The Story: Here's another of those "Classic Scene" features from Premiere Magazine, this one from the December, 2000 issue and featuring a popular scene from 1994's Pulp Fiction, that "touchstone of postmodern film."
I liked half of Pulp Fiction, when I first saw it, that being those parts dealing with Samuel L. Jackson's, Ving Rhames' and Bruce Willis' characters. I found everything else far afield of what you'd call "pulp fiction" and the character of Vincent Vega particularly grated on me. I found Travolta's acting of the part too much of everything, especially during this particular scene. A LOT of hand movement, significant padding of material—the kind of padding Howard Hawks used to do when he was employing overlapping dialogue...but, here, the dialog doesn't overlap!—and I found Uma Thurman's character shallow and uninteresting.
Watching the scene again recently, I altered my thinking. Thurman does a lot with very little, in marked contrast with Travolta who's all-gesture. But, that's good. Sure, you could say it might not be realistic for her to be so still after having just done a line in the ladies' room, but there's not much realism in Pulp Fiction. And her focused performance lends her a power dynamic that's a bit essential for the scene to work.
And while Travolta may be far too animated, there is one thing about his performance that's a bit remarkable—his Vince Vega can barely look her in the eye. He is, after all, a low-grade gun-man in Marsellus Wallace's crime organization, and he's (let's say) a replacement for "Antwan" (that's how it's spelled in the script) or, as he WAS known, by his nickname, "Tommy Rocky Horror" who was presumably higher ranked in the gang as far as trust and who, despite that, ended up thrown out a fourth story window by his boss. Now, here's Vince, charged with entertaining Marsellus' wife and leery of any misstep that might see him similarly sailing out a window. And he can barely look at her. All that gesturing is compensation for his timidity. He's scared to death...of death...and she might be the cause of his (based on recent history) if he happens to screw up. Sure, it may be overly nuanced in execution, but it's still a good idea.
Even if I didn't recognize it at the time.
The Set-Up: From Premiere Magazine "Classic Scene": "Director Quentin Tarantino, who wrote the script with Roger Avary, gave John Travolta the floor (literally) as Vincent escorts Mia (Uma Thurman), the wife of his boss, Marsellus Wallace (Ving Rhames), to a '50s-themed restaurant, complete with celebrity impersonators. Here, Mia returns drugged-up from the ladies' room, having told Vincent to have something to say when she gets back."
Action.
Dialogue and description is taken from the Tarantino/Avary published screenplay. On-set deletions are crossed out and ad-libbed additions are in Green.
MIA
this doesn't sound like
mindless, boring, getting-to-know-you
chit-chat. This sounds like you actually
have something to say.
VINCENT
Well, well...
MIA
No. No, no.
MIA
You can't promise something like that. I
have no idea what you're gonna ask. You
could ask me what you're gonna ask me,
Mia nods her head: "Yes."
MIA
Besides,
VINCENT
Tony Rocky...
Mia and Vincent smile.
Vincent is slow to answer.
MIA
Let me help you Bashful, did it involve...
MIA
You heard Marsellus threw Tony Rocky Horror out
of a four-story window because he massaged
my feet gave me a foot massage?
VINCENT
Yeah.
MIA
Marsellus throwing Tony out of a four-
story window for giving me a foot massage
massaging my feet seemed reasonable?
VINCENT
No, it seemed excessive.
MIA
A husband being protective of his wife is
one thing. A husband almost killing
another man for touching his wife's feet
is something else.
MIA
The only thing...
MIA
...Antwan ever touched of mine
was my hand, when he shook it. I met Antwan
once – at my wedding – then never again.
MIA The truth is, nobody knows why Marsellus
tossed Tony Rocky Horror out of that
window except Marsellus and Tony Rocky
Horror.
CUT TO:
ED SULLIVAN AND MARILYN MONROE STAND ON STAGE
ED SULLIVAN
now the moment
you've all been waiting for, the world-
famous Jackrabbit Slim's twist contest.
ED SULLIVAN
... Now this is where one lucky couple will win this
handsome trophy that Marilyn here is
holding.
Marilyn holds the trophy.
Mia holds her hand.
Vincent reacts.
MIA
I
want that trophy.
VINCENT
(sighs)
All right.
Words by Quentin Tarantino and Roger Avary
Pictures by Andrzej Sekula and Quentin Tarantino
Pulp Fiction is available on DVD and Blu-Ray from Paramount Pictures.
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