DVD Reviews

Pulp Fiction - Blu-ray Review

By Jeff Swindoll Oct 6, 2011, 13:57 GMT

“Nothing less than a cultural phenomenon” (Moviemaker Magazine), Quentin Tarantino’s PULP FICTION has been hailed by critics and audiences worldwide as a film that redefined cinema. Tarantino delivers an unforgettable cast of characters – including a pair of low-rent hit men (John Travolta and Samuel L. Jackson), their boss’s sexy wife (Uma Thurman) and a desperate prizefighter (Bruce Willis) – in a wildly entertaining and exhilarating blend of crime-thriller-drama-comedy that ...more

The film that brought Tarantino to prominence and revived or enhanced some careers is pulled out of the briefcase and onto Blu-ray. There’s are lots of expectations for this release and it certainly doesn’t look like something coming out of a place a watch was hidden for two years.

Two thugs (Tim Roth and Amanda Plummer) decide to rob a diner. Jules Winnfield (Samuel L. Jackson) and Vincent Vega (John Travolta) are enforcers for gangster Marcellus Wallace (Ving Rhames) who has also tasked Vincent with watching after his wife Mia (Uma Thurman) but also with recovering a stole briefcase.

Aging boxer Butch Cooleridge (Bruce Willis) is about to take a fall for Marcus but has other plans. Each of these interconnected stories bob and weave into each other in a most creative way to put it lightly.

Pulp Fiction is a delightfully twisted non-linear masterwork and would firmly cement Quentin Tarantino as a name to watch - not that 1993’s Reservoir Dogs didn’t cause some people to be interested in the name.

The film would also reinvigorate Travolta’s career, film noir, and implant the soundtrack into your brain. It was the toast of 1994, even though it only won one Oscar for the screenplay and nominated for seven more, and has become known as a cultural milestone in many ways.

The film is a series of extremely memorable, and quotable, scenes. It really springs from the maniacal mind of Tarantino and has many pop culture references, but it has also sprung into pop culture as well. It’s a hard film to turn off once it gets rolling.

The transfer was supervised by the Quentin himself so once you get it rolling you’ll be immersed in how good it looks and puts previous home video releases to shame.

Pulp Fiction is presented in a 1080p high definition transfer (2.35:1). Two new special features are in high definition: the 43 minute “Not the Usual Mindless Getting to Know You Chit Chat” retrospective and the 20 minute “Here’s Some Facts on Fiction” in which a group of critics ruminate on the film.

The remainder are in standard definition and include a trivia track on the film, the 30 minute making of “Pulp Fiction: The Facts,” 25 minutes of deleted scenes, 10 minutes of behind the scenes montages, a 6 minute featurette on production design, a 16 minute Siskel and Ebert (a dearly missed show) special on the Tarantino generation, an 11 minute Independent Spirit Awards interview with Tarantino by Michael Moore, the 5 minute Palme D’Or Acceptance Speech, the 55 minute Charlie Rose Show with Tarantino, an expansive marketing gallery (trailers & TV spots), and a still gallery.

Pulp Fiction was a watershed moment on several fronts, but this new Blu-ray edition is one of its own as it looks fantastic. The special features are only icing on the cake, but what a cake it is.