Mike Hodges’
Italy-set dark comedy “Pulp” is the tale of a crime writer (Michael Caine) who
fancies himself a gangster and a blowhard retired actor (Mickey Rooney) who was
once that gangster. The plot: Novelist Mickey King gets hired to ghost write the
memoirs of Rooney’s mobster, and all that pulp fiction that bubbles out of
King’s pointy head becomes real with guns, bombs, and bodies. Hodges (“Flash Gordon,” a long-time guilty pleasure favorite) starts strong with a free-spirit
slapstick vibe that screams anything goes, but that pitch comes with a price.
Vital exposition is endlessly told, rarely shown, by Caine, and when Rooney
exits, “Pulp” loses its punch. By the finale, set on a beach and truly unexplainable,
nothing seems worth caring about. As that’s how King operates, maybe it’s on
purpose, and I’m just not hip to the joke. Caine is marvelous, making a joke of
his fantastic accent and lady-killer charisma. But I loved Rooney. I prefer him
gruff, here and in “Requiem for a Heavyweight.” (He’s damn funny, too.) This
tiny guy blowing fury, tearing down meat-hook-hands guys 6 foot 5? It’s great
stuff. B
Friday, February 7, 2014
Pulp (1972)
Labels:
1972,
comedy,
crime,
finale,
Italy,
mafia,
Michael Caine,
Mickey Rooney,
Mike Hodges,
novelist,
Pulp,
writer
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