Pulp Fiction is a 1994 thriller written and directed by Quentin Tarantino that is known for its rich eclectic dialogue, ironic mix of humour and violence, nonlinear storyline and host of cinematic illusions and pop culture references. The film is hugely successful, being nominated for seven Oscars and ranking 4th on IMDB’s top movies of all time. The film follows the interlinking storylines of multiple characters, the three “main” characters being Jules Winnfield, Vincent Vega and Butch Coolidge (Samuel L Jackson, John Travolta and Bruce Willis).
The film opens to a shot of a title card, bearing two dictionary definitions of the word “Pulp”; the words eventually fade out and the camera cuts to the opening scene. In keeping with Tarantino’s trademark non-chronological narrative, the ending to Pulp Fiction is also the opening scene, not unlike Fight Club (although the nature of Pulp Fiction’s nonlinear storyline differs greatly to Fight Club’s otherwise chronological series of events). For the opening scene we get a medium shot of “Honey Bunny” and “Pumpkin” who are having breakfast in a diner. Halfway through their conversation involving the comparison of the consistent difficulty of robbing a bank to robbing a liquor store, the camera cuts to a shot-reverse-shot between the couple, mainly to show the facial expressions of the two characters during their conversation.
The fact that they were discussing the benefits of robbing a restaurant, which involves a greater intake and less risk of being caught, is ironic, as Jules is later shown to be in the restaurant at the time, ruining their whole “cutting down on the Hero factor” ideology.
After realising they can make vast amounts of money from the holding up of the diner (due to the option of robbing the customers as well as the business) and initiating said hold-up, the scene breaks off and the title credits roll to the sounds of Dick Dale’s Misirlou.
The titles themselves are all displayed in one shot, instead of showing some visuals in between names. After the titles are shown, the camera cuts to a shot of Jules and Vince driving to Brett’s apartment in their car, shot from the point of view of someone looking in through Vince’s window. The non-diagetic music fades out at the start of this scene and is replaced by the diagetic sound of the banter between Vince and Jules. Much like in the previous scene, halfway through their conversation the camera cuts to a shot-reverse-shot to show closer detail of their facial expressions. The camera then cuts to a shot of Jules and Vince opening the trunk of the car, shot from the point of view someone in the trunk of the car would have. This is a traditional shot that Tarantino enjoys using, as shown in the image below depicting the same shot used throughout his other films.
After they enter the hotel in which Brett is staying, the camerawork in the next few shots is very nicely done. For example, when they enter the lobby, the camera is stationed in the top right corner of the room, much like where a CCTV camera would be. So we see Vince and Jules enter through the doors then walk over to enter the lift. When they arrive on the higher floor, Vince and Jules walk down the hallway towards the camera. The camera tracks back at the same speed as Vince and Jules, so as to maintain the medium-shot. When Vince and Jules stop walking, the camera stops too, as if to suggest that we are there with them, helping to place the audience within the scene which in turn makes them feel more connected to the characters.
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