his loved ones, he's able to not let it slow him down. In such scenes, Fincher and Roth keep the film from becoming overly sentimental by keeping the story moving and focusing on Benjamin and Daisy's relationship. In the sepia-tinged world that Fincher depicts, and through the honest, blunt statements Roth scripts for his characters, none such sappiness can endure. As a result of this dynamic team, Benjamin's situation is more than extraordinary to carry the film, and with equally superb performances and technology surrounding said story, the film cannot help but soar, even when it winds down. As Benjamin's life nears its end, he embraces his isolation and travels the world with the body of a teenager and the soul of an old man. The montage of his treks to what appear to be India are visually and emotionally rich, and serves as the perfect preamble to his decay into dementia and death in an increasingly youthful vessel. In the above sequence, Benjamin completes his personal bucket list completely alone and without fanfare, and the "just-so" attitude with which he has conducted his life carries him and us through to his final chapter. It is as if both parties are coming to accept that precious little time is left, and yet for us (and Daisy), letting go is terribly difficult. The resulting climactic feeling is so strong because we are emotionally invested in Benjamin throughout the film. The entire time, we know that Benjamin is going to die, and yet, like our own unavoidable death, we put off thinking about it until it's on top of us. Then, when it hits, it's stunning and beautiful. Saying goodbye to Benjamin is the hardest thing to do this year in cinema, and one of the most difficult in the history of film. As a character, he is so magnetic that we cannot help but love him, just as Daisy and those who take the time to know him do. To accompany his story with visuals so appealing that they beg to be lived in, and to firmly trust in an auteur behind the camera, one in such complete control of a fragile story because he too loves film, is sublime. To experience The Curious Case of Benjamin Button over and over, with the same satisfying results, is simply a gift.

Spout Post: Re:Question from FilmCouch #94, who's better, Kevin Smith or Quentin Tarantino?

Thu, 13 Nov 2008 21:00:09 GMT

Post By: porcupine
Post To: FilmCouch
Post Date: 11/13/2008 4:00:09 PM
Body: So if I'm understanding you, joem, you're saying that while both can create a good time, they will be lost to history? Interesting point. But I think Tarantino will have longevity, at least Pulp Fiction, if not more.

Spout Post: Re:Weekly Theme for September 29: Gimme Some Drugs Man!

Wed, 01 Oct 2008 02:51:24 GMT

Post By: Dr_Gor
Post To: Weekly Theme
Post Date: 9/30/2008 10:51:24 PM
Body: Up In Smoke , Nice Dreams and every other movie ever made by Cheech and Chong. Easy Rider and Vanishing Point (!) ... yes, it really IS a 'drug' movie! Pulp Fiction ... probably my favorite of the modern drug movies... < GOR >

Spout Post: Re:Top 5 Films of the 90s

Tue, 30 Sep 2008 20:56:32 GMT

Post By: pippin06
Post To: Forever Young
Post Date: 9/30/2008 4:56:32 PM
Body: [quote user="filmgal81"] ( Originally posted on the 80s Movies board, but i think it fits better here) Picking up where Seely left off, I'd like to start a list of the Top 5 Films of the 90s. Again, not necessarily cinematic genius, but films that epitomize how you remember the 90s ( or a particular part of the 90s). Here's mine: 1) Edward Scissorhands - does anything scream 90s like this film? Early Johnny Depp, the Rebel Without a Cause like angst of the early 90s personified in Tim Burton's creation about a man forever on the outside of the "perfect" world ( a theme that also reverberates throughout many of his later films) 2) Singles - A film complete with long hair, plaid shirts, and the Seattle grunge music scene- classic! 3) House Party- on the lighter side, there was this fun film featuring a very popular rap duo named Kid n Play. The fashion, the music, the dancing, blatant sexual references...also classic! 4)Dances with Wolves - & 5) Wyatt Earp - 90s actors of the moment paying tribute to our frontier past. [/quote] Ah, thank you for posting! This group has been sleepy lately, so it's nice to know people are still interested. And a good topic...but... I have a question: are we talking our five fave films in general from the 90s? Or our five fave teen flicks? Since this is the group devoted to those guilty pleasures we call the teen movie, I'll approach it from both vantage points, but if you like Top 5's, the Top 5 group is the best place to play this game. Still, we're open to all here - So: top 5 teen flicks from the 90s (not as good as from the 80s...but yeah). 1. 10 Things I Hate About You - I admit it. I like it. I mostly like Heath before his superstardom, but the whole massively guilty pleasure is just fun to watch. Even when you're sick! 2. Clueless - As if! Whatever happened to what's her name? You know, the star? 3. Never Been Kissed - Is Drew Barrymore believable as Josie Grossie? Hard to say, but another massively guilty pleasure. 4. Election - Overachiever hell by Reese Witherspoon. 5. Now and Then - The female version of Stand By Me for the 90s! Now, to pick my favorite movies of the 90s. That's considerably harder - I mean, it was a good decade and all, but I don't think my favoritest films include many from the decade. I'm trying to think back to my movie collection; ironically, it dances around the 90s quite dramatically. Let's see if I can pick five... 1. Forrest Gump / Apollo 13 - I put these Tom Hanks movies together because this was during the Tom Hanks era, when he couldn't escape a year without an Oscar nod. I like Philadelphia too, but I liked these movies more. Forrest sees it all - it's funny and touching and yes, he's not a smart man, but he knows what love is! And Apollo 13 still tenses me up, and I already know the outcome (I have seen it a few times, after all, in addition to, well, history). 2. Schindler's List - It's hard to watch, but it's the artistic pinnacle of the decade without question. 3. Pulp Fiction - QT exploded onto the map with this quintessential film, and John Travolta had a second coming. It's violent, profane, and overtly sexual (not to mention the unadulterated cocaine use), but it's one of the best told yarns on film. 4. American Beauty / The Usual Suspects - Two of my favorite movies starring one of my favorite actors. Kevin Spacey, playing the duplicitous Verbal Kint or hysterically sardonic Lester Burnham, pretty much rocked my world, and I've watched these movies multiple times and own them both too. 5. The Sixth Sense - Shyamalan seems to offend many nowadays, but no one can deny the thrills and chills factor of this, his very first film, about seeing dead people. And for good measure, my top 5 honorable mentions for the decade: Wayne's World / Austin Powers - It was Mike Myers' decade, after all. Toy Story - A masterpiece but oddly not my favorite Pixar anymore. The Mask / The Truman Show - It was Jim Carrey's decade too, and these two films exemplify his wacky acting schizophrenia. The Silence of the Lambs - Almost made my top 5, but I can't watch it repeatedly. Hannibal scares me. And he should. Titanic - Oh shut up. You know you loved it the first time you saw it. It was only after Celine Dion's painfully worded ballad and James Cameron's self-indulgent "I'm the king of the world" nod that you decided you were too cool to like it. Besides, the production values on the film are astounding. I get cold just watching those poor people drown in the icy Atlantic.

Spout Post: Re:Extreme Films

Thu, 25 Sep 2008 03:18:45 GMT

Post By: Dr_Gor
Post To: Extreme Cinema
Post Date: 9/24/2008 11:18:45 PM
Body: [quote user="Stinger839"] .Narrowing it down to the pure gold will require a village; for example, 'Descent' feels pretty lukewarm compared to other movies featuring rape out there, but for my own sanity (and lack of awareness of other films) I haven't poured through every film which uses rape as the crux of the story. So while 'Irreversible' or an obscure foreign may have a more upsetting and graphic rape scene, Rosario Dawson's got the limelight for now. _kelly [/quote] Hmmm. Rape scenes. I think I have an answer for this one. First I must make a disclaimer and state that I think that rape is the most heinous of all crimes and it makes me sick to my stomach. That being said, I can think of several movies that have at least one disturbing rape scene and these are some of the most disturbing movies to me... Besides Deliverance , the only other movie I can think of with a homosexual rape scene would be Pulp Fiction . Although I really didn't find that one disturbing as much as humorous. As for really disturbing rape scenes we have ; Billy Jack : It is the disturbing rape of Billy's girlfriend Jean that sets him on a murderous revenge rampage... Last House On The Left : Brutal rape and murder lead to bloody revenge in this drive-in classic... A Clockwork Orange : One of the more disturbing rape scenes ever filmed helps lead to the eventual downfall of our anti-hero in Kubrick's classic... Straw Dogs : This Peckinpah classic has one of the more disturbing rape scenes of all time... The Hills Have Eyes (remake) : I am not usually one to tout remakes (just ask anyone!) but in this case the remake has something that the original did not... a VERY brutal rape scene! (I STILL liked the original better!) ... And now we come down to it... movies that deal PRIMARILY with rape and revenge! And here are my top three choices in this category counting down to number one... Lipstick : The Hemingway sisters have never looked lovlier than in this graphic tale of rape and revenge... Ms. 45 : This seldom seen movie is awesome! When a young deaf-mute girl is raped twice in one day she kills the second assailant by bashing his brains in with a clothes iron and, taking his gun, goes on a revenge spree that is unequaled in motion pictures... And the number one rape and revenge movie of all time... I Spit On Your Grave : This thing is just brutal nasty! The heroine is repeatedly gang raped throughout the first half hour of this horrible film before she goes on a revenge spree to beat them all! This thing is brutal and NASTY! THE creme-de-la-creme of rape films... < GOR >

Spout Post: Re:TUESDAY Eagle Eye Challenge

Wed, 24 Sep 2008 04:46:44 GMT

Post By: bagel
Post To: Filmgaming
Post Date: 9/24/2008 12:46:44 AM
Body: Eagle Eye (2008) (1) Women's disembodied voice as character giving commands Stranger Than Fiction (2006) (2) Fiction Pulp Fiction (1994) (3) Character - Vincent the hitman Collateral (2004) (4) Characters work as drivers Dumb and Dumber (1994) (5) Botched ransom drops The Big Lebowski (1998) (6) Steve Buscemi Reservoir Dogs (1991) (7) Jewelry thiefs Snatch (2000) (8) Jason Statham The Transporter (2002) (9) France Ronin (1998) (10) Name one object that's featured prominently in all of these movies. Briefcase

Spout Post: Re:TUESDAY Eagle Eye Challenge

Wed, 24 Sep 2008 02:20:13 GMT

Post By: lorianna24
Post To: Filmgaming
Post Date: 9/23/2008 10:20:13 PM
Body: Tuesday Eagle Eye Challenge Eagle Eye (2008) (1) Strange woman knowing and anticipating every aspect of their lives Stranger Than Fiction (2006) (2) 'Fiction' Pulp Fiction (1994) (3) Hitmen Collateral (2004) (4) Meeting attractive women as a paid driver?? Dumb and Dumber (1994) (5) Ransom The Big Lebowski (1998) (6) Steve Buscemi Reservoir Dogs (1991) (7) Jewel thievery Snatch (2000) (8) Jason Statham The Transporter (2002) (9) France Ronin (1998) (10) Briefcases/'packages'

Spout Post: Re:TUESDAY Eagle Eye Challenge

Wed, 24 Sep 2008 00:05:02 GMT

Post By: shibre
Post To: Filmgaming
Post Date: 9/23/2008 8:05:02 PM
Body: [quote user="csprague"] Tuesday Eagle Eye Challenge Hint: Watch the trailers if you get stuck. Eagle Eye (2008) (1) Stranger Than Fiction (2006) (2) Pulp Fiction (1994) (3) Collateral (2004) (4) (This one's tough, but there's a clue in the synopses.) Dumb and Dumber (1994) (5) The Big Lebowski (1998) (6) Reservoir Dogs (1991) (7) Snatch (2000) (8) The Transporter (2002) (9) Ronin (1998) (10) Name one object that's featured prominently in all of these movies. [/quote] 1. car 2. briefcase 3. cell phone 4. sneakers

Spout Tag:Classic

Sun, 23 Aug 2009 22:54:36 GMT

Classic
Number of films tagged: 816

Number of people who tagged: 312

Number of times used: 1453

Spout Tag:comedy

Tue, 15 Dec 2009 16:38:30 GMT

comedy
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Number of times used: 1342

Spout Tag:Great

Fri, 04 Dec 2009 17:11:49 GMT

Great
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Number of times used: 371

Spout Tag:Loved-It

Tue, 03 Nov 2009 17:56:35 GMT

Loved-It
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Spout Tag:murder

Fri, 04 Dec 2009 02:57:25 GMT

murder
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Spout Tag:revenge

Wed, 02 Dec 2009 23:13:41 GMT

revenge
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Spout Tag:brilliant

Tue, 03 Nov 2009 17:28:43 GMT

brilliant
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Number of times used: 285

Spout Tag:drugs

Fri, 04 Dec 2009 01:36:00 GMT

drugs
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Number of times used: 488

Spout Tag:sex

Fri, 04 Dec 2009 00:50:42 GMT

sex
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Spout Tag:action

Tue, 15 Dec 2009 15:49:02 GMT

action
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Spout Tag:drama

Wed, 16 Dec 2009 19:01:29 GMT

drama
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Spout Tag:cult

Wed, 04 Nov 2009 18:20:54 GMT

cult
Number of films tagged: 449

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Number of times used: 162

Spout Tag:crime

Fri, 20 Nov 2009 18:51:32 GMT

crime
Number of films tagged: 401

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Number of times used: 303

Spout Tag:gangster

Mon, 17 Aug 2009 01:37:08 GMT

gangster
Number of films tagged: 4065

Number of people who tagged: 60

Number of times used: 145

Spout Tag:violent

Mon, 27 Jul 2009 04:28:06 GMT

violent
Number of films tagged: 97

Number of people who tagged: 57

Number of times used: 153