10 Movie Characters Who Knew When To Quit (But Didn't)

Though Pulp Fiction's Butch Coolidge (Bruce Willis) survives the events of the movie in one piece, it's only barely, and only after he squanders two solid opportunities to hang it up and get the hell out of dodge.

First and foremost, after betraying Marsellus Wallace (Ving Rhames) by refusing to throw his boxing match, Butch prepares to skip town with his girlfriend Fabienne (Maria de Medeiros).

However, when Fabienne forgets to pack his precious heirloom watch for their escape, he returns to their apartment, knowing full well that Wallace's men will be looking for them.

Butch gets the watch, but ends up having to murder Vincent Vega (John Travolta), who is waiting at his apartment to kill him.

With a clean getaway in sight, Butch also crosses paths with Wallace on the drive back to Fabienne, resulting in the pair battling their way into a pawn shop, where they're taken hostage by the rapist proprietors.

Butch eventually manages to escape, but rather than cutting loose as fast as possible, his scraps of a conscience come into play, prompting him to return to the pawn shop's creepy basement and rescue Wallace.

Granted, this action results in Wallace calling things square - on the condition that Butch leaves Los Angeles and never returns - but had Butch put his sentimentality aside and just booked it out of town without his damn watch, he could've avoided two near-death experiences.