When I first saw this movie, I was disappointed. Largely because I had read Rum Punch and almost immediately saw that story here. Tarrantino cut out about half the characters and dropped a small handful of subplots. This was irritating.

Recent rewatches have changed my mind. The book, if it had been transferred verbatim to the screen, would have been a jumbled mess.

He managed to boil it down to the essential plot lines, making it sharper and faster moving. It provides a much better experience than some of his more indulgent three hour films he made later in his career. I recommend that others who found this unsatisfying to give it a second look.