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This is one of my favorite scenes in any movie. It’s the diner confrontation at the end of 1994’s “Pulp Fiction.” The film ends with a fateful encounter between a diner patron and a pair of robbers, set in 2024.End of Yuma County” begins.

The unnamed protagonist, credited simply as “Knife Salesman,” finds himself stranded in a remote desert diner out of gas and unexpectedly meets a pair of bank robbers on the run. You get caught up in a tense hostage situation with a small group of fellow customers. And the dinner staff.

One of Pulp Fiction’s many episodes is expanded here into a full 90-minute caper, marking the debut feature of writer/director Francis Galluppi. It’s an exercise in controlled tension, starting as a slow frenzy, bubbling into a full-on Mexican standoff, and culminating in a carefully choreographed, relentlessly explosive conclusion.

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Bringing up comparisons to “Pulp Fiction” certainly doesn’t do “Yuma County’s Last Stop” much of a favor. While there are surface-level similarities, it lacks some of the more distinctive qualities of Quentin Tarantino’s work. For example, Galluppi packs the soundtrack with a collection of vintage 1960s songs, which he uses in diegetic representations to allude to the film’s era, along with set design and costumes.

Also going for a Tarantino-esque effect, Galluppi’s character aims for a distinctive yet instantly readable and iconic look, best illustrated by the smaller “Bigfoot for President” T-shirt. But the underlying characterization and accompanying dialogue are relatively modest. Compared to Tarantino’s dedication to elaborate, expansive wordplay, “Yuma County Endpoint” is lean and, as mentioned above, focuses most on plot mechanics and managing mounting tension. Our unnamed protagonist is the only character with so much depth and complexity, progressing beyond his archetypes and functioning within the clockwork carnage waiting for his cue.

“Yuma” also has echoes of the Coen brothers, masters of bloody country crime stories featuring eccentric con men and cops, from “Fargo” to “No Country for Old Men.” Maybe. For this score, Galluppi hasn’t always perfected the tonal balance that director Coen honed so finely in his films, using his trademark dark comedy formula in which tragic violence and comic absurdity can coexist. I am. There are moments of levity and ridiculousness in Yuma County’s Last Stop and moments of brutal sadness, but the film taught me how to navigate those extremes and figure out how to emotionally engage. sometimes left me feeling uneasy.

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While these similarities sound harsh, “End of Yuma County” has a lot to appreciate on its own merits. The film is an eye-catching, well-paced film that makes effective use of its limited geography and crisp runtime.

Yes, it’s clear that Galluppi is influenced by pioneers like Tarantino and the Coen brothers, and depending on your level of taste for these filmmakers, you may or may not be interested in seeing “Yuma.” Then you decide what you think when you see it. But just as much of the fun of this movie comes from anticipating what happens next in a country diner, so too does discovering the work of young, emerging filmmakers and imagining what the future holds. There is also joy.

In that regard, it’s perhaps fitting that I was most intrigued by The End of Yuma County when the story began to venture out of the diner and into the wide horizons of the surrounding desert. I don’t know. What happens to our protagonist from there may or may not surprise you depending on your experience with stories like this, but here Galluppi expects it. Reportedly, they might head to a cabin in the woods nextthere are still many surprises waiting for you.

End of Yuma County is playing in select theaters and available for purchase or rental through digital media platforms.

This article was first published The good, the bad, and the elegythe Daily Yonder email newsletter, focuses on the best and worst of rural media, entertainment and culture. Reviews, recommendations, reflections, and more will be posted every other Thursday. Join our mailing list now to have future editions delivered straight to your inbox.

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