Pulp Fiction

This article is about the film. For other uses, see Pulp fiction.

Pulp Fiction
A pulp-magazine themed poster shows with a woman in a bedroom lying on her stomach in a bed holding a cigarette. Her left hands lays over a novel that reads "Pulp Fiction" on it. An ash tray, pack of cigarettes, and a pistol is laid down near her. The top tagline reads "WINNER - BEST PICTURE - 1994 CANNES FILM FESTIVAL". A sticker below the title reads "10¢".
Theatrical release poster
Directed byQuentin Tarantino
Written byQuentin Tarantino
Story by
Produced byLawrence Bender
Starring
CinematographyAndrzej Sekuła
Edited bySally Menke
Production
companies
Distributed byMiramax Films
Release dates
  • May 21, 1994 (1994-05-21) (Cannes)
  • October 14, 1994 (1994-10-14) (United States)
Running time
154 minutes[1]
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
Budget$8–8.5 million[2][a]
Box office$213.9 million[2]

Pulp Fiction is a 1994 American independent crime film written and directed by Quentin Tarantino from a story he conceived with Roger Avary.[3] It tells four intertwining tales of crime and violence in Los Angeles, California. The film stars John Travolta, Samuel L. Jackson, Bruce Willis, Tim Roth, Ving Rhames, and Uma Thurman. The title refers to the pulp magazines and hardboiled crime novels popular during the mid-20th century, known for their graphic violence and punchy dialogue.

Tarantino wrote Pulp Fiction in 1992 and 1993, incorporating scenes that Avary originally wrote for True Romance (1993). Its plot occurs out of chronological order. The film is also self-referential from its opening moments, beginning with a title card that gives two dictionary definitions of "pulp". Considerable screen time is devoted to monologues and casual conversations with eclectic dialogue revealing each character's perspectives on several subjects, and the film features an ironic combination of humor and strong violence. TriStar Pictures reportedly turned down the script as "too demented". Miramax Films co-chairman Harvey Weinstein was enthralled, however, and the film became the first that Miramax Films fully financed.

Pulp Fiction won the Palme d'Or at the 1994 Cannes Film Festival and was a major critical and commercial success. It was nominated for seven awards at the 67th Academy Awards, including Best Picture, and won Best Original Screenplay; Travolta, Jackson, and Thurman were nominated for Best Actor, Best Supporting Actor, and Best Supporting Actress respectively. As a result of the film's success, Travolta's career was reinvigorated. The film's development, marketing, distribution, and profitability had a sweeping effect on independent cinema.

Pulp Fiction is widely regarded as Tarantino's magnum opus, with particular praise for its screenwriting.[4] The self-reflexivity, unconventional structure, and extensive homage and pastiche have led critics to describe it as a touchstone of postmodern film. It is often considered a cultural watershed, influencing films and other media that adopted elements of its style. The cast was also widely praised, with Travolta, Thurman, and Jackson earning high acclaim. In 2008, Entertainment Weekly named it the best film since 1983[5] and it has appeared on many critics' lists of the greatest films ever made. In 2013, Pulp Fiction was selected for preservation in the United States National Film Registry by the Library of Congress as "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant".[6][7][8]

  1. ^ "Pulp Fiction". British Board of Film Classification. Archived from the original on May 10, 2015. Retrieved November 11, 2012.
  2. ^ a b "Pulp Fiction (1994)". Box Office Mojo. Archived from the original on April 30, 2011. Retrieved May 13, 2012.
  3. ^ See, e.g., King (2002), pp. 185–7; Kempley, Rita (October 14, 1994). "Pulp Fiction (R)". The Washington Post. Archived from the original on July 9, 2017. Retrieved September 19, 2007.; LaSalle, Mike (September 15, 1995). "Pulp Grabs You Like a Novel". San Francisco Chronicle. Archived from the original on January 12, 2012. Retrieved September 20, 2007.
  4. ^ "101 Greatest Screenplays". Writers Guild of America, West. Archived from the original on March 6, 2013. Retrieved November 29, 2015.
  5. ^ "The New Classics: Movies". Entertainment Weekly. June 18, 2007. Archived from the original on August 28, 2008. Retrieved September 29, 2013.
  6. ^ O'Sullivan, Michael (December 18, 2013). "Library of Congress announces 2013 National Film Registry selections". The Washington Post. Archived from the original on December 18, 2013. Retrieved December 18, 2013.
  7. ^ "Complete National Film Registry Listing". Library of Congress. Archived from the original on October 31, 2016. Retrieved May 8, 2020.
  8. ^ "Cinema with the Right Stuff Marks 2013 National Film Registry". Library of Congress. Archived from the original on June 4, 2020. Retrieved May 8, 2020.


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