Celebrating the subtle (and not-so-subtle) genius of Pulp Fiction, 25 years on

“It’s a recurring theme within the movie – the idea of taking these heightened, dramatic moments and mining humor out of the ordinariness of them.” – Jason Bailey

In this episode of Deviate, Rolf and Jason discuss the 1990s and the early influence of Pulp Fiction (3:45); set the context for the plot of the movie (15:30); deconstruct the first third of the plot (28:00); explore the idea of fate and one of the most disturbingly iconic scenes of the 1990s (55:00); and answer the big picture questions and major themes of the movie (1:15:00).

Jason Bailey (@jasondashbailey) is an author and film critic, whose writing has appeared in such publications as the New York Times, Vice, and Rolling Stone. He is also the author of four books, including Pulp Fiction: The Complete Story of Quentin Tarantino’s Masterpiece. He is a former regional independent film director, whose work includes My Day in the Barrel.   

Notable Links:

• True Romance (film)
• Reservoir Dogs (film)
• Jackie Brown (film)
• Easy Rider (film)
• Easy Riders, Raging Bulls, by Peter Biskind (book)
• Psycho (film)
• Deliverance (film)
• Leon: The Professional (film)
• American Boy: A Profile of Steven Prince (documentary, by Martin Scorsese)
• El Mariachi (film)
• Go (film)
• John August (screenwriter)
• Scriptnotes (podcast)
• Misirlou, by Dick Dale (song)
• My Sharona, by The Knack (song)
• Beastie Boys (band)
• Paul’s Boutique (album, by Beastie Boys)
• A Tribe Called Quest (hip hop group)
• Down and Dirty Pictures, by Peter Biskind (book)
• Screenplay: The Foundations of Screenwriting, by Syd Field (book)

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The Deviate theme music comes from the title track of Cedar Van Tassel’s 2017 album Lumber.

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