Pulp Fiction Revisited Part 2 "I'm gonna get medieval on your ass!"

Well its time to revisit another of my previous posts and the post in question is Quentin Tarantino's modern classic, Pulp Fiction, which now celebrates it 25th anniversary! So, here I will do the usual expanding on certain sections and tidying up a few errors here and there (if there are many to worry about, which there could be!).


So, with that all said let's take another look at Pulp Fiction...

And yep as usual...

PLOT SPOILERS WILL BE AHEAD!!!

STORY 

So the plot is told in a typically non-linear fashion for wrtier/director Quentin Tarantino and is split across two main stories with some subplots and the first one features hitman Vincent Vega (Travolta) who goes on a job with his partner Jules Winfield (Jackson) to retrieve a briefcase from some young associates lead by Brett (Frank Whaley) who were stupid enough to rip off their boss Marsellus Wallace (Vingh Rhames).  In the ensuing scene after they have killed the guys, Vincent accidentally kills one of their associates, Marvin (Phil LaMarr) by shooting him in the head while Jules is driving.  After that Jule's calls his local friend Jimmie for help (played by Tarantino himself) and Marsellus who sends one of his business associates Mr Wolf (Harvey Keitel), who "solves problems" and aids in cleaning up their mess for them.

The other story follows Vincent, who is asked by Marsellus to take out his wife Mia (Uma Thurman) one night on the town while he is away on business.  As the two of them have a good night out, and share a steak, burger, and take part in a twist contest, at a "wax museum with a pulse" 1950s style diner.  But when they go back to Mia's place, Mia accidentally overdoses on Vincent's heroin baggie, thinking it to be cocaine.  At this point Vincent in a panic takes Mia over to his drug dealer, Lance (Eric Stoltz) from whom he bought the heroin, which leads into the infamous "needle" scene where Vincent brings Mia round with an adrenaline shot.

The next big story is the "Golden Watch" where a boxer Butch Coolidge (Bruce Willis) who is coming to the end of his career and is being forced to take a dive in his fight by Marsellus.  But Butch has other ideas and ends up winning the fight, unintentionally killing his opponent in the process and plans to flee with his girlfriend and the winnings he made from the bookies who placed bets on him.

However as Butch and his girlfriend, Fabienne (Maria de Medeiros) plan their departure, Butch notices that Fabienne neglected to pick up his precious golden watch, which was given to him as a present from a soldier (Christopher Walken) who was entrusted the watch given to him by Butch's dad.  Enraged by Fabienne's failure to pick up the watch, Butch decides, with little choice, to go back to get the watch.  So as Butch goes back to his apartment to pick up the watch he proceeds to have the "weirdest fucking day of his life" as he rightly puts it.

And lastly the film concludes with Vincent and Jules having breakfast in a coffee house where they have a deep conversation about the freaky encounter they witnessed at Brett's apartment, when a gunman fired six bullets straight at them and they all missed.  Not long after two thieves, Pumpkin (Tim Roth) and Yolanda (Amanda Plummer) hold up the coffee shop (whilst Vincent is in the bathroom) but as Pumpkin approaches Jules to get his wallet, the thief get's more than he bargained for as it leads into the film's surprising climax.

THOUGHTS 
  
It has to be said that Pulp Fiction remains one of the most seminal and purely entertaining films of the last 25 years, which really established that Tarantino was not a one-trick pony and that he could continue to craft excellent films.  Tarantino's script for the most part is wonderfully written and is filled with rich (and very profane) dialogue which is highly memorable as well as quotable.  And its Tarantino's emphasis on the characters is what helps Pulp Fiction work so well as they are all very drawn out.  Vincent as the main character in the film, is both dim and smart at the same time, as he holds a rather stubborn view of life, but at key moments isn't the brightest of sparks (especially leaving his machine gun outside the bathroom, in the scene where Butch faces off him with his gun).

Jules on the other hand is much brighter, cockier and smarter, and as he and Vincent face certain death at one point in the film, Jules is smart enough to realise that at this point, this probably isn't the life for him.  And its most likely Jules decision after his dice with death that would go on to save him from a similar fate than Vincent's.  In the final scene Jules also helps the two coffee shop robbers (from the opening scene) to escape unharmed, as prior to that he would have just killed them.

Mia is also a really good character as she is smart enough to know that her husband is protective of her, but she can look after herself.  And Mia's close call with death also, provides a chance for Vincent to be the good guy and save her, although he wouldn't stand a chance in hell if she died on him.  There's almost a fine line between Mia also flirting and going a step further with Vincent, but Quentin sensibly doesn't let it go that far, although in a later scene its implied they have been seeing each other behind Marsellus's back.

PERFORMANCES AND NOTABLE SCENES (Warning: this section may contain spoilers and strong language!) 

As for the performances, well the film features a star cast that are all on top form.  

Starting with John Travolta who's career was totally revitalised here as he plays the part of the hitman Vincent Vega, who get's into hot water when he unwittingly blows the head off a business associate and also has to try and save his boss's wife from overdosing on his own heroin.

Travolta has numerous highlights in the film such as his opening scene where he talks with Jules about the subtle differences between the cultures of America, Paris and Amsterdam.  And in the scene Jules says "Do you know what they call a quarter pounder with cheese in Paris?" and Jules asks "Don't they call it a quarter pounder with cheese?" and Vincent says "No they've got the metric system they wouldn't know what the fuck a quarter pounder is.  They call it the Royale with cheese".  And of course when Jules asks him "What do they call a whopper?" Vincent says "I dunno.  I didn't go into Burger King".

Then there is the scene where Vincent teases Jules about giving foot massages and says "Would you give a guy a foot massage?  I'm little tired I could do with a foot massage myself!".  And as Jules tells Vincent it wasn't right that Marcellus threw Tony "Rocky Horror" out of a window for giving Mia a foot message, Vincent responds.  So, Vincent tells Jules " Now look, I've given a million ladies a million foot massages, and they all meant something. We act like they don't, but they do, and that's what's so fucking cool about them. There's a sensuous thing going on where you don't talk about it, but you know it, she knows it, fucking Marsellus knew it, and Antwon should have fucking better known better. I mean, that's his fucking wife, man. He can't be expected to have a sense of humor about that shit!". 

And later as he fights the temptation to try anything on with Mia after their dinner, he talks to himself in the bathroom mirror at her place and says "You see, this is a real test to see if you can prove loyality, which is very important".  And then after he says to himself "So what you're gonna do is go out there and say "I had a lovely evening" get in the car, go home, jerk off, and that's all your gonna do!".

And later the scene where Vincent desperately drives Mia over to Lance's place and drags her unconscious body out the car, despite Lance's protests "you are not to bring this fucked up bitch into my house!".  And Vincent let's her drop to the ground and says "This fucked up bitch is Marsellus Wallace's wife!  Do you know who Marsellus Wallace is???  Now if she croaks on me I'm a fuckin grease spot!".

And later after they shoot the gunman in Brett's apartment, Vincent kneels down and asks Marvin "Why the fuck didn't you tell us about the guy in the bathroom?  Did it slip your mind?  Did you forget there was someone in there with a goddamn hand cannon?!".  And as Jules insists it was "divine intervention" that has kept them alive from being killed by the hail of bullets, Vincent tells him "Do you wanna continue this theological discussion in the car, or at the jailhouse with the cops?!". 

And lastly one of my favourite lines from Travolta is during the robbery of the diner and as Jules is about to give his money to Pumpkin he warns him "Jules if you give that fuckin nimrod 1500 dollars I'm gonna shoot him on general principle!".

Samuel L Jackson next up, who made his breakthrough with this role, is simply terrific in his role as the philosophical hitman, Jules Winfield, who decides to turn a new leaf after his incident at Brett's apartment when retrieving Marsellus's case. Jackson himself was nominated for an Academy Award for his performance but he lost out to Martin Landau's performance in Ed Wood.

Jackson has so many highlights in the film as well as priceless dialogue its hard to name them all but I will mention a few.  The first being the scene where Jules and Vincent arrive at Brett's apartment and he asks Brett if he can take a bite of his burger and he does so and says "This IS a tasty burger!" followed by "Do you know what they call a quarter pounder in France?" and he tells Brett its a Royale with cheese and why and as Brett says "Because of the metric system?" Jules says "Check out the big brain on Brett!".

And later in the scene he taunts Brett just before he shoots him and asks "What does Marsellus Wallace look like?!" leaving Brett a stuttering wreck who keeps saying "What?" and Jules's short fuse is about to reach the limit and he points the gun at him saying "Say what again?!  I dare you!  I double dare you, motherfucker!  Say what one more goddamn time!".   And this is of course is followed by his famous Ezekiel 25:7 passage from the bible, which he finishes by shouting "And you will know my name is the Lord, when I lay my vengeance upon thee!" before unloading into Brett.

Then there are some priceless Jackson moments in the "Bonnie Situation" story line, such as when the gunman bursts out of Brett's bathroom and opens fire on Jules and Vincent but all the bullets miss.  And Jules looks down at the dead gunman, after they shoot him, and he says "Did you see the size of the gun he fired at us?  It was bigger than him!".  And as Jules looks at the bullet holes in the wall he says "We should be fuckin dead, man" and Vincent says "Yeah, I know, we were lucky" and Jules says "No, this shit wasn't luck, this was divine intervention.  Do you know what divine intervention is?".  And Vincent, humouring Jules says "I think so.  It means that God came down from heaven and stopped the bullets?" and Jules says "That's exactly what it means.  God came down from heaven and stopped these motherfucking bullets!". 

And one of Jackson's funniest moments comes in the scene where Jules and Vincent have to clean out the blood stained car and Jules groans in dispair as he cleans out bits of skull and blood "Oh, man!  I will never forgive your ass for this shit!  This is some fucked up repugnant shit!".  And when Vincent tries to say "when a man admits all his wrongdoings he is immediately forgiven" Jules says "Get the fuck out of my face with that shit!  The motherfucker that said that shit didn't have to pick up itty bitty pieces of brain and skull on account of your dumb ass!".

And when Vincent says how is "ready to blow" this is finally followed by "Well, I'm a mushroom cloud layin' motherfucker, motherfucker!  Every time my fingers touch brain I'm Superfly TNT!  I'm the guns of the Navarone!  In fact what the fuck am I doing in the back?!  YOU'RE the motherfucker that should be on brain detail!  We're fuckin switching!  I'm washin windows and you're picking this nigger's skull!".

And lastly when Jules grabs Pumpkin he tries to chill out Honeybunny (or Yolanda) by saying "We're gonna be like three Fonzies!  And what's Fronzie like?" and Yolanda says "cool?" and Jules says "Correctamundo!".  And as Yolanda tells Jules to let Pumpkin go, Jules tells her "Yolanda, I thought you were going to be cool.  Now, when you yell at me that makes me nervous and when I get nervous, I get scared.  And when motherfuckers get scared that's when motherfuckers accidentally get shot!".  Then Jules negotiates with Pumpkin and gives him money so he doesn't have to "kill his ass" and he quotes the Ezekiel 25-17 bible passage and explains what he thinks it means.

So, Jules says to Pumpkin "I been sayin' that shit for years, and if you heard it, that meant your ass. I never gave much thought to what it meant. I just thought it was some coldblooded shit to say to a motherfucker... before I popped a cap in his ass.  But I saw some shit this morning made me think twice. See, now I'm thinkin' maybe it means...you're the evil man, and I'm the righteous man, and Mr. 9-millimeter here, he's the shepherd...protecting my righteous ass in the valley of darkness. Or it could mean... you're the righteous man, and I'm the shepherd, and it's the world that's evil and selfish. Now, I'd like that. But that shit ain't the truth.  "The truth is...YOU'RE the weak and I'm the tyranny of evil men.  But I'm tryin, Ringo.  I'm trying real hard....to be the shepherd!" and he lowers his gun and let's Pumpkin and Honeybunny go. And after they go, Vincent quietly walks up to Jules and says "I think we should be leaving now" and Jules says "Yeah, I think that's probably a good idea!" and they both leave.        

Uma Thurman is also excellent in her role as Mia Wallace, Marsellus's sultry wife who has dinner with Vincent and their scenes together provide a nice chemistry between them both.

Uma's highlights include the scene where Mia wants to dance for the Jack Rabbit Slim's dancing trophy and Vincent says no and she says "No, no, no, no.  I do believe Marsellus Wallace, my husband, your boss, told you to take me out and do what I wanted.  Now I wanna dance, I wan't that trophy.  So dance good!" and they proceed to carry out a pretty cheesy dance (which wins them the trophy nontheless!).

Then there is the scene where Vincent at the diner with Mia, asks her about the incident with Tony and Marsellus.  And Mia asks him "So, did you think of something to say?" and Vincent says "Actually, I did.  However you seem like a nice person and I don't want to offend you" and Mia, surprised says "Ooohh! This doesn't sound like the usual, mindless, boring, gettin'-to-know-you chitchat. This sounds like you actually have somethin' to say".  And when Vincent asks her if Tony ever gave Mia a foot massage, she replies "Only thing Antwan ever touched of mine was my hand when he shook it... at my wedding.  Truth is, nobody knows why Marsellus threw Tony out that window... except Marsellus and Tony. When you little scamps get together, you're worse than a sewing circle!".

And after Mia has her harrowing near death experience and is saved bt Vincent she wearily asks him if he wants to hear a joke she told on the TV pilot she did.  And Mia tells the joke "A daddy tomato, a mommy tomato and a baby tomato cross the street.  The baby tomato starts lagging behind, the daddy tomato gets angry goes back and squishes him and says "Ketchup!".

Bruce Willis also puts in a good performance as the troubled boxer, Butch Coolidge, who is haunted by nightmares involving a soldier who hands Butch his late father's watch, who died in Vietnam and later on goes on the run from Marcellus Wallace as he ends up killing the boxer in his fight.

Willis play the part with his usual type of coolness combined with some hot tempered moments, which we see in the scene where he frantically looks through his suitcase for his father's watch, which his girlfriend Fabienne has forgotten.  And he says to Fabienne "That was my father's fucking watch.  Do you have any idea what he went through to get that watch??  I don't have time to go into it but it was alot!".  And Butch continues "All this other shit you could've set on fire, but I specifically reminded you not to forget the fucking watch! Now think!  Did you get it?" and Fabienne nervously says "I think so".  However, Butch now angry says "You believe so???!"  What the fuck does that mean??!  You either did or didn't get it!!" and Fabienne says "Then I did" and Butch asks again "You sure?" and Fabienne, frightened says "No".

So, then Butch explodes in a rage, yelling "FUCK!  FUCK!!! FUCK!!! MOTHERFUCKER!!!" and he starts leaping up and down and he grabs the motel room TV and smashes it and yells "DO YOU KNOW HOW FUCKING STUPID YOU ARE???!!".  However Butch then regains his composure and shouts "NO!  It's not your fault. You left it at the apartment. If you left it at the apartment, it's not your fault. I had you bring a bunch of stuff. I reminded you about it, but I didn't illustrate how personal the watch was to me".  And after he leaves and reassures Fabienne, we cut to him in his car and he pounds the steering wheel angrily, shouting "SHIT!! OF ALL THE FUCKING THINGS SHE COULD FUCKING FORGET, SHE FORGETS MY FATHER'S WATCH!!  I specifically reminded her!  Bedside table!  On the kangaroo!  I said the words "don't forget my father's watch!".   

And one of Willis's best moments is where after he and Marsellus have been captured by the rednecks in the pawnshop and he breaks free of his bonds and he decides to save Marsellus.  So, Butch rummages through the pawnshop for a weapon to rescue Marcellus with and he picks up a samurai sword (a katana) and goes downstairs and exacts some revenge on the rednecks.  And in the scene, Butch skewers one of the rednecks and then points the katana at the other, Z, and he notices a gun on a table near him and he says to Z "You want that gun, don't you, Zed?  Go ahead and pick it up!".  And as Z is tempted to pick it up, Butch says "Atta boy!  I want you to pick it up...Z!" but then Marsellus stands up behind Butch armed with a shotgun.....

And later when Marsellus let's Butch go he takes Z's chopper (Z is played by Peter Greene) and picks up Fabienne and he tells her "Honey, since I left you, this has been, without a doubt, the single weirdest fuckin' day of my life!".  And as Fabienne get's on the bike, she asks him "Who's motorcycle is this?" and Butch says "Its a chopper baby" and she says "Who's chopper is this?" and Butch says "Zed's?" Fabienne "Who's Zed?" and Butch says "Zed's dead, baby.  Zed's dead!" and they drive off.

Vingh Rhames is great as the crime boss, Marsellus Wallace who sends Vincent and Jules to retrieve a case containing something of great value (and has a golden glow) which we never see what it is and later on has a confrontation with Butch.

Rhames also has some good moments such as in his first scene where Marsellus talks to Butch and tells him "I think when this shit is all done and over, you're gonna find yourself one smilin motherfucker" as he tells Butch to take a dive in his fight.  And in ths scene, Marsellus holds out an envelope of money to Butch and he says to him "Are you my nigga?" and Butch takes the envelope and says "It would certainly appear so".  And Marsellus says to him "The night of the fight you might feel a slight sting.  That's pride fucking with you.  Fuck pride!  Pride only hurts, it never helps.  You fight through that shit.  Cause a year from now when you are kickin it on the Caribbean you're gonna say to yourself "Marsellus Wallace was right!".  

And later in the scene where Butch, driving his car, spots Marsellus cross the street, carrying a box of doughnuts and they look at each other and Marsellus shouts "Motherfucker!" and Butch puts the car into gear and runs him over only to crash into another car in the process. 

But later on Butch decides to save Marsellus during being raped by the rednecks, and Marcellus then takes the shotgun and blasts Zed's private parts to bits.  And as Butch asks him if he is OK, Butch says "Naw, man.  I'm pretty far from OK!".  And Butch asks Marsellus "What now?" and Marsellus says "Let me tell you what now. I'm gonna call a couple of hard, pipe-hittin' niggers...to go to work on the homes here...with a pair of pliers and a blowtorch"  And Marsellus shouts at Z, who writhes on the floor in agony, nursing what is left of his gentialia "You hear me talkin', hillbilly boy? I ain't through with you by a damn sight! I'm gonna get medieval on your ass!". 

So, Butch asks "I mean what now between me and you?" and Butch says "Oh, THAT what now.  I tell you now what between me and you.  There IS no me and you.  Not no more".  And Butch asks "So, we cool?" and Marsellus says "Yeah, we cool.  Two things: Don't tell nobody about this.  This shit is between me, you and soon to be living the rest of his short ass life in agonising pain, rapist here, it nobody else's business". 

And lastly there is the scene where Jules make a call to Marsellus about the "Bonnie" situation and what can the do to resolve it. So, in the scene Marsellus on the phone to Jules says re: Bonnie "If she comes what do you think she'll do?" and there is a beat as Jules replies and Marsellus "Yeah no fucking shit she'll freak. I mean how much? A lot or a little?". And as Jules anxiously explains that if Bonnie catches them trying to shift Marvin's body when she comes home "there aren't no telling what she is a liable to do!".

So, Marsellus says "I know that, Jules. All I'm doing is contemplating the ifs" which prompts Jules to snap back "I don't wanna hear about no motherfuckin ifs! All I wanna hear from your ass is "You aint got not problem, Jules! I'm on the motherfucker! Go back in there and chill those niggers out and wait for the cavalry, which should be coming directly!". So, Marsellus calmly replies "You aint got not problem, Jules. I'm on the motherfucker. Go back in there and chill those niggers out and wait for the Wolf, who should be coming directly". Jules, surprised then asks "You sending the Wolf?" and Marsellus says "You feel better, motherfucker?" and Jule smiles and says "Shit, negro! That's all you had to say!". 

Eric Stoltz is also good in his role as Lance, the drug dealer who sells Vincent the heroin, which Mia later overdoses on and he takes the call from Vincent when Mia has OD'd he says to him on the phone "This is not my fuckin problem!  You fucked her up, you fuckin deal with this!  Are you talking to me on a cellular phone?!  I don't know you!  Prank caller, prank caller!" and hangs up.

And later when Vincent brings the OD'd Mia to Lance's place, the two of them squabble as Lance prepares the needle with adrenaline to resuscitate Mia.  And Lance says "Here, I'll you what to do" but Vincent refuses, saying "You're gonna give her the shot" and Lance insists "No, you're gonna give her the shot!" and they continue to argue.  So, Lance finally says "I never done this either! I ain't starting now! You brought her here. You give her the shot. The day I bring an O.D.ing bitch to your house, then I give her the shot!  Give her the shot!".

So, Vincent relents and takes the needle and uses a black marker to mark the point on Mia's chest where he is to inject the needle.  And Vincent says "All right, tell me what to do" and Lance says "Okay, you're giving her an injection of adrenalin straight to her heart. But she's got a breastplate... You gotta pierce through that. You gotta bring the needle down in a stabbing motion!" and Lance indicates a stabbing motion three times.  So, Vincent asks "So, I've got to stab her three times?" and Lance shouts "No, just stab her once! But it's gotta be hard enough to get through her breastplate into her heart. Once you do that, you p-press down on the p-plunger".  And Vincent asks "OK, then what happens?" and Lance shrugs and says "I'm kinda curious about that myself" and Vincent angrily says "This is ain't no fuckin joke!  Am I gonna kill her?!" and Lance says "She's supposed to come out, just like that!".

 And after Vincent injects the needle in Mia, she suddenly is brought to life and screams out loud and Lance nervously asks her "If you're alright, then say something" and Mia looks a bit needle embedded in her chest and says "Something...." and Vincent and Lance sigh in relief. 

Harvey Keitel also provides an amusing performance as Winston Wolf, the problem solver who turns and sorts out the "Bonnie Situation" which refers to Jule's friend, Jimmy's wife, Bonnie who will come home from work any time. The character of Winston would of course later appear in a series of parody television adverts for Directline.com

And Harvey's best scene comes when Vincent disputes Winston's straight talking no-nonsense manner and says to him "A please would be nice" and Winston, taken aback asks "Come again?" and Vincent says "A please would be nice".  So, Winston tells Vincent "Get it straight, buster. I'm not here to say please. I'm here to tell you what to do. And if self-preservation is an instinct you possess, you'd better fuckin' do it and do it quick. I'm here to help. If my help's not appreciated, lotsa luck, gentlemen!".

So, Jules tries to step in to diffuse the tension and says "No, it ain't like that, Mr Wolf, you're help is definitely appreciated!" and Vincent says to Winston "Mr. Wolf, listen. I don't mean disrespect, okay? I respect you. I just don't like people barkin' orders at me that's all".  So, Winston says "If I'm curt with you, its because time is a factor.  I think fast, I talk fast and I need you guys to act fast if you want to get out of this.  So pretty please, with sugar on top, clean the fuckin car!".

Another good scene is when Winston gets Jimmie to get a bunch of blankets together to cover over the bloodied seats of Jules's car and Jimmie explains his concerns about his bedset being used as it belong to his Aunt Jenny. So, Winston in the scene asks "Let me ask you a question, Jimmie. Was your Aunt Jenny a millionaire?" and Jimmie says "No" and Winston tells him "Well, your Uncle Marsellus is and I'm positive he will furnish you with a whole new set". So, Winston takes out a wad of dollar bills and says to Jimmie "I like oak myself. How about you, Jimmie? Are you an oak man?" and Jimmie with little choice says "Oak's nice" and Winston starts counting out the money.

And last of all is the scene where Winston, Jules and Vincent successfully dispose of Marvin and the tainted car and they meet his girlfriend, Raquel. So, in the scene Winston offers them a ride but when they tell them where the live, Winston looks to the skies and says "Its your future...I see...a cab ride! Way out of the sticks, fellas!" and he says to Raquel "Say good night, Raquel" and she sarcastically repeats "Goodnight, Raquel!". Jules and Vincent then both thank Winston saying it was a pleasure to watch him work and Winston smiles and says "Call me Winston" and then he heads to his car with Raquel and says to her "You see young lady! That's respect! Respect shows character" and Raquel protests "I HAVE character!" and he tells her "Just because you ARE a character doesn't mean you HAVE character!". 

Christopher Walken who makes a cameo appearance in the film as the solider who gives Butch as a child, his father's watch, is also great and his long speech is nicely written and also pretty funny.

And of course there is funny moment where he tells the young Butch "The way your dad looked at it, this watch was your birthright. He'd be damned if any slope's gonna put their greasy, yellow hands on his boy's birthright, so he hid it in one place he knew he could hide something... his ass!  Five long years he wore this watch up his ass. Then he died of dysentery...He give me the watch. I hid this uncomfortable hunk of metal up my ass two years. Then...after seven years, I was sent home to my family and...now...little man, I give the watch to you!".

Maria de Medeiros is also good in the film as Butch's girlfriend, Fabienne although it has to be said that she get's the worst of Tarantino's dialogue given that she has to say lines such as "pot bellies are sexy!" and "I'm gonna order a big plate of blueberry pancakes... with maple syrup, eggs over easy and five sausages!".  So in all honesty I'm not going to bother quoting any of her scenes here just for the sake of time (sorry!).

And lastly Quentin Tarantino also can't resist putting himself in the film in his small role as Jimmy who through little choice has to help out Jules and Vincent with their problem.

And Tarantino's most noteworthy scene comes when Jules compliments Jimmy on how good his coffee is and asks what flavour it is and Jimmy says "Knock it off, Julie!".  And Jules asks "What?" and Jimmy angrily tells him "I don't need you to tell me how fuckin' good my coffee is. I'm the one who buys it. I know how good it is. When Bonnie goes shopping, she buys shit. I buy the gourmet expensive stuff 'cause when I drink it, I wanna taste it. But you know what's on my mind right now? It ain't the coffee in my kitchen. It's the dead nigger in my garage!".

So, as Jules tries to calm Jimmy, Jimmy interrupts him and asks "When you came pulling in here, did you notice the sign on the front of my house that said, "Dead Nigger Storage"?".  And as Jules is about to reply, Jimmy asks louder "Did you notice the sign on the front of my house that said, "Dead Nigger Storage"?!!".  And Jules says No, I didn't" and Jimmy asks him "You know why you didn't see that sign?" and Jules asks "Why?" and Jimmy yells "Cause it ain't there, 'cause storing dead niggers ain't my fuckin' business, that's why!".

And Jimmy then tells Jules "Now, look, you know, she comes home from work in about an hour and a half. The graveyard shift at the hospital. You gotta make some phone calls? You gotta call some people? Well, then, do it, and then get the fuck out of my house before she gets here!".  And as Jules tries to reassure Jimmy that "We don't wanna fuck your shit up" Jimmy angrily yells "You're fucking my shit up right now! You're gonna fuck my shit up BIG TIME if Bonnie comes home!  Do me that favor, all right? The phone is in my bedroom. I suggest you get going!".

DIRECTION AND MUSIC 

As for the director himself, Quentin Tarantino does a great job here of course and technically it is also pretty good film and as he did with Reservoir Dogs he employs the use of long takes in certain scenes and even has a little nod to Brian De Palma with the scene where we see Butch on the right edge of the frame, exhausted on the run from a groggy Marcellus who went see in the distance on the left of the shot.  He also makes good use of visual creativity, such as in the scene with Fabienne's reflection standing inside the motel room TV while an action film is playing. Perhaps time wise the film does feel a bit flabby in places with certain scenes overrunning but for the most part this is certainly one of Tarantino's very best efforts.    

As for the music in the film it features a memorable soundtrack made up of tracks such as Dick Dale's "Miserlou", and Kool n the Gang's "Jungle Boogie", Aretha Franklin's "Son of a preacher man" as well as other songs like "Countin flowers on the wall" by the Statler Brothers, "Comache" by The Revels, used during the hillbilly rape scene and Chuck Berry's "You never can tell" used during Vincent and Mia's dance.  

FLAWS (Warning: this section may also contain spoilers!)

As for flaws....yeah well as good as Pulp Fiction is, it still has some worth mentioning.

And for starters, I do think that the film could be a little shorter as certain scenes do feel a bit panned out.  And for examples sake the scenes between Butch and Fabienne do drag on a bit, and are the only fairly tedious scenes in the film, especially with Fabienne wittering on, about wishing she had a pot belly like "Madonna did when she did Lucky Star!". At this point you want to just hit the fast forward button as the dialogue starts to get a bit cringeworthy! Further to this, I think its also a bit fair to say that Fabienne is a bit too cutesy a character for the film itself as she is quite a contrast to the rest of the hard boiled gangsters and molls we get but maybe that's the point I guess.    

And one of the few things that does leave me slightly uncomfortable about Pulp Fiction is the somewhat racist element on the dialogue, especially in the scenes such as Lance the drug dealer saying to Vincent about his deals "Am I a nigger?  Are we in Inglewood??" as well as Jimmie saying to Jules "when you pulled in here, did you see a sign on the front of my house saying dead nigger storage??".  It does show the film has an uncomfortable mix of humour blended in with racism, and it was the same in Reservoir Dogs where e.g. Harvey Keitel's character, Mr White, talks about "How every nigger I know treats their women like a piece of shit?".

I also though that in the redneck scene where Marsellus is raped by one of the good ol boys, it does appear very stereotypical in its depiction of these characters and it almost like Quentin threw in the sodomy scene for shock effect more than anything else.  Its almost like Tarantino is doing a nod to the classic 1970's thriller "Deliverance" where Ned Beatty's character is also sexually assaulted by hillbillies.

Another issue is to do with the idea of Winston driving the tainted car with Marvin's dead body in it as he tells Jules and Vincent that he will drive that car and he gives Vincent the keys to his own Acura sports car.  So in the scene Winston tells Vincent "I drive real fuckin fast, so keep up" but if he does that then surely they will get pulled over by the police!  So, in this instance wouldn't it be better for Winston to exercise a little care when he is driving a car containing a dead body rather than belt it out at 90 miles an hour and risk being pulled over and arrested!  Its certainly one of the plot holes in the film that I hadn't picked up on before now but it remains a big one.

Then of course there is the continuity flaw in the scene where the guy in the bathroom bursts out and unloads his magnum at Jules and Vincent only to miss them both and the bullets go into the wall instead.  However if you look carefully before this scene, the bullet holes are already in the wall!  This however is already a well noted continuity flaw in the film itself, so I guess its nothing new but still worth pointing out all the same.

And further to this point, its surprising that the cops aren't alerted at all in any of the scenes involving gunfire in this film, not even where Marsellus shoots at Butch on the streets in broad daylight! I mean Jules and Vincent unload on Brett and his associates in an apartment with loud 9mm guns but NOTHING is heard or done about it, so no one calls the cops! I guess it was just a very apathetic neighborhood I guess where gun crime is so rife no one can be bothered to call the police! And even further to this, why DIDN'T Jules and Vincent use guns with silencers instead to keep things quiet?! Ah well, we're not talking about real life here as it is a Tarantino film after all.

Another problem I had with the film was to do with Butch's choice when he went back to his apartment to get his watch and THEN go in and make himself some pop tarts in the kitchen!  I mean what hell???!  Surely to God he should have just got his watch and left the apartment straight away!  However I guess the flipside is that by killing Vincent that's one other problem dealt with but on the other hand even though Butch saves Marsellus's life, he does also kill one of his main henchmen, so wouldn't that also cancel out Marsellus's new found faith in Butch??!  Just maybe  In short, Butch really should have just left the apartment straight away than hang about to make breakfast for himself.

There are also another couple of oddities in the story such as the scene where Vincent tells Jules that he doesn't watch TV and he later on asks Jules if he watched a show called "cops" which totally negates what he said to Jules earlier! Now, you could argue that Vincent was being sarcastic in his response that he doesn't watch TV earlier in the film but it is still a bit bizarre how Tarantino doesn't refer back to it in the script at that point although clearly Jules's mind is elsewhere after their near death experience. 

And last of all was it really a good idea for Vincent to shoot up heroin just BEFORE he is due to go off and pick up his boss's wife for a dinner date?!  I mean what if he crashed the car enroute or worse crashed it while he was driving her to dinner?! I guess its OK for Mia to get all coked up since she won't be driving but not so much for Vincent surely! But again it is a Quentin Tarantino film where gangsters can shoot up people in neighbourhoods, scream and shouts as they do it as well as get pissed up on drugs and booze and drive cars at the same time!  

Anyway that's it for the flaws.

SUM UP

So to sum up, Pulp Fiction remains one of the best crime/comedy films of its era and even though it does have some rather overly talky, long drawn out scenes at times with the occasional moments of cringeworthy dialogue.  However any of its bad points are far outweighed by its good ones and the film is helped along by its great cast, soundtrack and of course solid direction from its director and writer, Quentin Tarantino, who provides plenty of funny moments and memorable scenes and dialogue.

Right, so that's it for now and I will be back again soon hopefully before the end of the month with a post of sorts.

Till then its ciao for now!

Doctor Who - Day of the Daleks Revisited "Pity! That was rather a good vintage!"

Right, I admit it, I am being very lazy with this blog of late as there are more posts I could have squeezed in by now but I have been busy with other things so apologies for that.

So, with that said I am doing another post revisitation again and this time its another Doctor Who one, which is a revisit of my post for the Jon Pertwee era story, Day of the Daleks. So, after 47 years how does this classic story fair??? Well, let's take yet another look!

And yep the usual is coming up...

PLOT SPOILERS AHEAD!!!!

STORY 
 
So the story begins with an attempt being made on the life of a peace delegate Sir Reginald Styles (Wilfred Carter) who is attacked by a guerilla who quickly vanishes before he can kill him.  As a result Brigadier Lethbridge Stewart (Nicholas Courtney) and the Doctor (Pertwee) and and his companion, Jo (Katy Manning) investigate and go to Auderly house and question Styles who brushes off his encounter with the guerilla even though he claimed earlier to his assistant that the man disappeared into thin air "like a ghost".  The guerilla however soon reappears on the grounds of the house but is attacked by two humanoid aliens, Ogrons, who leave him unconscious. 

The Doctor then examines the guerilla's leftover equipment, a futuristic looking gun and a small black box, which turns out to be some of time travel device.  As the guerilla is taken enroute to hospital he vanishes from the ambulance just as the Doctor activates the device and Sgt Benton (John Levene) who was in the ambulance at the time informs Brigadier of this.  The Doctor then decides the next move would be to spend the night at Auderly house, which he does with Jo, however nothing happens during the night.

The next morning however three guerillas appear from the time vortex, which consist of Anat (Anna Barry) the leader and two men, Boaz (Scott Fredericks) and Shura (Jimmy Winston) and they make their way to the house.  In the study of the house, the Doctor tries to reactivate the time machine, which causes an alert in the 22nd century and Shura enters the house but is subdued by the Doctor's Venusian karate.  Shura pleads with the Doctor to turn off the time machine as it could kill them all and in the 22nd century a human controller (Aubrey Woods) informs his masters about the time machine trace, who turn out to be the Daleks who now rule on Earth in this time zone. 

The Daleks insist that once the time-space co-ordinates have been located that whoever is operating the device must be exterminated.  The Doctor then tries to explain to Anat who arrives at the house along with Boaz that he is not Styles and that Styles has flown to Peking.  Anat then has the Doctor and Jo taken to the cellar and tied up until the phone rings upstairs and the Doctor and Jo are taken up.  The Doctor answers the call which is from the Brigadier and he pretends everything is fine but let's slip subtly that it isn't by saying to him "Everthing is fine, tell it to the Prime Minister and don't forget to tell it to the marines".  Jo then frees herself from her bonds and grabs the time machine and threatens to destroy it but Anat warns her it could activate, which it does and Jo is hurlted through the vortex to the 22nd century where she meets with the controller. 

And it is from here that the Doctor must find a way to escape from the guerillas and try and rescue Jo from the 22nd century and prevent the daleks from continuing their evil futuristic reign over Earth.......      

THOUGHTS 

Day of the Daleks is easily one of the strongest stories from the Pertwee era and it sees the continuation of the theme from the William Hartnell, first doctor's story, Dalek invasion of Earth in which the Daleks ruled the Earth also in the 22nd century.  The story which was very well written by Louis Marks, also nicely combines the two timelines of the 20th and 22nd century together in the story with the future of Earth depending on the outcome of a very important peace conference which the peace delegate, Styles allgedly sabotaged to start World War III which ultimately leads to the dalek wars.  The story is also notable for the first appearance of the Ogrons, who are larged ape-like humanoid aliens and their appearance in the show is pretty impressive especially given the excellent face masks created by the story's visual effects designer, John Friedlander.    

PERFORMANCES (Warning: this section may contain spoilers!) 

Performance wise the story is also pretty good from its regular and supporting cast.

Starting with good old Jon Pertwee who again delivers a fine performance in his role as the Doctor and he has quite a few highlights in the story. 

And as a few examples to start with there is the scene where the Doctor asks Jo if she will go with him to Auderly house to see if any ghosts (or guerillas really) show up and he says to her "Jo, how would you like to spend the night in a haunted house?!". 

Then there is the scene where the Doctor and Jo not long after arriving at Auderly house, the Doctor  walks in carrying a tray with a bottle of wine and two glasses and also a cheeseboard and says to Jo "You know one thing you can be certain of with politicians, is whatever their political ideas, they always keep a well stocked larder!  Not to mention the cellar!".  And later as Jo dishes out some food and wine to the troops she comes back and the Doctor says to her "Quite right.  Do you know I remember saying to old Napoleon.  Boney, I said, an army always marches on its stomach!". 

Another fun scene comes when the Doctor is faced by Shura and who moves to attack him but the Doctor subdues with his Venusian karate and with his wine glass still in his hand he casually takes a sip of wine after!  And another is when the Doctor fights and struggles with an Ogron when they are held by the controller and Jo smashes it over the head with a futuristic wine container and the Doctor says "Pity!  That was rather a good vintage!".  Jon get's one of the story's best lines when he tries to persuade Styles to evacuate Auderly house near the end of the story and he says to Styles "Look try and use your intelligence, man, even if you are a politician!".   

But there are also some good dramatic scenes from Jon when the Doctor confronts the Controller and asks him "Who really rules this planet of yours??!" and the Controller refuses to say and leaves. So, Jo warns the Doctor "You shouldn't have spoken to him like that! You don't know the whole picture!" and the Doctor tells Jo "Neither do you, Jo, neither do you" and he refers to the Controller by saying "That man is no more than a superior slave himself! Humans don't rule this world anymore, Jo." and as Jo asks who does the Doctor replies "The most evil, ruthless lifeform in the cosmos... the Daleks!".

Then there is the scene where the controller tries to get the Doctor to cooperate with him and says the daleks can be reasonable the Doctor snaps back "Reasonable?!  They tolerate you as long as you are useful to them!" and as the controller says "I am a senior government official" the Doctor angrily says to him "You sir, you sir, are a traitor!  You're a QUISLING!". 

Another really good scene comes when (PLOT SPOILER!!) the Doctor is rescued by the guerillas in the 22nd century and they tell him the back story behind their movement and they ask the Doctor to kills Styles to prevent the war but the Doctor refuses and he tells them "You are asking me to commit murder!". However Anat pleads with the Doctor and tells him "No, we are asking you to kill one man and prevent millions more dying!" and the Doctor asks her "Yes but would it?!".  

The Doctor then pieces together what really happened and the guerillas in the end set themselves up for the fall by creating the wars themselves by having Shura go back in time and start the war by detonating a bomb there.  And the Doctor says to them "You went back to change history, but you didn't change anything.  You came a part of it!" and the Doctor says to them of Shura and his intentions to detonate his Dalekanium bomb "Isn't that exactly what he would have done?!  One last suicidal attempt to carry out his orders?!  You're trapped in a temporal paradox!  Styles didn't cause that explosion and start the wars!  You did it yourselves!".    

Katy Manning again is good again in her role as Jo Grant and she shares some nice onscreen chemistry with Jon Pertwee. 

Katy has some good moments in the story aswell such as the scene where she goes to give Benton some cheese and wine. So, in the scene Jo goes out into the hallway and is given a scare by Benton who quietly walks in on her and she says "You took years of my life walking up like that!" and Benton says "Sorry, miss. I didn't want to disturb the Doc. What's he up to?" and Jo tells him "Well at the moment he's behaving more like a one man wine and food society!". So, as Benton asks if Jo can get him something to eat, she tells him "Hold oN" and she goes back in and takes a glass of wine and some cheese and Doctor asks her what she is doing and she says "Its all in a good cause!".  And afterward Jo walks back in and the Doctor says to her "And what was that all about?" and Jo smiles saying "Feeding the troops!". 

Then there is the scene where the Doctor and Jo are tied and gagged up and put in the cellar by Anat and the others and Jo asks the Doctor what he thinks is going on.  So, in the scene, the Doctor manages to get his gag off and Jo still has hers on and she mumbles something and the Doctor tells her "I have good mind you stay like that! So much more peaceful! Even if I did release you, you'd still ask me alot of fool questions". Jo finally manages to get her gag off and asks the Doctor "I've only got one question...who are they?" and the Doctor tells her "On the face of it, three very desparate people!". Jo then suggests "Well, they're criminals aren't they?" and the Doctor says "You're prejudiced" but Jo insists "Well, aren't you?! They tried to kill you and me!" and the Doctor tells her "That's not in her favour, I'll admit".

So as the Doctor suggests Jo try her escapology training to help them untie their bounded ropes, Jo tells him "I've been trying but these knots are rock hard!" so, the Doctor tells her "Well, in that case there is only one thing we can do" and Jo says cheerily "I know, wait!" and the Doctor grins and says "You're learning, Jo!". Jo, however is still irked by the whole thing and says to the Doctor "I still don't get it, that changing history bit.  It just doesn't fit them. They seem more like a bunch of thugs to me!".

Another good scene from Katy is when Jo releases herself from her bonds and she grabs the guerillas time machine and she says "Right drop your guns.  If you don't I'll smash this to pieces!" and as Anat says "You don't know what you are doing!" Jo says "Oh yes I do.  You're going to let us both out or you'll be stranded here forever!" but she ends up activating the machine and is thrown into the vortex through to the 22nd century. 

However Katy still has one truly cringeworthy moment in the story when Jo creates a diversion in order to escape from the controller by screaming "Agggghhh help me!" in a very unconvincing way, which is just awful but in her defence it was supposed to be fake anyway! 

As for the supporting cast Aubrey Woods is excellent in his somewhat ambiguous role as the controller in the 22nd century where he is forced to serve the daleks. 

Woods has some really good moments in the story where he can be quite sinister sounding such as the scene where the controller meets with one of the factory managers who questioned the Doctor.  And in the scene the controller intimidates the manager into trying to make him increase the production figures for the factory and as the manager says "Its impossible I can't do it!" the controller cooly says "Then I shall just have to find someone who can, shant I?  And you know what that will mean, dont you?  To you and your family!". 

Another good scene is when the Doctor confronts the Controller over his position and that he is really a traitor and a "Quisling!". So, the Controller outraged shouts "Silence! You do not understand!" and he calms down and tells the Doctor and Jo "Nobody who did not live through those terrible years can understand. Towards the end of the twentieth century, a series of wars broke out. There was a hundred years of nothing but killing, destruction. Seven eighths of the world's population was wiped out. The rest were living in holes in the ground, starving, reduced to the level of animals".

The Controller then explains how the humans were then taken over by the Daleks, who used them as slaves and that he and his previous family generations were controllers in this section, which provokes a taunt from the Doctor as he says "A family of Quislings then!". The Controller then angrily shouts back "We have helped make things better for the others. We have gained concessions. I have saved lives!". The Doctor however then suggests "Wouldn't you have helped more by fighting against them?" but the Controller says "No one can fight against the Daleks" but the Doctor reminds him "That's not what your criminal guerillas seem to think, is it?!" but the Controller dismisses the idea and tells him "A handful of fanatics. Most of them have been killed already. I assure you there is nothing they can do to change things!".

And another good scene from Aubrey comes near the end when the controller surrounds the Doctor and Jo with Ogrons and he says to him "It ends as I said it would.  Didn't I say it was madness to fight the Daleks?".  But as the Doctor tries to persuade the controller he can change the future by going back in time, the Controller orders the Ogrons to leave and says "Go! I shall deal with these criminals myself! I said GO!". So, the Controller then quietly says to the Doctor "If only I could be sure" and the Doctor tells him "You spoke of the war and its years of suffering and starvation. I can prevent that all from happening, you know". So, the Controller quietly says to the Doctor "You saved my live, and you could have let them kill me.  Go quickly".

Anna Barry is also pretty good as Anat, the guerilla leader who travels back in time to kill Styles, who they percieve to be the instigator of the future wars on Earth and she has some good moments also. 

And one or two examples include the scene where Anat faces the Doctor for the first time mistaking him to be Styles she says "So, you are the man.  Outwardly so innocent looking but capable of such crimes. Would would ever know?". And as the Doctor says to her he doesn't know what she is talking about it, Anat not interested says "You have said and done enough. The time has come for your execution". So, Anat then asks the Doctor "Any last words of repentance, Sir Reginald?" and the Doctor almost smirks and says to her "Only that you are making one fundamental mistake" and Anat asks "And that is?" and the Doctor tells her "A question of mistaken identity. I am NOT Sir Reginald Styles!" and Anat smirks and says "Is that the best you can do?".

So, as Anat accepts that the Doctor isn't Sir Reginald having checked the newspaper showing that Reg had already flown to Peking, she asks what the Doctor is doing here and he tells that he wanted to meet her and find out why she came. However, one of her men, Boaz becomes impatient and tells Anat that they should kill the Doctor and Jo but Anat firmly tells him "Who is in command of this mission! We are soldiers, not murderers. Keep guard outside, I'll deal with these two. I said out!" and Boaz leaves and Anat asks the Doctor "Now, who are you and what are you doing here?".  
 
Another good scene is when Anat tries to stop Jo from destroying the time machine and she says to her "Stupid child!  You do not know what you are doing!  That man that owned that machine is dead!  His body is back in our own timezone! Put it down and don't be silly!".  And as Jo is sent through the vortex to the 22nd century, and Anat tells the Doctor she might be dead or as Boaz says "re-embodied in the 22nd century" Anat says "Believe me she would be better off dead".

Then there is the scene where Anat and Monia try to fill in the Doctor on the blanks of what they have been doing in their efforts to try and defeat the Daleks. So, as Monia tells the Doctor he wants him to kill Styles, the Doctor is outraged and says "You are asking me to commit murder!" but Anat pleads with him and says "No, we are asking you to kill one man and prevent millions more dying!".

Valentine Palmer is also quite good as the overall leader of the guerillas, Monia, who meets later with the Doctor and Jo and he asks the Doctor to do one thing to help their cause. 

And I will mention quickly a few of Palmer's scenes such as the one where Monia tells Anat and Boaz that they must rescue the Doctor, so he can help them defeat the Daleks. So, Monia says to them "He's captured. Taken for processing. We must rescue him" but Boaz objects and says "Rescue him? Are you mad? From there? and Monia remains insistent "I say we must!". Boaz then says "Suicide!" and Monia asks him "Are you afraid?" and Boaz says "Of course I am! I'm no fool. What is he to us?" and Monia tells them "We have fresh information from one of our contacts at control centre. He is the sworn enemy of the Daleks. He's the one man they're afraid of. Don't you see? It's our only hope! If we don't act quickly, it may be too late!".

Then there is the scene where Monia and Anat charge and rescue the Doctor from the Controller and as the Controller shouts for his guard, Monia says to him "Guards! You have no guards! They are all dead!". Monia then turns his gun on the Controller and says to him angrily "As for you my friend..." but the Doctor stops him and says "Put that gun down! There's no point in murdering him" but Monia says "You don't know how much blood is on his hands!". The Doctor then tells Monia "Nevertheless, he's not your real enemy" and Monia says "He helped the Daleks! He's worked for them!" and the Doctor insists "They would always have found someone. Now just leave him!" so Monia relents and they leave. 

And as the Doctor asks Monia why he rescued them Monia says "Well you said so yourself, you're an old enemy of the Daleks.  Then you will help us to beat them" and as the Doctor asks "What do you expect me to do?" Monia says "Well, you can succeed where we failed, Doctor.  We want you to go back into your own time and kill Styles". The Doctor then refuses as he won't commit murder but Monia then insistently asks the Doctor "Doctor, will you help us?! You're our only hope!".

And briefly Scott Fredericks and Jimmy Winston are not bad as the two guerillas, Boaz and Shura, with Shura playing the key part in the story as the guerilla who inadvertently detonates the bomb to starts the wars. 

And quickly to give some mention to Scott Fredericks as Boaz, he does not too badly in his role and I will mention his scene where Anat tries to contact her base in the future to get new orders on a radio but to no avail. So, in the scene Boaz impatiently tells Anat "We can't wait for new orders!" and Shura then suggests "Look, why don't I return to the tunnel? There might be a better chance of contact there". Anat agrees and says to Shura to "Ask them..." but Boaz interrupts and says "Why ask them anything?! Isn't it obvious what we must do?! We must wait here and kill Styles!" and Anat then asks him "What if we are detected?" and Boaz tells her "We hold these two hostages and kill them if necessary" but Anat tells Shura firmly "Get alternative orders!" so Shura leaves. Boaz however is not impressed and tells Anat "You are soft, Anat. What do two lives matter when so much is at stake?". 

And lastly regarding Jimmy Winston there is the scene (SPOILER!!) where the Doctor and Jo try to persuade Shura not detonate the bomb however the Daleks and the Ogrons enter the grounds of the the house. So, as the Doctor attempts to reason with Shura, Shura points his gun at him and shouts "Get out of here unless you wanna die too! I must kill Styles and prevent the war!" but the Doctor says to him "Shura, Sir Reginald and all the other delegates are leaving this house just now, if you detonate that bomb you'll be sacrificing your life for nothing!".

And lastly there is the moment where Jo comes down into the basement and tells the Doctor the Daleks are coming into the house. Shura however says to Jo "Daleks?! You're lying!" and the Doctor tells him "No, she's not. They've come back in time to make sure their version of history doesn't change!". So, Shura suddenly tells them "Get out of here.  Let them come in, leave them to me!" and as Jo tries to persuade him to come with her and the Doctor he says "You don't understand this is Dalekanium!  Its the only thing that is effective against the daleks!". The Doctor suggests however "Couldn't we set a fuse?" and Shura says "Now, this stuff is too unstable, there just isn't time! This is something I must do myself now get out!" so the Doctor says to him "Very well" and leaves but Jo hesitates for a moment and Shura shouts at her "OUT!" and she runs up the stairs as Shura prepares himself. 

And last of all the UNIT family are all in good form in this story as well starting with Nicholas Courtney is good as ever as the Brigadier. 

And Nick has some good moments in the story aswell such as in the scene where the Brigadier comes to see the Doctor, who is working with Jo on his TARDIS console. So, the Brigadier tells the Doctor about the situation with the peace conference "You know, Doctor, if you didn't spend so much time tinkering around with this wretched contraption, you'd realise just how bad the international situation's become". The Doctor however dismissively tells the Brig "Humans are always squabbling over anything, Brigadier!" and the Brigadier warns the Doctor "Yes, well, this particular squabble looks like ending up in a third world war! The Chinese delegation have refused to attend. Without them, the conference can't even begin. Now Styles is flying to Peking in a few hours. There's just a chance that he can persuade them to change their minds". The Brig then goes on to explain Sir Reginald's attacker and the attempt made on him "He suddenly started behaving rather oddly. Seemed to think that someone was trying to assassinate him" and the Doctor asks "Any idea who?" and the Brigadier tells him "Some ghost apparently". 

Then there is the scene where the Doctor activates the time machine but then it shorts out and the Doctor says "Oh I see what's happened, the temporal feedback circuit has overloaded" and the Brig confused says "The what's done a what???" and the Doctor replies "In your terms, Brigadier the thing's blown a fuse!". 

Later there is also the scene where the Brigadier arrives at Auderly house and rescues the Doctor from being shot by an Ogron as he arrives in his jeep. So, the Doctor says to the Brig "Thank you, Brigadier for that timely intervention!" and the Brigadier asks of the Ogron "Who was that creature?" and the Doctor tells him "Yes, well I'll explain about him later. Excuse me old chap, I'm in a hurry" so he takes the Brig's jeep and drives off and the Brigadier yells after him "DOCTOR COME BACK AT ONCE!" and shakes his head in disbelief.   

And lastly Nick has a great shouty moment near the end of the story when he orders Styles to evacuate Auderly house as the Daleks and Ogrons attack.  And the Brig says loudly "Sir Reginald, this house is under attack by a hostile force.  You will please consider yourself under my orders!" and as Styles tries to protest the Brig yells "NOW BE QUIET, SIR!". So, the Brig turns to Yates and shouts "Captain Yates! Get Sir Reginald and all the delegates away from this area at once! Use the front exit!". 

And lastly John Levene and Richard Franklin share a good scene in the story in their respective role as Sgt Benton and Captain Yates where Benton sneaks into Auderly house later at night and asks Jo quietly for some food.  And Benton says to Jo "Oh and talking of food, you couldn't get us a bit to eat, could you?  I'm famished!".  And Jo goes and get's a glass of wine and cheeses for him but Yates intervenes and tells Benton "What are you doing, Sgt?  I want you to check on number three patrol!  Move, Sgt Benton!" and Benton without choice or question walks off.  And this leaves Yates to grab the glass of wine and bit of cheese saying "Jo, how thoughful!" and he downs the glass in a oner!  And Jo says to Yates "That wasn't very kind of you" and Yate says "RHIP, Jo. Rank Has Its Privileges!".  
       
DIRECTOR AND MUSIC 

Finally moving onto the story's director, Paul Bernard who does a fine job with the story and at four episodes long its just the right the length and it moves along at a quick pace and never lags at any time. Beranrd himself would then go on to direct two more stories from the Jon Pertwee era with The Time Monster, the 9th season finale (the same season as this story) and Frontier in Space the following year, which turned out to be Roger Delgado's final story as the Master before his tragic death. Bernard himself later died in London in 1997, aged 68.    

And music wise Dudley Simpson again provides a good score and while it still features some staple early 70s synth moments its more orchestral sections work better for the story than his entirely electronic scores from the previous season. In fact Simpson welcomed this change as he was exhausted by his efforts of composing and performing the exclusive electronic scores of the previous season (which was the show's 8th season featuring The Master in every story!).

FLAWS 

As for the story's flaws, yes well Day of the Daleks does have some worth mentioning. 

To start off with it has to be said one of the weakest aspects of this story are the Daleks themselves as there are only three of them in the story throughout.  The original Dalek voices (by Oliver Gilbert and Peter Messaline) in the story were frankly pretty crap and the rate at which their lines were delivered were dismally slow and the typical Dalek staccato sounds really naff here.  And as an example one of the daleks says to the controller in one scene "do----you----have-----the-----space---time---co---or--di--nates?" which kind of indicates just how cack they sound. 

Later in 2011 of course the BBC re-released the DVD of the story with some new CGI effects and the dalek voices were also dubbed over by Nicholas Briggs, which was a big improvement (although his delivery is always a bit sarcastic sounding!). 

Also given the fact that there are only three Daleks this is even more noticeable during the scene where the Daleks emerge from the tunnel to attack Auderly house along with only six Ogrons!  Now that is quite an attack force!  This was of course also re-done with some CGI effects in the 2011 DVD version.  But it is pretty silly to think that three Daleks and six Ogrons on its own would be anywhere near enough.  Another thing that can be said of the Ogrons is that they aren't the swiftest movers as during their assault on the house near the end they move slower than a granny on a zimmer loaded with some heavy shopping!    

And further to the point regarding the slow ineptitude of the Ogrons there is also a pretty cheesy scene where the Doctor and Jo try to escape from them as the Doctor and Jo drive a buggy to escape them. And this is a pretty daft (albet fun) sequence where the Ogrons clumsily chase after them at a slow pace as the Doctor runs circles around them with the buggy but its not long before they are caught. Again however I belive this scene was added because of Jon Pertwee's affinity for fancy gadgets and transport! 

And this brings to mind another issue with the story in that surely if only some of the Daleks came back in time to kill Styles and they ended up being destroyed by Shura's bomb then there surely would be plenty more back in the 22nd century!  Especially given that if the Daleks are ruling Earth in the future there would be Daleks throughout the world and not just in England, so if three ruling Daleks are killed there must surely be plenty elsewhere on Earth to still keep things ticking over!  But the story neatly deals with the daleks entering the house at the end and by them being destroyed by Shura's bomb that's it all wrapped up and there will be no further complications or anything to worry about (as everything in the world does appear to settle around the UK in Doctor Who of course so the rest of the world doesn't come into it!).   

Another issue with the story which probably did have some fans concerned was the scene where the Doctor appears to commit a cold blooded murder as in one scene he shoots an Ogron with one of the guerilla's disintegrator guns in an anticipatory manner.  And while this is of course morely a self defence shooting it does still seem out of character for the Doctor and for the 2011 DVD version they adjusted this a little by having the Ogron shoot at the Doc first and then the Doctor responds by shooting him, effectively employing the "Greedo shoots first" ideaology here. 

But the Doctor rarely does commit cold blooded murders and there are very few instances in the show's history where it has occurred with perhaps the exception of maybe the Talons of Weng Chiang (ANOTHER SPOILER!!) when the Doctor pushes the main villain Magnus Greel into a distillation chamber, which disintegrates his body.  So another disintegration, how about that?! 

Anyways that's it for the flaws.

SUM UP 

So to sum up, Day of the Daleks remains an excellent story from the Pertwee era and although it may not be one of the better representations of the Daleks as there are only three of them and their voices are pretty poor, the plot behind involving the Daleks, Styles and guerrilas works very well and the cast all do a fine job. And it is also one of my own personal favourite stories from the Pertwee era aswell, so I can certainly recommend it.

So, that's it for now and I will be back sometime hopefully with yet another post.

Till then its ciao for now old chap!

Resident Evil Remake Review

Hey everyone and welcome to the month of July on this blog (can't believe its July already!).

So, I have to admit again, this post is something of a revisitation of a previous one I did but its one that is probably due a bit of an overhaul as it was done six years ago on the and the post in question is my review of the Resident Evil Remake.

Now, the RE: Remake first came out on the Nintendo Gamecube console but it was later remastered in HD for the PS3/Xbox 360 and even later than that remastered again for the PS4/Xbox One consoles. So, right now I am playing the remastered version on the PS4 and its been fun so far to revisit this classic and its revamped form.

So, with that all said, let's take another look at this remake of a modern classic...

And yep, the usual warning is coming...

PLOT SPOILERS AHEAD!!!

STORY

Right so the story is set around a large mansion which members of the STARS (Special Tactics and Rescue Service) Alpha team seek refuse in when they are attacked by some vicious dogs.  The team includes Chris Redfield, Jill Valentine, Barry Burton and Albert Wesker, and in the game you have choice of playing either Chris or Jill.  Depending on which character you chose some of the other characters may be missing such as Barry if you play Chris, or Chris if you play Jill.  As the player you play investigates the mansion they discover a zombie chomping on the corpse of STARS Bravo team, and the zombie attacks your character, which you can either shoot or stab the creature.

As the gameplay progress your character will also face a series of deadly traps and puzzles to negotiate.  Your character will at certain moments in the game encounter other team mates who have been killed or badly injured.  And one of the characters you encounter, Enrico Marini, tells you one of the team is a traitor, however he is shot and killed before you find out more.  As the character moves on in the game they will eventually find an underground laboratory and they will eventually face the traitor and main antagonist in the game... 

THOUGHTS 

At the time of its original release, Resident Evil was a real breakthrough in the horror genre and it took 3D gaming to new visual heights, with its stunning albeit pre-rendered backdrops and its somewhat blocky looking character models.  However one of the most effective things about the original Resident Evil was the way in which it built up the tension and the suspense and it made great use of visual cues such as when you enter it another room, you get a cutaway to a door opening, complete with creaky noises, which adds to the fear factor as to what might behind it.

The remake however of course went on to enhance the original and it has a variety of new aspects to its gameplay as well as different puzzles and the introduction of some new characters such as Lisa Trevor, who has been turned into a genetically mutated creature after years of experimentation.  Lisa is seen in certain sections of the game where you wander around the tunnels and you first encounter her in an outhouse and she proves to be nearly indestructable in the game.

The remake also makes reference to other characters as well in the series such as William Birkin (who appears in Resident Evil 0) and Alexia Ashford (who appears in Resident Evil: Codename Veronica).  And in the remake the atmosphere is very creepy and intense throughout in fact even more so as given its new overhaul it does everything to enhance the terror of it all.  

GAMEPLAY 

As for the actual gameplay this is where Resident Evil really get's to shine as the controls are pretty simple although it has to be said your movement is somewhat restricted due to the nature of the pre-rendered backdrops.  The level of difficulty is determined by which character you play as Chris is the hardest method while Jill is the easier one although it has to be said the remake can pose a fair challenge irrespective of who you play.

In terms of the game's combat in the remake, in addition to your usual weapons such as a handgun, shotgun, flamethrower and grenade launcher, you also have defensive weapons that include a dagger, a taser and a stun grenade, which are pretty cool to use.  While both Jill and Chris can use the taser,  Chris can only use the stun grenade, and Chris can use the grenade to cool effect as when a zombie attacks him he can stick it in the zombie's gub and shoot at it to blow the zombies head off (sick but fun!).  You also have access to first aid sprays and herbs to heal yourself from injuries, and if you combine certain herbs they can be used to cure your character if they get poisoned.

Similar to the original the remake also features a game save system where you enter a storeroom and you can save your progress via the use of a typewriter, and you need to keep a stock of typewriter ribbons in order to save each time.  As for storage capacity, Chris can hold only six items but Jill can hold eight at one time and when they go into the storerooms they can swap out equipment as they need it.

The game at certain points may also call for the character to save one of their team mates, Richard, who is poisoned by a giant snake, and you must run to the storage room to get a serum to cure him.  Another really good aspect of the gameplay of both the original and the remake is that given the character you play, you can have different endings to the games and there will be different consquences as a result if you don't rescue your fellow team mates.   

Another great aspect of Resident Evil is also the baddies, to start with the zombies, who in the original were creepy and when they attacked you, they bite you near to the point of death unless you push them off.  In the remake they are even more creep and effective as they will bite you but you can also make a pre-emptive attack by using your defensive weapon to stab or stun them.  The zombies however no matter how many rounds you pump into them will not stay down unless you decapitate them or incinerate their bodies, and if you do neither they come back to live twice as fast and strong as well as angry, which adds to the incredible unease of the remake.

The other enemies also include for example the rabid dogs, who you usually find running around the courtyard and one of the game's showpieces is of course where you run down a corridor in the mansion they without smashing through the windows and you have to kill them or be killed.  Other enemies also include a giant spider (aracnophobics beware!) a giant serpent, biped lizards, known as hunters, with sharp claws who can move fast and jump high, and they can even decapitate you if you're not careful!  And lastly (SPOILER!!!) there is the Tyrant, the ultimate biological weapon, a large humanoid with pale white skin and a big sharp claw, which can do brutal damage.

GRAPHICS 

Getting onto the graphics of the remake, well for their time they were and still are absolutely stunning, as the backdrops look amazing and the character models are superb especially in the remastered HD versions, the game looks better than ever and the models even rival some of the games of today.  And everything from the visuals of the interior of the mansion, to the griminess of the underground labs and to the grounds of the mansion, it all looks top notch. The only thing is though the movement of your character is still restricted within the static backdrops so when you control the character and they can only move in one way as the camera angle changes at set times in each room.  But for the remake the visual presentation simply could not be better than it is here and even by today's standards, this is one mighty fine looking video game.

MUSIC 

Moving onto the music score, it was composed by Shusaku Uchiyama and it is quite different from the cheesy 90s synthesizer music (although it did have a charm all of its own!) and in its place we have a very creepy and deeply atmospheric score with some real moments of perfect orchestral terror. And the score is often used really effectively, such as in a scene where your character is in a room and a zombie bursts out of the cupboard! So, overall this is a pretty impressive update of the cheesy yet still classic score from the original game.

FLAWS 

As for the flaws of the game???  Well yeah OK the remake does it have some issues.

And to start off, it has to be said the static movement in the game is what prevents Resident Evil from being a truly interactive experience.  And as I previously mentioned the characters can't really interact with their environment given the pre-rendered backdrops, as you move down a hallway the camera statically cuts between different sections of a room as you go. The movement of the characters in the remake are also rather sluggish as they run fairly slowly around the mansion, the corridors or anywhere else for that matter. Having said that, I'm actually convinced they speeded the movement of the characters in the remastered versions, so in that respect its a lesser problem for the HD versions.

However what is a problem in the remastered version is that I often found myself occassionally fighting against the direction of the controls as making your character run in a straight line can prove challenging. This is especially notable when it changes to another camera angle while your character runs down a corridor, hallway etc, you are forced to press the stick forward or backward to compensate for the new angle, which can disrupt the flow of your character's movement.  

The puzzles in the game can also be a little frustrating at times as well and given the nature of the game you have alot of running back and forth to do to pick up different things, such as keys, emblems or other items to help you basically unlock new rooms and access other areas. The storage rooms can also be a bit annoying as well, given that you can only hold so many items at once, and you can't ditch an item, you have to keep it until you reach the storeroom and you have to swap out an item rather than just ditch it, which thankfully in later games you could do instead. And further to this, in the prequel game, Resident Evil 0, they improved the storage system by letting characters just drop items anywhere and pick them up again as they see fit.  

I also have to say while it was a staple of the earlier games in the series, the ink ribbon save system does feel pretty outdated aswell (although it was brought back for the Resident Evil 2 remake) as it forces you to be pretty economical with your game saves throughout. So, this also will force you to try and make sure you are in a good place with your items and progress before you choose to save your game again.

Another problem for me with the remake is the voice acting, which don't get me wrong, is an improvement over the laughable performances of the original but they still do sound a bit wooden (although the voice actor of Barry is probably the best here). However it still brings to mind some of the hilariously bad dialogue of the original such as in the cutscene where Barry gives Jill a lockpick and he says to her "And Jill, here is a lockpick.  It might be handy if you, the master of unlocking, take it with you".

Anyway, so that's it for the flaws.

SUM UP

So to sum up, Resident Evil the remake is still a superb game and it builds on the original as its far more creepy and scary as well and the graphics for the game are also first class. Also now given that the Nintendo Gamecube, Wii and Wii-U are now discontinued, its great that the game was remastered for the current generation of consoles i.e. PS4/Xbox One to allow gamers new to the remake to experience it aswell. And despite any of its limitations in terms of its movement, save and inventory systems, Resident Evil is still a must for any horror game fan.

So, that's it for now and I will be back soon with another post.

Till then its bye for now...groan...creek...shuffle! (OK that's enough!).