Pulp Fiction at the Garden Theatre

As much as I love Tarantino films, I've only seen two on the big screen: Death Proof and Inglourious Basterds.  I am truly ashamed of myself because I should've snuck into the theater back in high school to see Kill Bill.  But last night, I redeemed myself of this atrocity by rewatching his seminal classic on the silver screen: Pulp Fiction (music cue Miserlou).

I was fortunate enough to see Pulp Fiction on the big screen in downtown Winter Garden, Florida.  I've never visited the area, but it's definitely a cool place to hangout.  Plotted with cobble stone bricks, the area is surrounded with mom and pop shops including a book store, a bicycle shop, and even a railroad museum.  And there's plenty of restaurants to eat from whether it's Thai food or ice cream.  But as much as I enjoyed the laid-back atmosphere, the main reason I came to Winter Garden was to visit the Garden Theatre. 

Usually a stage for concerts , dances, and plays, the Garden Theatre puts up a large screen to play cult films over the summer.  With only one screen, an awesome sound system, and comfortable seats, the Garden Theatre is much nicer than your dingy grindhouse. 

Other than the obvious, I saw Pulp Fiction in theatre to experience the audience reaction.  With tons of laughter between Vincent and Jule's conservations (and even at Mia's Fox Force Five Joke) and a rolling applause at the final credits, this viewing  reaffirmed the power of Tarantino's dialogue. In addition to the laughter, most notable reactions were:

• OD'ing Mia:  Based on the reaction of the crowd, I believe Mia OD'ing was the most tense moment of the movie.  As Vincent is about to plunge a needle into Mia's heart with an adrenaline shot, almost everyone covered their eyes in suspense and fear.

• The Pawn Shop:  When Butch and Marcellus were bound and gagged, there was a Seven moment as someone in the theatre kept on saying "What's in the box" as the cage holding the gimp was shown.  Once the box was opened and the gimp was revealed, there were multiple gasps of "WTF."  After Butch freed himself while Marcellus was being raped, there was a sigh of disappointment when he reaches the pawnshop door and decides not to exit.  However, the disappointment was overshadowed with cheer as Butch selects the samurai sword over the hammer, baseball bat, and chainsaw.

Last night, I was also able to conduct a study in which I would like to call the "Pulp Fiction Experiment."  I propose, as long as you're not a psycho ultra-conservative Christian, you will enjoy Pulp Fiction.  So I brought a friend who has never seen the film as my test subject.  I'm sad to admit, but I was a little afraid she would disprove my theory because she absolutely hates horror films .  Nonetheless, my hypothesis was proven to be correct as she highly enjoyed the film.  So thanks for coming chica!!!

Although they won't be playing anymore Tarantino films this summer, be sure to check out the Garden Theatre if you're in the Winter Garden area.  For only a five dollar admission, you can't beat the deal if you're a fan of film.  You can look up their summer programming here: http://gardentheatre.org/summermovies/index.html