Tag Archives: Robert De Niro

[Film: The King of Comedy, Martin Scorsese, 1982]
Schmuck for a Lifetime:

Ambiguity, Fantasy, and Narrative Art in Martin Scorsese’s The King of Comedy

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Introduction:

The King of Comedy—a financial-failure-turned-cult-classic about an obsessive aspiring stand-up comic who decides he is owed an appearance on the late night talk show hosted by his idol—represents a uniquely excellent demonstration of the power of ambiguity in art, and of the way that ambiguity, uncertainty, and indirectness are in fact fundamental attributes of art in general, and narrative art in particular. I’ll be drawing once again on my background in literary theory here, to pursue this angle.

Specifically, where I intend to focus is on the sequences in which protagonist Rupert Pupkin engages in elaborate role-playing and daydreaming regarding future social and professional events, and on the structural, narratological consequences that the presentation of those sequences has for the film’s ending.

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[Film: The King of Comedy, Martin Scorsese, 1982]
Schmuck for a Lifetime:

Ambiguity, Fantasy, and Narrative Art in Martin Scorsese’s The King of Comedy

 was last modified: August 13th, 2026 by Daniel Podgorski

[Film: Jackie Brown, Quentin Tarantino, 1997]
Tarantino’s Odd Film Out:

The Uniqueness of Quentin Tarantino’s Jackie Brown

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Introduction:

Quentin Tarantino Sketch by M.R.P. - Jackie Brown - unique

Caricature Sketch by M.R.P.

Just like this week’s Mid-Week Mission, this will be a light recommendation to follow last week’s heavier entry (in the Theater’s case, last week was a criticism of the inconsistent philosophy of Slumdog Millionaire). And the film which I would like to recommend is Quentin Tarantino’s Jackie Brown.

Jackie Brown is certainly one of the two or three least viewed works in Tarantino’s catalogue, and it’s not hard to see why. Tarantino followed up two extremely violent dramas full of fast, aggressive dialogue with a slow-paced, traditionally structured heist movie. Jackie Brown centers on a stalwart stewardess and a cautious clerk, while relegating Robert De Niro and Samuel L. Jackson to roles as sleazy, unlikeable criminals.

In short, the movie was not at all what the audience was expecting, and was soon over-shadowed by the grandeur and gratuitousness of Kill Bill. But this is a film every bit as entertaining as his others, and totally unique in his oeuvre for many reasons, explored below.

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[Film: Jackie Brown, Quentin Tarantino, 1997]
Tarantino’s Odd Film Out:

The Uniqueness of Quentin Tarantino’s Jackie Brown

 was last modified: October 10th, 2022 by Daniel Podgorski