7. Pulp Fiction
Quentin Tarantino never fails to deliver interesting characters. His carefully constructed narratives allow for texture and richness to creep in, colouring his cast with insightful details. In many ways, his characters become more interesting when on the wrong side of the law. Much is written of Tarantino's crackling dialogue, but the devil really is in the details - take Vincent Vega (John Travolta) in
Pulp Fiction: there's lots of glimpses into his world-view, thanks to his rambling details concerning European burgers, foot massages or prestige milkshakes - but we also get to see his private heroin ritual, his food preferences ('Bacon tastes gooood. Pork chops taste gooood'), even what he reads on the toilet (it's Modesty Blaise if you really have to know). Other players demonstrate hidden depths.Thanks to a clever dream sequence, Butch (Bruce Willis) reveals a subconscious, pathological need to put himself into harms way. Vincent's partner-in-crime, Jules, has a life-changing moment of clarity. Mia Wallace (Uma Thurman) confesses her earlier life as a failed actress in an uncommissioned TV show, as well as a gossipy, childlike sense of mischief. Behind the scenes, Mia's husband lurks like a faceless shadow; he's a vicious kingpin with a reach that touches every character, but a scene exposing Marcellus in the most vulnerable terms singles him out as pick of the bunch for the purposes of this list. Seen briefly from behind, Marcellus has his trousers around his ankles; he's tied up and has been subjected to a brutal rape by a pair of rednecks. Butch is the unlikely rescuer, having previously ripped off Marcellus, then attempted to kill him. But as we learned, Butch is a because-of-the-principles kind of guy. He's not going to leave Marcellus like that. A brief, glorious and bloody act of vengeance follows. One of the rednecks is still alive - but he won't be for long. Butch wants to leave Marcellus to it, but there's some unfinished business between them. Thankfully, hubris gets the better of Marcellus. He's going to let Butch go, with a couple of conditions. 'Don't tell nobody about this,' demands the humiliated Marcellus. 'This shit is between me, you, and Mr. Soon-To-Be-Living-The-Rest-Of-His-Shortass-Life-In-Agonizing-Pain Rapist here. It ain't nobody else's business.' 'Deal,' says Butch. And who wouldn't?