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The Origins of Fiction
Topics: pulp fiction, Quentin Tarantino, Bande à Part, Band of Outsiders, Godard, New Wave Cinema, French, france, A Band Apart, Lawrence Bender, film noir, Bakotopia
Posted by Weltall Tue Jul 22, 2008 16:12:22 PDT
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The Origins of Fiction

By Jason Alvidrez, Bakotopia.com contributor

“Bad Mother F***er.”

What film fan hasn’t wanted to put that phrase on their wallet? Were you dying to taste a Big Kahuna Burger? And how many times have you and your friends discussed the influence of the metric system on the McDonald’s menu in Amsterdam?

If you haven’t done any of these things, then chances are you haven’t seen Quentin Tarantino’s “Pulp Fiction.” Its distorted narrative and pragmatic dialogue changed filmmaking in the ’90s. It was a film that made people talk, which is the only hope for a movie made outside of Hollywood. “Pulp Fiction” has become part of our culture - we reference it, we make drinking games surrounding it, and filmmakers hope that one day they can make a film just as cool.



When we watch a film, we hardly ponder the origins or influences of what we are witnessing on the screen. While we reference Tarantino, we do not fully recognize allusions he makes to filmmakers he looked up too, much like how some of us view Quentin himself. “Pulp Fiction” is an ode to films and filmmakers of the past, most of which have been forgotten or are never heard of.



The influence of the French New Wave film movement of the 1960s can be seen in films of contemporary directors like Quentin Tarantino, Michel Gondry, Wes Anderson, and David Fincher. The most radical filmmaker of this cinematic movement was Jean-Luc Godard, whose 1964 film “Bande à Part (Band of Outsiders)” is paralleled in the most celebrated moments of “Pulp Fiction.”

Perhaps the most famous scene in “Fiction” is John Travolta and Uma Thurman’s dinner at Jack Rabbit Slim’s. Conversely, a very similar scene occurs in a diner in Godard’s gangster classic starring his then-wife Anna Karina and male leads Claude Brasseur and Sami Frey as two wannabe gangsters-comparable to the gangsters in Pulp Fiction.



One of the most memorable moments in the film is a minute of silence that Franz (Frey) calls for. What proceeds is no music, no sound effects, no words, literal silence, ending after 37 seconds when Franz claims “that’s enough for me.”



Jump 30 years later to Mia Wallace (Thurman’s character in “Pulp Fiction”) claiming that you have found someone special when you can have a moment of silence and two people can “shut the f*** up” shortly following a break in her and Vincent Vega’s (Travolta’s character) conversation. Both scenes contain an acknowledged silence.

Godard’s being more ostentatious as per his style, and Tarantino’s being much more natural. But one cannot dismiss the connection between these two moments and their importance.

Later in “Fiction,” Wallace and Vega perform one of the most memorable dances in recent film history - a simple twist to “You Never Can Tell” by Chuck Berry. We all know the song, the moves, and the consequences of this moment. The same diner scene in “Outsiders” also leads to a dance called “the Madison,” involving all three leads in a repetitive snap-step motion. It is a very catchy and mesmerizing action.

Godard interrupts the action to narrate each characters thoughts and ideas while performing the Madison, an existential element, very common in Godard’s cinema.

While we all love the twist, I challenge you to view “Band of Outsiders” if you have never seen it. Not only will you be captivated by the Madison, but also by Jean-Luc Godard’s vision that epitomizes the French New Wave style, a movement that changed cinema in the 1960s, the same way Tarantino revitalized film in the 1990s.

“Band of Outsiders” is available through the excellent Criterion Collection DVD series.

Other recommended New Wave filmmakers who have greatly influenced the cinema of today include François Truffaut, Éric Rohmer, Alain Resnais, and Jean-Pierre Melville.

Did you know?
Director Quentin Tarantino and “Pulp Fiction” producer Lawrence Bender created a production company called A Band Apart inspired by Godard’s film.

Story also printed in Bakotopia magazine, issue 33, 7-24-08

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Comment From: matt

Band of Outsiders is in my Netflix queue! Comment From: Weltall

sweet Matt! You won't be disappointed!