non sequitur

Quintessential Tarantino

Original Post: 17-April-2007

Have you observed? Quentin Tarantino has shown a special liking for rhyming dialogs in his movies. Here are some instances I have come across in his films to make you appreciate this aspect of probably the most verbose writer in modern cinema (outside of Woody Allen).

My name's Paul,
and this is between y'all (Paul, the bartender in Pulp Fiction)

My name's Pitt,
and you ain't talkin' your ass outta this shit. (Jules in Pulp Fiction)

My name is Buck,
and I'm here to fuck. (Buck in Kill Bill)

Zed’s dead baby, Zed’s dead. (Butch in Pulp Fiction)

Kill Bill (The title of the movie rhymes)

Have I overlooked any other instances? Show them to me.

Updated on 15-May-2009

Well, I did seem to have overlooked at least one more rhyme. Just watched the movie last night for the zillionth time and here's another rhyme I caught.

If your hand ain't off that case,
I'm gonna unload right in your fuckin' face.(Pumpkin in Pulp Fiction)

Updated on 04-Apr-2011

Somebody with a grudge blew Beaumont's brains out. Oh shit, that shit rhymes! "Blew Beau-mont's, brains out!" (Ordell in Jackie Brown)

A few more thoughts on QT's Pulp Fiction are here.

Zed's Dead, Baby

It was in the 80s when my cousins were little toddlers and were belting out nursery rhymes that I remember them singing the popular rhyme that teaches kids the letters in the English alphabet in a sing-sing manner thus:

ABCDEFG
HIJKMNOP
LMNOPQRST
UVWXYZ
XYZ, butter and bread
if you don’t like it better go to bed.

Today, after the turn of the millennium, I see the children of my friends singing the same nursery rhyme in the aforementioned way only till the third act and from here on, the script is given an entirely different spin.

ABCDEFG
HIJKLMNOP
QRS TUV
WX Y and Z
now I know my ABC
next time won’t you sing with me?

If you still need a more elaborate explanation, bread and bed rhyme with Zed while C and me rhyme with Zee.

Quentin Tarantino rem acu tetigisti-ed it best when his Butch in Pulp Fiction said 'Zed's dead baby, Zed's dead'.

Ironically, the dead Z has entered other areas where S was previously holding court. I being the luddite and anglophile that I am insist on spelling the words the way my English teacher taught me - Microsoft Word's spellchecker notwithstanding - viz. Organisation, Realisation, Cocacolanisation.

Fuck Pride

This easily qualifies probably to be the weakest of my posts. Nevertheless, at the moment I feel like posting it. I might delete it later if i am not happy seeing it on this website.

For some weird reason, or for no reason at all, this line from the movie - I can imagine you go 'aw hell!! don't throw the Pulp Fiction shit again' - Pulp Fiction is running in my head again and again at least some three times a day; that on a conservative estimate; specially the two words in the title. I guess it's some sort of a passing phrase or something to that effect.

Now the night of the fight, you may fell a slight sting, that's pride fuckin' wit ya. Fuck pride! Pride only hurts, it never helps. Fight through that shit. 'Cause a year from now, when you're kickin' it in the Caribbean you're gonna say, "Marsellus Wallace was right."

That's about the post. Now to just give you a little bit more information than you needed to know, Marsellus gives this pep-talk to Butch encouraging him to throw away the fight for a wad of notes. Butch takes the money and double-crosses Marsellus. Marsellus goes after Butch with a "If Butch goes to Indo China, I want a nigger hidin' in a bowl of rice, ready to pop a cap in his ass" kind of fervor and when he catches up with Butch they get into a scuffle where Butch beats the shit out of Marsellus. Now, the point is, as he goes about bashing the big boss up, Butch mutters this heartily.

You feel that sting, big boy, huh? That's pride FUCKIN' with you! You gotta fight through that shit!

I find that very funny.

You can find a few more references to Pulp Fiction here, here, here, here and here.
A few years from now the whole script of the movie could end up on this website as various posts.

10 Great Movie Monologues

This is my first attempt at posting a video on my weblog. I struggled for a while to achieve it but finally figured out how to post videos.

Cutting to the chase, as the name suggests, the post has my list of 10 great movie monologues. I like them so much that I have learnt a few of them by heart – notably the Contender speech by Marlon Brando and Samuel Jackson’s Ezekiel 25:17 in Pulp Fiction – and the rest are on the way to be perfected. I have the Ezekiel 25:17, the Good Will Hunting and the Superheroes monologue from Kill Bill stuck on my workstation – Fight Club would be joining them one of these days. A few of them give me goose flesh and well up tears of emotion whenever I read them, listen to them or watch them. The famous ‘I am Maximus’ speech from Gladiator stands out for the sheer adrenaline rush it provides; the King of Cool is at his quotable best when he gets biblical in Pulp Fiction; I never fail to be moved to tears when I listen to Morgan Freeman uttering the line ‘I hope the Pacific is as blue as it has been in my dreams’ in Shawshak Redemption …

Well, this list is very much expandable because 10 is too small a number taking into consideration the number of wonderful lines that English movies have offered. I shall add more if I come across or get reminded of more monologues that mean something to me.

The biggest trouble was to arrange the list; what comes at #1, what comes at #2, what comes at #3 and so on and so fourth – the list is definitely about the present and the order might slightly change if it were another day.

Without any further ado let me present to you the lines and videos. Read, Listen, Watch and Enjoy.

10. Goodfellas – As far back as I can remember, I always wanted to be a gangster

Henry Hill: As far back as I can remember, I always wanted to be a gangster. To me... being a gangster was better than being president of the United States. Even before I went to the cabstand for an after-school job... I knew I wanted to be a part of them. It was there that I knew I belonged. To me, it meant being somebody... in a neighborhood full of nobodies. They weren't like anybody else. They did whatever they wanted. They parked in front of hydrants and never got a ticket. When they played cards all night... nobody ever called the cops.

The initial part of the video is a bit gory – please excuse for it.

9. To Kill a Mockingbird – The courtroom scene

I don't have the video for this. We have to make do with the link to the audio clip.

Atticus Finch: Now gentlemen, in this country our courts are the great levelers, and in our courts all men are created equal. I'm no idealist to believe firmly in the integrity of our courts and of our jury system. That's no ideal to me. That is a living, working reality. Now I am confident that you gentlemen will review without passion the evidence that you have heard, come to a decision, and restore this man to his family. In the name of God, do your duty. In the name of God, believe Tom Robinson.

9. Scarface - say good night to the bad guy!

Tony Montana: What you lookin' at? You all a bunch of fuckin' assholes. You know why? You don't have the guts to be what you wanna be? You need people like me. You need people like me so you can point your fuckin' fingers and say, "That's the bad guy." So... what that make you? Good? You're not good. You just know how to hide, how to lie. Me, I don't have that problem. Me, I always tell the truth. Even when I lie. So say good night to the bad guy! Come on. The last time you gonna see a bad guy like this again, let me tell you. Come on. Make way for the bad guy. There's a bad guy comin' through! Better get outta his way!

8. Gladiator - My name is Maximus Decimus Meridius

My name is Maximus Decimus Meridius, commander of the Armies of the North, General of the Felix Legions, loyal servant to the true emperor, Marcus Aurelius. Father to a murdered son, husband to a murdered wife. And I will have my vengeance, in this life or the next.

8. Harvey - Nobody ever brings anything small into a bar

Harvey and I sit in the bars... have a drink or two... play the juke box. And soon the faces of all the other people they turn toward mine and they smile. And they're saying, "We don't know your name, mister, but you're a very nice fella." Harvey and I warm ourselves in all these golden moments. We've entered as strangers - soon we have friends. And they come over... and they sit with us... and they drink with us... and they talk to us. They tell about the big terrible things they've done and the big wonderful things they'll do. Their hopes, and their regrets, and their loves, and their hates. All very large, because nobody ever brings anything small into a bar. And then I introduce them to Harvey... and he's bigger and grander than anything they offer me. And when they leave, they leave impressed. The same people seldom come back; but that's envy, my dear. There's a little bit of envy in the best of us. That's too bad, isn't it?

7. Amadeus - It seemed to me that I was hearing a voice of God.

Salieri describes his rival Mozart’s music with great passion all through the movie. F. Murray Abraham as Antonio Salieri delivered one of the greatest screen performances I have witnessed – it is sadly, I think, also one of the most under-mentioned and under-discussed performances in Cinema.

Salieri: Extraordinary! On the page it looked nothing. The beginning simple, almost comic. Just a pulse - bassoons and basset horns - like a rusty squeezebox. Then suddenly - high above it - an oboe, a single note, hanging there unwavering, till a clarinet took over and sweetened it into a phrase of such delight! This was no composition by a performing monkey! This was a music I'd never heard. Filled with such longing, such unfulfillable longing, it had me trembling. It seemed to me that I was hearing a voice of God.

Elsewhere he says,

Astounding! It was actually beyond belief. These were first and only drafts of music yet they showed no corrections of any kind. Not one. Do you realize what that meant? He'd simply put down music already finished in his head. Page after page of it, as if he was just taking dictation. And music finished as no music is ever finished. Displace one note and there would be diminishment. Displace one phrase, and the structure would fall. It was clear to me. That sound I had heard in the Archbishop's palace had been no accident. Here again was the very voice of God! I was staring through the cage of those meticulous ink-strokes at an absolute, inimitable beauty.

I also love the last lines he says in the movie. That will have a place in my list of best movie quotes.

 I will speak for you, Father. I speak for all mediocrities in the world. I am their champion. I am their patron saint. Mediocrities everywhere... I absolve you... I absolve you... I absolve you... I absolve you... I absolve you all.

you can view the terrific performance here.

Watch this movie. It is simply great.

6. Fight Club - We're the middle children of history

It’s kind of funny. I think this movie has one of the most surprising climaxes I have seen and I love these lines and a few others. But I wouldn’t want to watch the movie once more. I don’t like the movie very much.

Tyler Durden: Man, I see in fight club the strongest and smartest men who've ever lived. I see all this potential, and I see squandering. God damn it, an entire generation pumping gas, waiting tables; slaves with white collars. Advertising has us chasing cars and clothes, working jobs we hate so we can buy shit we don't need. We're the middle children of history, man. No purpose or place. We have no Great War. No Great Depression. Our Great War's a spiritual war... our Great Depression is our lives. We've all been raised on television to believe that one day we'd all be millionaires, and movie gods, and rock stars. But we won't. And we're slowly learning that fact. And we're very, very pissed off.

I couldn’t find the video clip for this, so you have to adjust with these bits of audio. If you find the video clip somewhere please send me the link. Thank you.

1, 2, 3.

5. Pulp Fiction - Ezekiel 25:17

I have a T-Shirt with the poster of Pulp Fiction - the picture that has Samuel Jackson and John Travolta in black suits pointing out their guns – on the front and Ezekiel 25:17 printed on the back. It is a gift from a fellow Fiction fan and a friend.

Jules: There's a passage I got memorized. Ezekiel 25:17. The path of the righteous man is beset on all sides by the inequities of the selfish and the tyranny of evil men. Blessed is he who, in the name of charity and good will, shepherds the weak through the valley of the darkness. For he is truly his brother's keeper and the finder of lost children. And I will strike down upon thee with great vengeance and furious anger those who attempt to poison and destroy my brothers. And you will know I am the Lord when I lay my vengeance upon you. I been sayin' that shit for years. And if you ever heard it, it meant your ass. I never really questioned what it meant. I thought it was just a cold-blooded thing to say to a motherfucker before you popped a cap in his ass. But I saw some shit this mornin' made me think twice. Now I'm thinkin': it could mean you're the evil man. And I'm the righteous man. And Mr. 9mm here, he's the shepherd protecting my righteous ass in the valley of darkness. Or it could be you're the righteous man and I'm the shepherd and it's the world that's evil and selfish. 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 tryin' real hard to be a shepherd.

Caution - The video is a bit long.

4. Kill Bill: Vol. 2 – Superhero Mythology

Simply put it, I would have loved to have thought of this myself.

Bill: l'm quite keen on comic books. Especially the ones about superheroes. I find the whole mythology surrounding superheroes fascinating. Take my favorite superhero, Superman. Not a great comic book. Not particularly well-drawn. But the mythology... The mythology is not only great, it's unique. Now, a staple of the superhero mythology is, there's the superhero and there's the alter ego. Batman is actually Bruce Wayne, Spider-Man is actually Peter Parker. When that character wakes up in the morning, he's Peter Parker. He has to put on a costume to become Spider-Man. And it is in that characteristic Superman stands alone. Superman didn't become Superman. Superman was born Superman. When Superman wakes up in the morning, he's Superman. His alter ego is Clark Kent. His outfit with the big red "S", that's the blanket he was wrapped in as a baby when the Kents found him. Those are his clothes. What Kent wears - the glasses, the business suit - that's the costume. That's the costume Superman wears to blend in with us. Clark Kent is how Superman views us. And what are the characteristics of Clark Kent. He's weak... he's unsure of himself... he's a coward. Clark Kent is Superman's critique on the whole human race.

3. On the Waterfront - I coulda been a contender

This speech is considered one of the greatest movie monologues and has been parodied and attempted several times in Cinema. In Raging Bull, Robert De Niro pays a fine tribute to Brando in the scene where he practices these lines in front of the mirror.

Terry: You don't understand. I coulda had class. I coulda been a contender. I coulda been somebody, instead of a bum, which is what I am, let's face it.

Watch the clip

 

2. Shawshank Redemption – I Hope

As I mentioned before, I get teary-eyed when I come to the ‘I hope the Pacific is as blue as it has been in my dreams’ line. It is just amazing. I hope you have watched this movie.

Red: I find I'm so excited, I can barely sit still or hold a thought in my head. I think it's the excitement only a free man can feel, a free man at the start of a long journey whose conclusion is uncertain. I hope I can make it across the border. I hope to see my friend, and shake his hand. I hope the Pacific is as blue as it has been in my dreams. I hope.

1. Good Will Hunting – The greatest lines of them all

Sean: So if I asked you about art, you'd probably give me the skinny on every art book ever written. Michelangelo, you know a lot about him. Life's work, political aspirations, him and the pope, sexual orientations, the whole works, right? But I'll bet you can't tell me what it smells like in the Sistine Chapel. You've never actually stood there and looked up at that beautiful ceiling; seen that. If I ask you about women, you'd probably give me a syllabus about your personal favorites. You may have even been laid a few times. But you can't tell me what it feels like to wake up next to a woman and feel truly happy. You're a tough kid. And I'd ask you about war, you'd probably throw Shakespeare at me, right, "once more unto the breach dear friends." But you've never been near one. You've never held your best friend's head in your lap, watch him gasp his last breath looking to you for help. I'd ask you about love, you'd probably quote me a sonnet. But you've never looked at a woman and been totally vulnerable. Known someone that could level you with her eyes, feeling like God put an angel on earth just for you. Who could rescue you from the depths of hell. And you wouldn't know what it's like to be her angel, to have that love for her, be there forever, through anything, through cancer. And you wouldn't know about sleeping sitting up in the hospital room for two months, holding her hand, because the doctors could see in your eyes, that the terms "visiting hours" don't apply to you. You don't know about real loss, 'cause it only occurs when you've loved something more than you love yourself. And I doubt you've ever dared to love anybody that much. And look at you... I don't see an intelligent, confident man... I see a cocky, scared shitless kid. But you're a genius Will. No one denies that. No one could possibly understand the depths of you. But you presume to know everything about me because you saw a painting of mine, and you ripped my fucking life apart. You're an orphan right?

You think I know the first thing about how hard your life has been, how you feel, who you are, because I read Oliver Twist? Does that encapsulate you? Personally... I don't give a shit about all that, because you know what, I can't learn anything from you, I can't read in some fuckin' book. Unless you want to talk about you, who you are. Then I'm fascinated. I'm in. But you don't want to do that do you sport? You're terrified of what you might say. Your move, chief.

Isn't it stuff that goosefleshes are made of?

Do you think I missed something better? Remind me.

Do you like the list? What are your favorite movie speeches/monologues? Tell me.

Insights Inside Pulp Fiction

Here are really some profound statements uttered in the movie by what practically are the dregs of the society.

Vincent Vega: Did you ever hear the philosophy that once a man admits he's wrong, he's immediately forgiven for all wrong-doings?

Winston 'The Wolf' Wolfe: Just because you are a character doesn't mean you have character.

Fabienne: It's unfortunate what we find pleasing to the touch and pleasing to the eye is seldom the same.

Mia Wallace: Uncomfortable silences. Why do we feel it's necessary to yak about bullshit in order to be comfortable? That's when you know you found somebody special. When you can just shit the fuck up for a minute, and comfortably share silence.

Have I missed something else? Tell me. More on Pulp Fiction here. There is always more to come.

The Fiction Uncut

Notes:
1. Sometimes you would need to wade through long conversations to come to the crux, but then it is the conversations that make Pulp Fiction the hilarious movie that it is - so I am sure you, the discerning reader, wouldn’t mind reading them; in fact, would immensely enjoy reading them.
2. The conversations from the movie are italicized and the parts that are important for the point I am trying to make are in Bold.

    My passion for Pulp Fiction is almost paralleled to my fanatic devotion for Wodehouse. A person who is obsessed to one thing is called a monomaniac - if there is a word to describe a bloke with a mania for two things, then that could easily be the word to describe me. I strongly suspect that my friends switch themselves off once I get started on these two hobby horses of mine. I have learnt Jules's Ezekiel 25:17 by heart, have the special collector’s edition DVD on my shelf, have watched the movie I-don’t-know-how-may-number-of-times, can rattle off lines before the characters do, recommend the movie to almost every soul I come across and so on and so forth. In fact I would be ready to give an arm and leg for getting an opportunity to discuss the movie and my observations with QT. Err… on second thoughts, I wouldn’t.

After the most recent viewing of Pulp Fiction, I came up with what I would like to call another interesting observation. So I thought before I loose track, I ought to pen all of them down. Here goes.

Pulp Fiction is about keeping secrets

We experience a taste of it for the first time when Mia tells Vincent about Tony Rocky Horror and Marsellus at the Jack Rabbit Slims.
MIA: The truth is, nobody knows why Marsellus tossed Tony Rocky Horror out of that window except Marsellus and Tony Rocky Horror.

As the movie progresses, we see that at least two other pairs of characters have secrets to keep. First, Mia and Vincent reach a pact that they are not going to talk about the Mia-overdosing-and-coming-back-to-life episode with anyone.

The conversation: 

VINCENT: What are your thoughts on how to handle this?
MIA: What's yours?
VINCENT: Well I'm of the opinion that Marsellus can live his whole live and never ever hear of this incident.
Mia smiles.
MIA: Don't worry about it. If Marsellus ever heard of this, I'd be in as much trouble as you.
VINCENT: I seriously doubt that.
MIA: If you can keep a secret, so can I.
VINCENT: Let's shake on it.
The two walk toward each other, holding out their hands to shake and shake they do.

Second, Marsellus has, for his own good a dark tragic secret, which if let out would spoil his standing a good deal among his minions, to keep. After the incident at the pawnshop where Marsellus is sodomized he, in what turns out to be unintentionally hilarious, almost pleads with Butch to keep the secret between just the two.

The conversation:
BUTCH: So we're cool?
MARSELLUS: Yeah man, we're cool. One thing I ask -- two things I ask: don't tell nobody about this. This shit's between me and you and the soon-to-be-livin'-the-rest-of-his-short-ass-life-in-agonizing-pain, Mr. Rapist here. It ain't nobody else's business. Two: leave town. Tonight. Right now. And when you're gone, stay gone. You've lost your Los Angeles privileges. Deal?
BUTCH: Deal.
The two men shake hands, then hug one another.

So, you see that the discussion at Jack Rabbit Slims is just a build up for what would follow consistently during the course of the movie.

MARSELLUS to BUTCH: In the fifth, your ass goes down.

Marsellus pays off Butch to loose a fight and figuratively says "In the fifth, your ass goes down". What follows as the story proceeds is, Marsellus's ass literally goes down when he is sodomized by two homosexuals at the pawnshop. There is a connection, isn’t there one!!

Is Jules clairvoyant?

Now this is what I call "secret's crown of secret".

At the restaurant:

JULES to YOLANDA: Yolanda, I thought you were gonnabe cool. When you yell at me, it makes me nervous. When I get nervous, I get scared. And when motherfuckers get scared, that's when motherfuckers get accidentally shot.

If one watchs the movie carefully, say a couple of times or more, one would recognize that this is the exact reason why Vincent dies. Or is it just my genius? I dont know.

The scene goes thus:

He(Butch) walks through the apartment and back into the kitchen. He opens a cupboard and takes out a box of Pop Tarts. Putting down the milk, he opens the box, takes out two Pop Tarts and puts them in the toaster.
Butch glances to his right, his eyes fall on something.
What he sees is a small compact Czech M61 submachine gun with a huge silencer on it, lying on his kitchen counter.
BUTCH: (softly) Holy shit.
He picks up the intimidating peace of weaponary and examines it.
Then...a toilet FLUSHES.
Butch looks up to the bathroom door, which is parallel to the kitchen. There is someone behind it.
Like a rabbit caught in a radish patch, Butch freezes, not knowing what to do.
The bathroom door opens and Vincent Vega steps out of the bathroom, tightening his belt. In his hand is the book "MODESTY BLAISE" by Peter O'Donnell.
Vincent and Butch lock eyes.
Vincent freezes.
Butch doesn't move, except to point the M61 in Vincent's direction.
Neither man opens his mouth.
Then...the toaster LOUDLY kicks up the Pop Tarts.
That's all the situation needed.
Butch's finger HITS the trigger.
MUFFLED FIRE SHOOTS out of the end of the gun.
Vincent is seemingly WRACKED with twenty bullets SIMULTANEOUSLY -- LIFTING him off his feet, PROPELLING him through the air and CRASHING through the glass shower door at the end of the bathroom.
By the time Butch removes his finger from the trigger, Vincent is annihilated.
Butch stands frozen, amazed at what just happened.

What we definitely see is that because of the sudden popping out of the Pop Tarts amidst the deathly silence, Butch gets scared and the gun fires off getting Vincent Vega accidentally shot. Jules's words ring true.

Mia of Pulp Fiction and The Bride in Kill Bill

Uma Thurman plays both Mia and The Bride.

BRIDE(KILL BILL): I'm the deadliest woman in the world - but right now, I'm just scared shitless about my baby!

MIA(PULP FICTION): The character I played, Raven McCoy, her background was she was raised by circus performers. So she grew up doing a knife act. According to the show, she was the deadliest woman in the world with a knife.

See, in both the movies she has something to do with being the deadliest woman in the world.

The Vega Brothers vs Harvey Keitel

It is universally known that Vincent Vega of Pulp Fiction and Vic Vega(Mr. Blonde) of Reservoir Dogs are brothers. Harvey Keitel plays Winston Wolfe in The Fiction and Mr. White in Reservoir Dogs. The Vega Brothers, I say, have a knack of getting into trouble with/pissing off Harvey Keitel. Just check out the conversations below and you will know what I mean. And the Keitel characters react almost similarly in both the instances. Smiles.

Reservoir Dogs:
MR. BLONDE: You gonna bark all day, little doggie, or are you gonna bite?
MR. WHITE: What was that? I'm sorry, I didn't catch it. Would you repeat it?
MR. BLONDE: (slowly)I said: "Are you gonna bark allday, dog, or are you gonna bite."
MR. PINK: Both of you two assholes knock it the fuck off and calm down!
MR. WHITE(to Mr. Blonde): So you wanna git bit, huh?

Pulp Fiction:

THE WOLF: Good. What I need you two fellas to do is take those cleaning products and clean the inside of the car. And I'm talkin' fast, fast, fast. You need to go in the backseat, scoop up all those little pieces of brain and skull. Get it out of there. Wipe down the upholstery...
The Wolf and Jimmie turn, heading for the bedroom, leaving Vincent and Jules standing in the kitchen.
VINCENT: (calling after him) A "please" would be nice.
The Wolf stops and turns around.
THE WOLF: Come again?
VINCENT: I said a "please" would be nice.
The Wolf takes a step toward him.
THE WOLF: Set is straight, Buster. I'm not here to say "please." I'm here to tell you want to do. And if self-preservation is an instinct you possess, you better fuckin' do it and do it quick. I'm here to help. If my help's not appreciated, lotsa luck gentlemen.

Do you see it!!

Vincent Vega

Vincent Vega turns out to be a shrewd chap who somehow has the uncanny knack of courting trouble and each time he lands in a sticky situation, he tries to palm it off to someone else. Here are the couple of instances that act as evidence to this observation.

1. Vincent is the guy who accidentally shoots that kid Marvin sitting in the backseat of the car and he conveniently palms it off to Jules, cleaning the backseat at Jimmy's place. See what Jules has to say about it:

Jules: In fact, what the fuck am I doin' in the back? You're the motherfucker should be on brain detail. We're tradin'. I'm washin' windows and you're pickin' up this nigger's skull.

2. Mia is O.D.ing at Lance's house and Lance prepares the adrinaline shot. The automatic thing that our cunning Vincent does is to encourage Lance to give her the shot. Here's how the conversation goes:

VINCENT: You're gonna give her the shot.
LANCE: No, you're gonna give her the shot.
VINCENT: I've never does this before.
LANCE: I've never does this before either, and I ain't starting now. You brought 'er here, that means you give her the shot. The day I bring an O.D.ing bitch to your place, then I gotta give her the shot.

Ofcourse, as you see, in both the cases Jules and Lance refuse to be Vincent's fools.

Here's another case in point. When Lance refuses to allow the overdosed Mia into his house, here's how Vincent threatens him.

LANCE: Are you deaf? You're not bringin' that fucked up bitch in my house!
VINCENT: This fucked up bitch is Marsellus Wallace's wife. Now if she fuckin' croaks on me, I'm a grease spot. But before he turns me into a bar soap, I'm gonna be forced to tell 'im about how you coulda saved her life, but instead you let her die on your front lawn.

See how he is again preparing himself to implicate Lance in case of a future eventuality.

Interesting character, what?

Here ends my labour of love. Thank you for your patient reading. What do you think? Tell me.

Miracle at the Brit Oval on Day 5

Extract from the movie Pulp Fiction

FOURTH MAN:    Die...die...die...die...!

DOLLY INTO Fourth Man, same as before.

He SCREAM until he's dry firing.  Then a look of confusion crosses his face.

TWO SHOT - JULES AND VINCENT standing next to each other, unharmed. Amazing as it seems, none of the Fourth Man's shots appear to have hit anybody. Jules and Vincent exchange looks like, "Are we hit?"  They're as confused at the shooter.  After looking at each other, they bring their looks up to the Fourth Man.

FOURTH MAN
I don't understand --

The Fourth Man is taken out of the scenario by the two men's bullets who, unlike his, HIT their marks.  He drops DEAD. The two men lower their guns.  Jules, obviously shaken, sits down in a chair. Vincent, after a moment of respect, shrugs it off.  Then heads toward Marvin in the corner.

VINCENT: Why the f*** didn't you tell us about that guy in the bathroom? Slip your mind? Forget he was in there with a goddamn hand cannon?

JULES: (to himself) We should be f*****' dead right now. (pause) Did you see that gun he fired at us?  It was bigger than him.

VINCENT: .357.

JULES: We should be f*****' dead!

VINCENT: Yeah, we were lucky.

Jules rises, moving toward Vincent.

JULES: That shit wasn't luck. That shit was somethin' else.

Vincent prepares to leave.

VINCENT: Yeah, maybe.

JULES: That was...divine intervention. You know what divine intervention is?

VINCENT: Yeah, I think so. That means God came down from Heaven and stopped the bullets.

JULES: Yeah, man, that's what is means.That's exactly what it means! God came down from Heaven and stopped the bullets.

VINCENT: I think we should be going now.

JULES: Don't do that!  Don't you f*****' do that! Don't blow this shit off! What just happened was a f*****' miracle!

VINCENT: Chill the f*** out, Jules, this shit happens.

JULES: Wrong, wrong, this shit doesn't just happen.

VINCENT: Do you wanna continue this theological discussion in the car, or at the jailhouse with the cops?

JULES: We should be f*****' dead now, my friend! We just witnessed a miracle, and I want you to f*****' acknowledge it!

VINCENT: Okay man, it was a miracle, can we leave now?

Okay, so from where does the last test of the Ashes being played at Oval fit into the current scheme of things? On the 5th day of the match, when the score was 65 for the loss of 1 wicket in 21.4 overs, the run rate was 3.00 runs per over and the economy rate of all the bowlers also happened to be 3.00. That - here you have to follow me closely, I want you to acknowledge - is a miracle. I insist that God came down from Heaven and made a score look like that. And of all the people in the world, it had to be spotted by me.

Just observe the Scorecard attached (Courtesy: Rediff.com) closely and you will know what I am talking about.