Pulp Fiction
has become a cult classic since its 1994 debut.
Quentin Tarantino's 1994 film Pulp Fiction is crime drama revolving around a mysterious briefcase. The briefcase belongs to the crime lord Marsellus Wallace, who sends two of his men to retrieve the apparently important case from the three men who hold it. Yet despite the case's importance the audience is never allowed to learn its true contents. This has led to a host of theories as to the case's true contents and function, which Tarantino has never yet revealed.
Instructions
1. Watch the movie if you have never viewed it before. You may even want to watch it multiple times in order to catch certian details or develop a person theory as to the briefcase's contents.
2. View the movie pretending as if the briefcase contains gold. This is one of the simplest interpretations of the case's contents. The presence of gold or something of equally high value such as cash explains the importance Wallace places on the case and why he as a crime lord sends henchmen to retrieve it. The case also shines a golden light on to anyone who opens it, which can be interpreted as a reflection of gold bars.
3. View the film with the idea that the briefcase contains Marsellus Wallace's soul. Given this interpretation the three men who first have the briefcase are symbolic of the devil's servants, to whom Wallace has sold his soul. Jules and Vincent serve as messengers protected from the men's bullets by some divine force. The combination to the briefcase lock is also "666," which is used to support this view.
4. View the film with the idea that the briefcase is symbol for male stoicism. The dark exterior of the case hides a "heart of gold" interior, much like the men in the film. This interpretation has been presented by author Susan Fraiman, who argues that throughout the movie the male characters seek to free themselves of the hard exterior image they cultivate. This theory is supported by the fact that Jules is the character who seeks hardest to free himself from his stoic shell, but in the end he still keeps the briefcase and is symbolically still attached to his rough exterior.
5. View the film as if the briefcase is a purely a plot device. This simple idea means the case was created to move the plot of the film without having any real importance by itself. This analysis means that the actual contents of the case are not only unrevealed, but that they are also important. What drives the plot is that the characters in the film believe the contents of the case are valuable. This also leaves the actual contents up to the audience's imagination.
Tags: Pulp Fiction, View film, actual contents, briefcase contains, contents case
