The Gold Watch Story is Bogus

So I have a theory.



The Gold Watch, that is, the watch itself, is given to Butch by Christopher Walken. Keep that in mind, of all people, Christopher Walken.



As he’s telling the story to young Butch, I couldn’t help but notice a discrepancy. . .

[quote]And in that can it stayed ’til your grandfather Dane Coolidge was called upon by his country to go overseas and fight the Germans once again.



This time they called it World War Two. Your great-granddaddy gave it to your granddad for good luck. Unfortunately, Dane’s luck wasn’t as good as his old man’s. Your granddad was a Marine and he was killed with all the other Marines at the battle of Wake Island. Your granddad was facing death and he knew it. None of the other boys had any illusions about ever leavin’ that island alive. So three days before the Japanese took the island, your 22-year old grandfather asked a gunner on an Air Force transport named Winocki, a man he had never met before in his life, to deliver to his infant son, who he had never seen in the flesh, his gold watch. [/quote]

Sent to fight the Germans, killed by the Japanese.



May be easy to overlook. You could say, maybe he did a tour in Europe AND the Pacific.



I think Quentin is making a very subtle hint that the gold watch is bull****. The absurdity of the story itself makes it easy enough to call a joke, and it would be fitting of QT style to render everything that happens as a result of the watch completely pointless.



He’s too good of a director and writer to overlook something like that in his own work. It’s intentional.



Any thoughts???

Watch and listen to it again.

I don’t think it’s a discrepancy. The Japanese really did take Wake Island and it’s no secret that the battle in Europe is what is remembered. Someone like Koons would likely say “Germans” when referring to going to war at that time, seeing as the battle in Europe was more prominent.

Never noticed it, but I don’t think the story is so outlandish as to not have happened in QT’s universe. Stranger things have happened, namely twenty minutes later when a couple of rednecks try to hide their “watches” in Butch the third.

It could be that he referred to the Germans as they were the main protaganists, who instigated the war. The Japanese were allies.



For example if he was off to fight in Italy would he have said “off to fight the Italians”? I’m not so sure.

[quote=“Angel”]I don’t think it’s a discrepancy. The Japanese really did take Wake Island and it’s no secret that the battle in Europe is what is remembered. Someone like Koons would likely say “Germans” when referring to going to war at that time, seeing as the battle in Europe was more prominent.[/quote]
Agree, I think most would likely say “Germans” when referring to going to war at that time. Still the story of the gold watch is classic QT.