Pulp Fiction

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Pulp Fiction
Directed by	Quentin Tarantino
Produced by	Lawrence Bender
Written by	Quentin Tarantino Roger Avary
Starring	John Travolta Samuel L. Jackson Uma Thurman Harvey Keitel Tim Roth Amanda Plummer Maria de Medeiros Ving Rhames Duane Whitaker Peter Greene Eric Stoltz Rosanna Arquette Steve Buscemi Christopher Walken and Bruce Willis
Cinematography	Andrzej Sekula
Editing by	Sally Menke
Distributed by	Miramax Films (USA Theatrical) Buena Vista Pictures (Non-USA Theatrical & Worldwide Home Video)
Release date(s)	May, 1994 (première at Cannes) October 14th, 1994 October 21, 1994 November 24th, 1994 February 18th, 1995
Running time	154 min. (168 min. deluxe edition)
Country	United States
Language	English
Budget	US$8 million
All Movie Guide profile
IMDb profile

Pulp Fiction is an Academy Award-winning 1994 film directed by Quentin Tarantino, who co-wrote the screenplay with Roger Avary. The film has a fragmented storyline and is known for its eclectic dialogue, heavy arthouse and independent film influences, ironic and campy style, unorthodox camerawork, and numerous pop culture references. Tarantino and Avary won Academy Awards for Best Original Screenplay and the film was nominated for seven Oscars in total, including Best Picture; it also took home the Palme d'Or at the Festival de Cannes.^[1][2] It has been hailed by many as one of the greatest films of all time.

The plot, in keeping with most other Tarantino works, runs in nonlinear order. The unconventional structure of the movie is an example of a so-called postmodernist film. The film's title refers to the pulp magazines popular during the mid–20th century, known for their strongly graphic nature. Much of the film's dialogue and many of its scenes are based on other works of "pulp" fiction, that is to say bits of other, less acclaimed, works.

The film had a significant impact on the careers of many of its cast members. It provided a breakthrough role for Samuel L. Jackson, who became an international star in a part Tarantino wrote especially for him.^[3] It revived the fortunes of John Travolta, whose career was slumping at the time, and allowed Bruce Willis to move away from the action hero reputation he had gained through films such as Die Hard. It raised the profile of Uma Thurman and led to greater recognition for character actors such as Ving Rhames. Eric Stoltz was also acclaimed for his role as Lance, the bathrobe-clad heroin dealer.

[edit] Plot

Pulp Fiction is divided into six distinct but interrelated stories where a boxer, two hitmen and a crime boss meet their fates in a course of two days; although each story recounts a separate incident, they share some common characters. As is common in Tarantino's films, they are not arranged in chronological order. The use of a non-linear structure is one element of the film which identifies it as part of the neo-noir tradition.^{[citation needed]} The narrative structure as a whole is nearly circular, as the final scene overlaps and resolves the interrupted first scene.^[4]

Essentially a black comedy directed in a highly stylised manner and employing many pop culture references, Pulp Fiction joins the intersecting storylines of Los Angeles gangsters, fringe characters, petty thieves, and a mysterious attaché case. In keeping with Quentin Tarantino's directorial trademark of nonlinear story telling, Pulp Fiction is written out of sequence, telling several stories concurrently that intersect as the film progresses.^[5]

Pulp Fiction is strongly character driven, with considerable screen time devoted to conversations and monologues, often remarkably eloquent, that reveal the characters' senses of humor, philosophical perspectives, and secret histories. The film starts out with a hold-up in a restaurant staged by armed entrepreneurs "Pumpkin" and "Honey Bunny," then picks up the stories of mob hitmen Vincent Vega and Jules Winfield, Mia and Marsellus Wallace, prizefighter Butch Coolidge, and finally returns to where it began, in the restaurant, where Vincent and Jules stop for a bite, foil the hold-up, and set the robbers on a more righteous path.

Small time crooks "Pumpkin" (Tim Roth) and "Honey Bunny" (Amanda Plummer) decide to rob the diner in which they are eating after realising that they could make more money from customers - by confiscating wallets and purses - than from the cash register, as they had discovered after their last liquor store heist. They draw the guns and tell everyone in the restaurant to keep it cool as they are being robbed and if any of them moves, they'll be shot. The opening credits roll.

[edit] Introduction

John Travolta (left) and Samuel L. Jackson as Vincent Vega and Jules Winnfield, respectively. Here, they are depicted in Tarantino's signature trunk shot.

Hitmen Jules Winnfield (Samuel L. Jackson) and Vincent Vega (John Travolta) head to a Los Angeles apartment to retrieve a briefcase for their boss, gangster Marsellus Wallace (Ving Rhames). On the way to the apartment, they discuss the differences between American and European culture, specifically the 'coffee shops' in Amsterdam, an euphemism for hash bars, and what McDonald's Quarter Pounder with Cheese is called in France: "Royale (with) Cheese," because in Europe the metric system is used for measurements, instead of the English system used in the US. They also talk about how Mia Wallace acted in a TV pilot that never went anywhere and that Marsellus Wallace threw a character named Antwan Rockamora ("Tony Rocky Horror") off of a balcony for allegedly giving her a foot massage. Vincent goes on to say that "Rocky Horror" had it coming if he was messing with Marsellus' wife; Jules, on the other hand, thinks Marsellus overreacted because foot massages have nothing to do with sex, contrary to what Vincent seems to imply. In Jules' opinion, the two acts are "not in the same ballpark, the same league or even the same sport." When Jules asks Vincent why he is so interested in Mia, Vincent says he was asked by Marsellus to take her out and show her a good time while Marsellus is in Florida on business.

They enter an apartment and meet a group of men who do not seem to be expecting them, as they are in the middle of eating breakfast. Jules asks one of them, Brett, (Frank Whaley) where they got the breakfast from, and Brett says that they got it from "Big Kahuna Burgers" (a fictional franchise created by Tarantino to use in his films to avoid product placement). Jules fills Brett in on the conversation he and Vincent had earlier about quarter pounders in France, then asks another fellow named Roger to whom he refers as Flock of Seagulls if he knows why they are there. He explains that what they want is in the cupboard under the sink. Vincent searches the indicated area. He finds a case and opens it by using the combination "666." Once the case is opened a bright light glows from the inside, but the contents are not revealed. Jules then asks Vincent: "Are we happy?" to which Vince replies affirmatively. Brett, however, tries to apologize to them for his trickery and explains that his crew had the 'best of intentions". At first, Jules appears to be calm, but while Brett is trying to explain the situation, Jules shoots Roger, killing him. He then sarcastically apologizes for breaking Brett's concentration and asks him to describe Marsellus Wallace. Brett is in a state of shock and repeatedly replies "what?" to Jules' inquires. Jules launches an angry tirade, telling Brett that "'what' ain't no country I ever heard of" and asking if they speak English there. Finally, he dares Brett to say what again, intimating that something bad will happen if he does. Brett then goes on to describe Marsellus as black and bald, but once Jules asks if he looks like "a bitch", Brett answers "what?" once more, this time out of genuine confusion. Jules shoots him in the shoulder and repeats the question. Brett says no; Jules then asks him why is he trying to fuck Marsellus like a bitch. Brett denies it, but Jules goes on to say the only person who can do that is Mrs. Wallace. As Jules then recites a Bible verse, Vincent aims his gun at Brett. Jules and Vincent's witty and philosophical banter is a striking juxtaposition against the scene's end, in which they kill Brett and his cohorts in a dramatic fashion, after (mis)quoting the Bible, sparing only their informant, Marvin (Phil LaMarr).

[edit] Vincent Vega & Marsellus Wallace's Wife

Uma Thurman as Mia Wallace.

Aging prizefighter Butch Coolidge (Bruce Willis) accepts a large sum of money from Marsellus, agreeing to "take a dive" in the fifth round of his upcoming match. Marsellus, who is only seen from behind wearing a band-aid on the back of his neck explains to Butch that on the night of the fight he "might feel a slight sting," but that's only pride messing with his head. As he accepts the money, Jules and Vincent enter the nightclub where the transaction is taking place; wearing some unconventional outfits (they both wear shorts, t-shirts and slippers as if they were just going to a volleyball game at the beach). They stop for a small chat with Paul the bartender, who asks Vincent about the date with Mia while Jules goes to the bathroom. Butch approaches the counter and asks for a pack of Red Apples Cigarettes (again, a fictional brand used also in Kill Bill). He and Vincent share a look and he asks; "Lookin' at somethin', friend?" Vincent replies: "I ain't your friend, palooka! This is a reference to the comic strip "Joe Palooka" which later turned into a film and also to the play "The Palooka" by Tennesse Williams: all centered in the world of boxing. Vincent then is called by Marsellus and Butch leaves the establishment.

Later, Vincent pays a visit to his local, bathrobe-wearing drug dealer Lance (Eric Stoltz) while learning about the pleasures of body piercing from Lance's wife Jody (Rosanna Arquette). Lance calls Vincent to his "office" and describes his latest merchandise: two drugs from Mexico sold at friendly prices and a more expensive "madman" drug from Germany, which is a little more expensive; Lance, however, assures Vincent that once he shoots it, he will know where the extra money went. Vincent then reminds Lance that he just came back from Amsterdam, to which Lance replies that he can take a Pepsi challenge with any drug from there. Vincent dismisses his reply as a bold statment, but agrees to buy the more expensive "madman" merchandise and if it is as good as it sounds, he will come back and get more. Once Vincent purchases the drugs, he is asked about his Malibu. He gets upset since he had the vehicle stored for the three years that he was away and had been keyed the first time he took it out of storage and on how much he wishes he could catch the person who did it; which he says it would have been worthy for whoever did it just so he could catch it. They make the transaction and Vince asks if it's okay to shoot it right there and then, to which Lance answers: "Mi casa es su casa!"

At Marsellus Wallace's request, Vincent escorts Mrs. Wallace, Mia (Uma Thurman), to Jack Rabbit Slim's, a slick 1950s-themed restaurant with look-alikes of the decade's top pop culture icons as staff, such as Marilyn Monroe, James Dean, Ricky Nelson (who is performing on stage as they walk in) and Mamie Van Doren (who is still alive). He is reluctant at first, but she convinces him by saying that an Elvis man should love it (in a deleted scene, she asks him if he is an Elvis or Beatles man) and also tells him not to be a square (she creates a square with her index finger, which could also be another relation to Kill Bill as Uma Thurman's character The Bride makes the same hand gesture.) Once inside, they are served by a Buddy Holly look-alike (Steve Buscemi, appearing in a cameo role.) Mia orders a five dollar shake and, after Vincent and Mia argue about whether any milkshake could be worth five dollars, regardless of its taste, Mia recounts her experience as an actress in a failed television pilot, "Fox Force Five." Mia's character, Raven McCoy, was a knife expert raised by circus performers who knew "a zillion old jokes." (There could also be an unspoken relation to Kill Bill's "Deadly Viper Assassination Squad", as they both had five members, including a blonde, black and Asian assassin.) Vincent asks to hear her joke, but she refuses, saying it's too corny and he wouldn't laugh. The drinks arrive, and Vincent, while still dubious as to whether the milkshake is worth five dollars, admits that its "pretty fucking good." For a moment, they share what Mia calls an "comfortable silence" and she tells him she will be going to powder her nose and when she gets back, she wants him to have something to say. He agrees and she leaves the table. As she returns, she asks Vincent if he has something to say. He does, but is reluctant to speak because he doesn't want to offend her. She is intrigued by the fact that he might really have something to say, but warns him that she doesn't know what he is going to ask so she could naturally be offended; but it's more fun when you don't really have permission to say something. He eventually agrees and asks her what she thought about what happened to Antwan "Rocky Horror". Her first reply is that he "fell out of a window". Vincent says that it is one way to explain but another way is that he was thrown out by Marsellus because of her. She asks why she would be the reason for that. Vincent says because "Rocky Horror" gave her a foot massage. Mia dismisses the idea as being totally ridiculous since the only contact he ever had with her was when he shook her hand at her wedding, and insists that the only people that know why Rocky Horror was thrown out of a window are him and Marsellus. She then makes fun of Vincent and his friends for their gossip, comparing them to a sewing circle.

A twist contest is then announced by an Ed Sullivan impersonator. Mia decides to enter it. Vincent refuses, but she reminds him his orders are to take her out and show her a good time. He then agrees. After winning the trophy from the twist contest, they return to the Wallace house where Mia finds Vincent's stash of heroin in the pocket of his coat. Mistaking it for cocaine (presumably because it is in a baggie, the traditional container for cocaine; heroin is usually carried in a balloon, which Lance had just run out of), she snorts it and overdoses. Vincent, in the meantime, is in the bathroom, weighing his loyalty for Marsellus against his desire to sleep with Mia. When Vincent, now resolved to have one drink and then leave, returns and finds her passed out on the floor, he rushes her to Lance for help. Lance (who is sitting at home watching The Three Stooges) hears the telephone but decides to ignore it until his wife tells him to answer since she thought he told his customers not to call so late; which is exactly what he is about to do. Vince gives him the news, but he does not want to have anything to do with this situation as it is 1:30 in the morning and, moreover, he does not want to be in any way responsible for having a woman die from a drug overdose in his house. When Vincent tells him he's on his way to his house, he advises him to accept responsibility for his errors and call a lawyer, then hangs up on him, saying this is just some prank call (presumably because he does not want it to appear as if the conversation was about drugs, should his phone be tapped). However, just after he hangs up, Vincent's car crashes into the lawn and Vincent tells him that if he doesn't help him, he will eventually have to deal with Marsellus. Lance frantically and unsuccesfully looks for a nurse's medical handbook that explains what to do in these types of situations, while Vince attends to Mia. Together, they administer an adrenaline shot to Mia's heart, but the only way to give her the shot is by stabbing the syringe hard enough to pierce Mia's breastplate. Vincent gets a marker to highlight where her heart is, although still not totally sure; They argue about who is going to give her the shot, but Lance ultimately convinces Vincent to do it because Mia overdosed on his drugs. Nervous but determined; he gives Mia the shot after the count of three, instantly reviving her. Lance asks Mia if she's okay to say something. She says: "Something!" Vincent and Lance are relieved, while Jody calls the situation "fucking trippy!" Vincent then takes Mia home, but before the two part ways, they agree not to tell Marsellus about the incident, each fearing personal repercussions from him. She also finally tells him her joke. He says he'd like to hear it but he is too petrified to laugh. She tells him the joke anyways. There are three tomatoes, Papa Tomato, Mama Tomato and Baby Tomato. Baby Tomato drags behind, so Papa Tomato becomes angry and squishes him and says: "Ketchup!" Vincent laughs softly, then turns to go. She says goodbye; as she leaves, he blows her a kiss.

[edit] The Gold Watch

Butch Coolidge (Bruce Willis) in the pawnshop.

There is a flashback in which a young Butch Coolidge (Chandler Lindauer) receives his father's watch from Vietnam veteran Captain Koons (Christopher Walken) while watching Clutch Cargo on the television. Butch's father died in a Vietnam War POW camp and at his dying request, Koons hid the watch in his rectum for two years from the Viet Cong to give to Butch. The gold watch, passed down from father to son since World War I, is of great sentimental value to Butch. He then wakes up from his flashback and gets ready for the fight he is supposed to lose.

Butch wins the bout, accidentally killing his opponent in the process, and flees by taxi, enjoying a cigarette and a short conversation during the ride with a death-obsessed taxi-driver, Esmeralda Villalobos (Angela Jones). In the meantime, Vincent and Paul go to Marsellus. They knock on the door and are received by Mia. Vince asks how she is doing since their encounter and she says she never thanked him for dinner. Paul informs Marsellus that Butch has bailed. Marsellus instructs him to scour the Earth for Butch and that if Butch is in Indochina, he wants "a nigga" to hide in a bowl of rice to "pop a cap in his ass".

Back in the cab, Esmeralda asks Butch how it feels to kill a man. Butch learns for the first time that he killed the other boxer. But now that he knows, he says he still doesn't feel bad about it. They make a stop at a public phone, where Butch calls his bookie and asks how much profit they made from the fight. He is then taken to a hotel where he finds his girlfriend Fabienne (Maria de Medeiros) lying on the bed. They kiss and she asks him if he loves her and if he still wants her to go with him. He answers yes to both queries. She then asks him to perform oral sex on her, which he agrees to do. They then take a shower and practice their Mexican language skills (instead of referring to the country's official language, Spanish). Butch then passes out on the bed.

He awakes the following morning scared, and startles Fabienne, who is watching a motorcycle movie (Nam's Angels, also known as The Losers). He begins to prepare for their departure, but when he discovers she has forgotten to pack the watch, he becomes angry, but is compelled to return to his apartment and retrieve it though Marsellus's men are most likely looking for him. When he arrives at his apartment complex Butch quickly finds the watch, and before he leaves, he pauses to make toaster pastries. Only then does he notice a silenced MAC-10 submachine gun on the kitchen counter. Hearing the toilet flush, Butch readies the gun in time confront a startled Vincent Vega as he exits the bathroom. They stand motionless for a few seconds, until the toaster pops up and Butch pulls the trigger, killing Vincent. Butch decides to leave without the weapon, placing it on a coffee table and cleaning off any fingerprints. He then gets in his car and utters, "that's how you're going to beat them, Butch."^{[citation needed]}

While stopped at a traffic light after leaving the apartment, Butch encounters Marsellus, who is crossing the street with a lunch tray and, doing a double take, notices him. Butch floors it, running over Marsellus and crashing into two other cars at the intersection. After some time has passed, Marsellus is awakened by the bystanders and notices Butch is still in his car, icing a bloody nose due. Marsellus pulls his gun and chases Butch, firing at him while staggering across the street. Marsellus chases Butch into a pawnshop, firing random shots as he struggles to walk, where Butch turns the tables on him and takes away his gun. Butch is about to shoot Marsellus, when the pawnshop owner Maynard (Duane Whitaker) captures them at gunpoint. They are also knocked out unconscious.

Marsellus and Butch tied up in the basement.

Maynard makes a phone call to someone called Zed (Peter Greene). Zed wears a security officer's uniform, but both he and Maynard are sexual predators, and they tie the two captives with red ball gags strapped in their mouths. After they decide to "do" Marsellus first, they take him into the back room (Russell's old room, according to the original script, someone whose identity is never discovered but who can only be assumed to be another unfortunate soul who crossed their path). They take Marsellus to sodomise him, leaving a gimp to watch Butch. Butch breaks free from his bonds and knocks out The Gimp, and is prepared to flee when he hesitates, deciding to save Marsellus. He looks behind the store counter for the perfect weapon to use on his assailants; at first a hammer, then a baseball bat, next a chain saw, and finally a katana sword. He then heads back to the dungeon and opens the door quietly. As Zed is raping Marsellus on a small wooden pommel horse, Butch kills Maynard with the katana from the shop. Zed retreats and wants to pick up his gun on the floor. Butch orders him to pick it up while holding the katana up to his neck, but Marsellus retrieves Maynard's shotgun, telling Butch to step aside and shooting Zed in the groin. Marsellus informs Butch that they are even with respect to the money and botched fix, so long as he never tells anyone about the rape (according to him, this is between them two and the "soon-to-be-living-his-the-rest-of-his-short-ass-life-in-agonizing-pain" rapist) and that he leaves Los Angeles forever because he has lost all of his "L.A. privileges." Marsellus intends to torture Zed before he dies, "by get[ting] Medieval on his ass." Butch agrees, leaving town on Zed's chopper with Fabienne. She asks who it belongs to, and he tells her that it is Zed's. She asks who Zed is and he answers: "Zed's dead, baby, Zed's dead." These also would be the last words spoken in the movie if it were structured so that each scene occurred after the previous one, like most movies.

[edit] The Bonnie Situation

The story now flashes back to Vincent and Jules. After Vincent and Jules shoot Brett, another man (Alexis Arquette, Rosanna Arquette's real-life brother) bursts out of the bathroom and shoots wildly at them, missing every time. Jules and Vincent turn their gazes several times from the shooter to the bullet holes to their bodies, which are miraculously unharmed, then quickly kill the shooter (if you look closely, you can see the bullet holes placed in the wall behind Jules before the shooting takes place). While Vincent asks their informant, Marvin, why he didn't tell them there was a man hiding in the bathroom with a gun, Jules decides that what just happened was a miracle. Vincent disagrees, and as they drive he asks Marvin for his opinion, accidentally shooting him in the face while carelessly waving his gun.

Forced to quickly get their bloodied car off the road, Jules calls upon the house of his friend Jimmie (Quentin Tarantino). While Jules and Vincent sip coffee in their bloody clothes, Jimmie angrily reprimands Jules and Vincent for bringing a dead body to his house, asking Jules if there was sign outside his garage that said "Dead Nigger Storage". When Jules says no, Jimmie screams at him, saying that the reason that there isn't one is because "storing dead niggers ain't my fucking business, that's why." He also says that his wife, Bonnie (a nurse), will be returning soon from work, and that they need to get out of his house as soon as possible. While washing their hands in the bathroom, Jules screams at Vincent for getting the towel all bloody like a Maxi pad.

At Jules's request, Marsellus arranges for the help of professional cleanup man Winston Wolfe (Harvey Keitel). After he receives the phone call from Marsellus at a gambling party, Wolfe writes down some notes on a pad that read: "VINCENT-WHITE, JULES-BLACK, JIMMY, BONNIE, ONE BODY, NO HEAD". He says the drive to Jimmie's is 30 minutes but he will be there in ten. He arrives "nine minutes and thirty seven seconds later." When he arrives he is polite to Jimmie and is introduced to the two hitmen. He gives them instructions on how to clean the car, then tells them to "get to work." Vincent is offended by his curtness, and says that "a please would be nice." Wolfe is annoyed by the remark and states that this is how he fixes situations and that if his help is not appreciated, they can do it themselves. Vince apologizes and Wolfe says: "Pretty please, with sugar on top, clean the fucking car!" When Jimmie expresses concern that Wolfe will be using his best linens, which were a wedding present from a deceased aunt and uncle, to camoflauge the car, Wolfe tells him that his "uncle" Marsellus, who is a millionaire, will provide him with a whole new bedroom set if he wishes. He also pulls out a bundle of cash and tells Jimmie he likes oak as a color and asks him if he does too. Jimmie, still concerned but convinced, says oak is fine. Meanwhile, Jules continues to berate Vincent for getting them into this mess, and decides that they are switching places: Jules will clean the front and Vincent will be on "brain detail." After the car is cleaned, Wolfe warns that they should not "start sucking each other's dicks yet," as they still have to clean Jules and Vincent. The two hitmen strip off their clothes in Jimmie's yard and are hosed down with cold water by Wolfe, who explains briefly that since they both probably have been to county jail before, this should be familiar. Once they're done, Jimmie tosses them some clothes, which we now see are the same ones that they were seen wearing while talking with Paul in the bar. Wolfe asks Jimmie what Vincent and Jules look like to which Jimmie says "a couple of dorks" (considering, however, those are his own clothes as Jules reminds him ). Once they're done changing they drive to a junkyard called "Monster Joe's" run by Monster Joe and his daughter Raquel (Julia Sweeney), who, seeing their ridiculous clothes, jokingly asks them if they are going to a volleyball game. Jules and Vincent thank Wolfe for his help and, when Wolfe and Raquel leave for breakfast, they decide to share a cab and do the same.

"Honey Bunny" (left) and "Pumpkin" hold up the diner.

While Jules and Vincent have breakfast, they discuss why Jules doesn't eat pig. Jules says that pigs are filthy animals, since they are unaware of their own feces. Vincent asks about dogs, since they also play in feces. Jules says he doesn't eat dogs either, but unlike pigs, dogs have personality, which goes a long way. Vincent claims that by this logic, if a pig had better personality, they would cease to be filthy animals. Jules agrees, but with the caveat that it would have to be "one muthafuckin charming pig." They share a laugh but the discussion then returns to Jules's decision to retire. Jules decides that like Caine in Kung Fu he will "walk the Earth." Vincent argues that what happened wasn't a miracle but just a freak occurrence and that Jules has really decided to be a bum. Jules' answers seem somewhat condescending to Vincent, so he says that they will continue this discussion after he's gone to the bathroom. While Vincent is in the bathroom, the pair of thieves from the first scene hold up the diner. "Pumpkin" demands all of the patrons' valuables, including Jules's mysterious case. While Pumpkin is collecting the rest of the wallets, Jules cocks his gun with his right hand under the table while holding up his wallet with his left hand. Pumpkin, after getting Jules' wallet, demands to see what is inside the case and, taken aback at Jules' outright refusal, orders him to open the it, threatening that if he doesn't oblige he will be shot. Jules gives in and opens the case. Pumpkin is stunned by the beauty of its contents, leaving momentarily unaware of Jules, who surprises "Ringo" (as Jules calls him), by simultaneously disarming him and holding him at gunpoint. "Honey Bunny" becomes hysterical, and trains her gun on Jules, who manages to calm her down despite Vincent emerging from the restroom with his gun trained on her. Jules assures her that no one will kill anyone because they will all be cool like "three little Fonzies." Jules orders Ringo to have a seat at the booth and find Jules' wallet. When Ringo asks him which wallet, Jules says his wallet is the one that says "BAD MOTHERFUCKER" (which at first seems like a figure of speech, but once the wallet is found; it is exactly what it says on it). Ringo finds the wallet and Jules tells him to count out the money and put it in his pocket. However, Jules can't give him the case because it belongs to Marsellus and that he has gone through too much that morning to just hand it to a dumbass like him. Jules also explains his ambivalence towards his life of crime, using the bible passage that he quoted earlier as a metaphor for life, and as his first act of redemption convinces the two robbers to take the cash and valuables in exchange for the case and their departure, or as he likes to put it, he is paying Ringo for his life. (If the movie is watched a second time, when Pumpkin and Honey Bunny are first introduced, Vincent Vega's back can be seen as he has just walked by their table to the restroom). After the robbers depart, Jules and Vincent decide it's a good time to leave as well. They walk away with their guns in hand, then place them in their short drawers before they walk out the door, looking tough but funny at the same time. They walk out of the establishment and the end credits roll.

[edit] Plot elements

[edit] Homage as style

Like Tarantino's other works, Pulp Fiction is full of homages to other films and television shows, particular in the gangster genre, as well as many other pop culture artifacts. The movie has been described as a pastiche of "popular culture since 1950."^[6] In the sole overt example of literary pulp fiction in the movie, Vincent Vega is seen in several scenes reading the first Modesty Blaise novel while sitting on the toilet. The edition Vincent reads has a mock-up cover that Tarantino had the prop department make, based upon the cover of an early edition of the novel. The cereal that Lance is eating when Vincent comes to his house with Mia is called Fruit Brute, which was discontinued in 1983. Fruit Brute also shows up in Reservoir Dogs and Kill Bill. The majority of clocks in the movie, especially in the pawnshop, are set to 4:20, a subtle drug culture reference. The movie itself was originally going to be titled Black Mask, the name of the magazine largely responsible for popularising hardboiled detective fiction in the 1930s. Butch's double cross of Marsellus is possibly an homage to the 1929 Dashiell Hammett crime novel Red Harvest, whose protagonist challenges an organised crime operation by blackmailing a boxer into "unfixing" a fixed fight. The scene in which Marsellus sees Butch while crossing the street in front of Butch's car is reminiscent of the scene in which Marion Crane's boss sees her under similar circumstances in Psycho. The scene in which Butch stabs Maynard with the katana is identical to a scene in Bruce Lee's Enter the Dragon - from the same camera angle, Butch is seen stabbing Maynard, who is standing behind him, directly through the stomach and holding the sword in place for a few seconds, while he makes exactly the same facial expressions as Bruce Lee does in the same scene in his movie. When he pulls the sword out and Maynard is seen falling in the same way as the victim in Enter the Dragon. The "dungeon scene" is believed to be an homage to John Boorman's Deliverance; and Zed was the name of Sean Connery's character in Boorman's follow-up - the sci-fi film Zardoz. "Zed's dead" was one of the last lines spoken in that film. Also, it is believed that Butch's weapons of choice (bat, chain saw and katana) are homages to "Walking Tall", "Texas Chainsaw Massacre" and samurai films.

Tarantino has also created his own pop artifacts, partly to establish recurrent motifs in his films and partly to avoid showing actual commercial products in certain scenes. Big Kahuna Burger is featured not only in the Pulp Fiction apartment scene, but also in From Dusk Till Dawn and Reservoir Dogs. The Red Apple cigarettes that Butch buys inside Marsellus's bar also appear in various ways in Jackie Brown, Kill Bill, Volume 1, and Four Rooms. (A Red Apple billboard also appears in the background of a scene in Romy and Michele's High School Reunion. Tarantino was dating Mira Sorvino, one of the film's stars, at the time.) Iconic items of Tarantino's also appear: Jules uses a STAR model B 9mm-caliber pistol, and Vincent uses an Auto-Ordnance Colt 1911A1 model .45 ACP-caliber pistol. Both weapons—each chrome plated with a custom mother-of-pearl grip—are owned by the director.^{[citation needed]}

Main article: Pulp Fiction in popular culture

In a suitable twist, Pulp Fiction has itself become something of a pop culture icon. Several films, TV shows, and video games have referenced the movie's memorable and minuscule moments.

[edit] The mysterious briefcase

The only indisputable observations about the stolen attaché case recovered by Jules and Vincent are that its latch lock combination is "666" (the "Number of the Beast") and that the contents of the case either glow orange or are highly reflective. ("Fox Force Five" may also be a play on the 666 phenomenon as "F" is the 6th letter of the English alphabet.) The only acknowledgments of its contents are the captivated stares of Vincent and Ringo and their exclamations "Is that what I think it is?" and "It's beautiful." Watch the breakfast scene where Vincent and Jules get the briefcase.

Whenever asked, director Tarantino has replied that there is no explanation for the case's contents: it is simply a MacGuffin. Originally, the case was to contain the diamonds stolen in Reservoir Dogs, but this was seen as too mundane. For filming purposes, the briefcase contained an orange light bulb, silver foil, and a battery. Despite Tarantino's explanation, many theories have been proposed for the contents of the briefcase, for instance that it contains Marsellus' soul.^[7]

The glowing briefcase is an unintentional echo of the 1955 film noir Kiss Me Deadly, in which a briefcase glows from its nuclear contents. When Tarantino learned of the similarity, he said it was purely accidental but that he liked the idea. The 1984 film Repo Man also contains an item held in a car trunk (a 1964 Chevelle Malibu, the same car driven by Vincent Vega) that glows with radioactivity (and kills people whenever the trunk is opened).^[7]

[edit] Jules' Bible passage

Jules delivering the famous quotation.

In the final diner scene, Jules explains that he recites a Biblical passage, Ezekiel 25:17, each time he kills someone. Jules's version of the passage reads as follows:

The path of the righteous man is beset on all sides by the iniquities of the selfish and the tyranny of evil men. Blessed is he who in the name of charity and good will shepherds the weak through the valley of darkness, for he is truly his brother's keeper and the finder of lost children. And I will strike down upon thee with great vengeance and furious anger those who attempt to poison and destroy my brothers. And you will know my name is the Lord when I lay my vengeance upon thee.

In the last scene of the movie, Jules repeats the passage to Pumpkin, phrasing the last sentence differently: And you will know I am the Lord when I lay my vengeance upon you."

Wikisource has original text related to this article:

King James Bible
Ezekiel Chapter 25

This is, in fact, not an actual passage from the Bible, but a collage of several passages. Ezekiel 25:17 in the King James Version reads:

And I will execute great vengeance upon thee with furious rebukes; and they shall know that I am the LORD, when I shall lay my vengeance upon them.

Other sources include "Am I my Brother's keeper?" Genesis 4:9, and "valley of darkness" and shepherd image in Psalm 23.

Jules's pronouncement is a typically obscure Tarantino reference to Karate Kiba/Chiba the Bodyguard, a 1976 film starring Sonny Chiba, whom the director would later cast in Kill Bill. Karate Kiba opens with the exact same biblical misquote, likewise attributed to Ezekiel 25:17:

The path of the righteous man is beset on all sides by the iniquities of the selfish and the tyranny of evil men. Blessed is he, who in the name of charity and good will, shepherds the weak through the valley of darkness, for he is truly his brother's keeper and the finder of lost children. And I will strike down upon thee with great vengeance and furious anger those who would attempt to poison and destroy my brothers. And you will know my name is the Lord when I lay my vengeance upon thee! (Ezekiel 25:17)

[edit] Shot to the heart

Despite certain claims, injecting adrenaline into the heart will not save someone suffering from a heroin overdose. The proper antidote is Naloxone, an opioid antagonist, injected intravenously, intramuscularly, or sprayed intranasally.

[edit] Toilet motif

Tarantino uses the toilet or bathroom as a plot device:

• When Jules and Vincent are shooting Brett and his companions, a fourth man is hiding by the toilet, waiting to fire.
• When Mia comes back from 'powdering' her nose at Jackrabbit Slim's, their quiet dinner turns into their competing in a dance contest, and they become more and more attracted to each other.
• Any time Vincent enters a bathroom, things go wrong. Surprisingly, the problems increase in magnitude as the movie moves forward chronologically.
  • Due to poor washing habits, Vincent soaks one of Jimmy's bathroom towels in blood while washing up after the accidental car shooting
  • Vincent and Jules’ breakfast and philosophical conversation in the diner turns into an armed robbery while Vincent is in the bathroom.
  • While Vincent is in the bathroom worrying about the possibility of going too far with Marsellus' wife, Mia mistakes his heroin for cocaine and overdoses while attempting to snort it.
  • Vincent goes to the toilet on a quiet morning, during a stake-out at Butch’s apartment; when he comes out, Butch is pointing Marsellus' MAC-10 at him, and kills him with it when the toaster goes off.^[8]

[edit] Redemption and Conversion

When Jules experiences a miracle, he undergoes a transformation; the film culminates with him paying the price to save another man's life. The melodramatic quote from Ezekiel that he recited during his executions, for little reason other than it sounding cool, suddenly took a twist, as he became the shepherd instead of the vengeance. On the other hand, his partner Vincent, who did not believe in the miracle, putting it down to mere coincidence, consequently finds himself, through another series of coincidences, at the wrong end of another shooting - this time fatal. He learned neither from his previous mistakes (this was his third time in the bathroom as something major happened), nor the enlightenment of others, and finally paid for it with his life.^[9][10]

The other common theme is that of forgiveness. One of Pulp's sub-plots, The Gold Watch, sees Butch returning to save Marsellus from two sado-masochistic rapists, even after double-crossing him. Their previous desire to kill one another is temporarily set aside, as Butch steps in to deliver his personal enemy from a common enemy. Butch's choice of a samurai sword as the weapon of vengeance is more than just another of Tarantino's little post-modern film-maker in-jokes; Tarantino is strongly influenced by the moral code of many of the Japanese samurai classics, and by forsaking the door to Tennessee to save his enemy, Butch not only receives forgiveness from Marsellus (who would have previously tracked him to the ends of the earth), but also finally earns the right to wear his father's gold watch.^[9][10]

Another form of redemption involves Butch Coolidge. When Cpt. Koons comes to give him the gold watch he mentions "We were in that Hanoi Pit of hell together over five years...hopefully you'll never have to experience this yourself but when two men are in a situation, like me and your dad were for as long as we were, you take on certain responsibilities of the other." This could be looked at as foreshadowing with Butch's situation with Marsellus and the hillbillies. He may be remembering this comment before he goes back to save Marsellus from the clutches of the hillbillies.

Redemption is the central motif of the entire film. Every main character is offered some form of redemption, and every character (except Vincent) accepts the redemption opportunity. Based on the out-of-chronological order of the scenes and the "bookending" of Pumpkin and Honey Bunny as the first and last scenes, the redemption of these two characters as a result of the redemption of Jules Winnfield appears to be the main thrust. Through the twisted curious intertwining of stories, we are able to answer the question, "what led to the redemption of Pumpkin and Honey Bunny?" the answer involving the redemption of a number of related characters, chiefly Jules Winnfield.

[edit] Cast

Vincent (left) and Jules (right)

Out of the $8 million it cost to make the movie, $5 million went to the cast. The film is known for revitalizing the career of John Travolta, and helping establish Samuel L. Jackson and Uma Thurman as major stars (all three received Academy Award nominations for their respective roles in the film). The characters of Pumpkin, Honey Bunny, and Winston Wolfe were written specifically for Tim Roth, Amanda Plummer, and Harvey Keitel, respectively.

Other actors considered for the film included Daniel Day-Lewis as Vincent; Paul Calderon as Jules; Mickey Rourke, Matt Dillon, and Bruce Willis as Butch; David Rodriguez as The Gimp, Michelle Pfeiffer, Meg Ryan, Joan Cusack, Isabella Rossellini, and Daryl Hannah (later cast in Kill Bill) as Mia; Johnny Depp and Christian Slater (previously cast in True Romance) as Pumpkin; and Rosanna Arquette as Lance's wife, Jody. Tarantino has also said that he originally wanted to cast Kurt Cobain and Courtney Love as Lance and Jody, respectively.^[11]

• John Travolta as Vincent Vega. Tarantino cast Travolta in Pulp Fiction only because Michael Madsen chose to appear in Kevin Costner's Wyatt Earp instead. Travolta was paid just $140,000 for his services, but the film's success and his Oscar nomination as Best Actor revitalised his career. Travolta was subsequently cast in several hits including Get Shorty, in which he played a similar character, and the John Woo blockbuster Face/Off.^[12] The exchange in which Mia Wallace asks Travolta's character "Can you dig it?" to which he responds "I can dig it" is a nod to Travolta's career-making role in Saturday Night Fever. Travolta, not a real-life smoker, learned how to expertly roll Drum-brand tobacco into cigarettes for his part.

• Samuel L. Jackson as Jules Winnfield. The role of Jules was written with Jackson in mind by Tarantino as a payback for casting others in place of Jackson in previous films. However Jackson nearly lost the part after the initial audition. Paul Calderon, Jackson's friend, managed to argue for a second chance. Jackson flew to Los Angeles and auditioned a second time, winning over Tarantino.^[3] Jules was originally scripted with an Afro; due to a mix-up in wardrobe, he wears Jheri Curls. For his performance, Jackson received an Oscar nomination for Best Supporting Actor.

• Bruce Willis as Butch Coolidge. In Tarantino's original script the character of Butch is a fighter in his twenties. The character was aged to a washed-up boxer to accommodate Willis in the role.

• Ving Rhames as Marsellus Wallace. Rhames gained considerable acclaim for his dynamic portrayal of the sadistic Marsellus Wallace. His performance paved the way for supporting roles opposite some of Hollywood's most popular stars in such big budget features as Mission Impossible, Con Air, and Out of Sight.^[13]

• Uma Thurman as Mia Wallace. Thurman beat out Holly Hunter and Meg Ryan to win the role of Mia Wallace. Thurman dominated most of the film's promotional material, appearing on a bed with cigarette in hand. She was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Actress in a Supporting Role for her work in Pulp Fiction and was launched into the celebrity A-list. She took no advantage of this new found fame and chose to not do any big budget films for the next three years.^[14] Thurman's outfit reappears in two of Tarantino's later films, Jackie Brown and Kill Bill, Volume 2.

Harvey Keitel as "The Wolf"

• Harvey Keitel as Winston Wolfe, or simply "The Wolf". Keitel agreed to be in the film as he had previously starred in Tarantino's Reservoir Dogs in which he played Larry Dimmick, the cousin of Jimmy Dimmick in Pulp Fiction. The name "Winston Wolf" was borrowed from a regular customer named "Winston Wolff" who frequented the video store where Quentin Tarantino worked. The real Wolff was a video game programmer.

• Tim Roth as "Pumpkin" or "Ringo". Roth had also starred in Reservoir Dogs alongside Keitel and was brought on board again. A year after Pulp Fiction, Roth would again appear with Eric Stoltz in Rob Roy, in which Roth's character kills Stoltz's character. Tim Roth used his native British accent in Pulp Fiction but used an American accent in Reservoir Dogs.

• Amanda Plummer as "Honey Bunny" or "Yolanda." Plummer gained a lot of attention with a small amount of screen time. She followed up with director Michael Winterbottom's Butterfly Kiss, in which she plays a serial killer.

• Christopher Walken as Captain Koons, the Vietnam War veteran. Walken delivered a small but memorable performance scene in the movie as his often played slightly "off" persona. He appeared in another small but memorable role in the "Sicilian scene" in the Tarantino-written True Romance a year earlier.

• Quentin Tarantino as Jimmie Dimmick. Tarantino played a small role in the film as he had done previously in Reservoir Dogs. The part was more than a cameo proving the director could act. He was following a long line of directors that have played small parts in their films, most famously Alfred Hitchcock, who appeared briefly in thirty-seven of his own movies.

[edit] Reception

Made on a budget of just $8 million, the film was a major success, earning $107,928,762 at the U.S. box office and $213,928,762 in total.^[15]

Pulp Fiction is found at the top of critics' lists and in popular rankings, placing consistently at #6 on the IMDB Top 250 List. It boasts a 95% certified fresh rating at Rotten Tomatoes^[16] and a Metascore of 94 on Metacritic.^[17] As of December 29, 2006, Pulp Fiction is #5 on Metacritic.com's list of All-Time High Scores.^[18] In 2000, readers of Total Film magazine voted it the 18th greatest comedy film of all time. In Britain (2001), it was voted as the 4th greatest film of all time in a nationwide poll for Channel 4, beaten only by The Shawshank Redemption, The Godfather and Star Wars.

In 2005, Time.com named it one of the 100 best movies of the last 80 years.^[19] It won the 1994 Palme d'Or at the Cannes Film Festival and the Oscar for Best Original Screenplay. It was named Best Picture by the L.A. Film Critics Association and the National Society of Film Critics. Film critic Roger Ebert gave the film four stars, saying it's "so well-written in a scruffy, fanzine way that you want to rub noses in it - the noses of those zombie writers who take 'screenwriting' classes that teach them the formulas for 'hit films.'"^[20] He added Pulp Fiction to his Great Movies list in June of 2001.^[21] Pulp Fiction is in Time magazine's 100 best films.^[22]

The movie was moderately controversial at the time of its release, partly due to the graphic violence and partly due to its perceived racism, as Jackson and Travolta played moderately sympathetic characters, the former of which freely used the words "motherfucker" and "nigger", along with variations of the words. Also, white characters were repeatedly shown harming black characters (ie, the pawnshop rape, Vincent shooting Marvin, Butch running Marcellus over with a car). However, it should be noted that several white characters are harmed or murdered by other white and black characters as well. It is also important to note that the two main characters, Jules and Vincent, are of different races, and not once during the entire film does one of them acknowledge the race of the other, where most filmmakers would seize the opportunity for racial jokes. Some felt the film glamourised violence while others thought Tarantino was criticising excessive violence through a "twisted sense of morality".^[23][9]

[edit] Awards

Pulp Fiction has both won, and been nominated for, many awards.

It has won the following accolades:^{[24][25][26][27]}

It was nominated for the following Academy Awards:^[24]

• Best Actor (John Travolta)
• Best Supporting Actor (Samuel L. Jackson)
• Best Supporting Actress (Uma Thurman)
• Best Director (Quentin Tarantino)
• Best Film Editing (Sally Menke)
• Best Picture (Lawrence Bender, producer)

It was nominated for the following BAFTA awards:^[25]

• Actress in Leading Role (Uma Thurman)
• Director (Quentin Tarantino)
• Michael Balcon Award (Lawrence Bender and Quentin Tarantino)
• Actor in Leading Role (John Travolta)
• Cinematography (Andrzej Sekula)
• Editing (Sally Menke)
• Sound (Stephen Hunter Flick/Ken King/Rick Ash/David Zupancic)

[edit] Soundtrack

The soundtrack album cover.

Main article: Pulp Fiction (soundtrack)

No film score was composed for Pulp Fiction, with Quentin Tarantino instead using an eclectic assortment of surf music, rock and roll, soul and pop songs. Notable songs include Dick Dale's rendition of "Misirlou", which is played during the opening credits. Some of these songs were suggested to Tarantino by his friends Chuck Kelley and Laura Lovelace, who were credited as Music Consultants. Lovelace also appeared in the film as "Laura" the waitress.

The soundtrack album, Music from the Motion Picture Pulp Fiction, was released along with the film in 1994. In addition to songs from the film, it contains excerpts of dialogue, such as Jules' "Ezekiel 25:17" and "Royale with Cheese". The album peaked on the Billboard 200 at No. 21. The single, Urge Overkill's cover of the Neil Diamond song, "Girl, You'll Be a Woman Soon", peaked at No. 59.^[28]

A two-disc collector's edition of the album was issued in 2002—the first disc contained the songs, including five additional tracks; and the second disc was a spoken-word interview with Tarantino.

[edit] References and footnotes

[edit] External links

Wikiquote has a collection of quotations related to:

Pulp Fiction

• Pulp Fiction at the Internet Movie Database
• Pulp Fiction at Rotten Tomatoes
• Roger Ebert's review of Pulp Fiction