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Pulp Fiction (1994) Background

The original intention of Pulp Fiction co-writers Quentin Tarantino and Roger Avary was to write a short film, believing it would be easier to finance and produce than a feature.   This was in the autumn of 1990, before Reservoir Dogs, the film that established Tarantino’s name, had been made.   They soon chose to turn the film into a trilogy of stories however when they decided that nobody produced shorts, and used Mario Bava’s 1963 horror anthology film Black Sabbath as inspiration.  One part of the intended film was to be directed by Tarantino, another by Avary, and a third by another director – although as each of their parts was expanded into feature-length material the idea of a trilogy was dropped before a third director was selected.   The title of the project was provisionally entitled ‘Black Mask’ after the pulp fiction magazine, but Tarantino’s script became Reservoir Dogs, a film in its own right, which was released in 1992.   Avary’s script, ‘Pandemonium Reigns’ would become the ‘Gold Watch’ section of Pulp Fiction.   

 In an interview with Charlie Rose in October 1994, Tarantino explained what attracted him to the trilogy format that would eventually be interwoven to form Pulp Fiction’s non-linear narrative structure: ‘Novelists have always had just a complete freedom to pretty much tell their story any way they saw fit. And that's kind of what I'm trying to do. Now, the thing is for both novels and film 75 percent of the stories you're going to tell will work better on a dramatic basis, on a dramatically engaging basis to be told from a linear way. But there is that 25 percent out there that, you know, can be more resonant by telling it this way. And I think in the case of both Reservoir Dogs and Pulp Fiction it gains a lot more resonance being told in this kind of like wild way.’

Tarantino began work on the script for Pulp Fiction in Amsterdam in March 1992 as he attended screenings of Reservoir Dogs at film festivals around Europe.   He spent several months writing it in his hotel room and at the Betty Boop coffee shop, Nieuwezijds Kolk 21 1012, (which perhaps accounts for the numerous references to Dutch culture in the film).   Some reports claim he left the ‘Cult Video’ rental shop with an unpaid bill amounting to as much as $150.00.   Avary joined Tarantino in Amsterdam at some point, where they worked together to combine Avary’s Pandemonium Reigns/Gold Watch section with the film’s other storylines.   The script was finally completed in January 1993.

Upon completion of the script, Tarantino and producer Lawrence Bender – with whom Tarantino had formed the production Company, A Band Apart – took it to Jersey Films, and a development deal was agreed.   Jersey had a ‘first look’ deal with Columbia TriStar, and in February 1993 Pulp Fiction was listed as being in pre-production there by Variety magazine.   However, by June the studio had suffered a change of heart amidst rumours that TriStar’s chief, Mike Medavoy considered the screenplay ‘too demented.’

 Undeterred, Bender presented the script to Miramax, which had recently been taken over by Disney.  Harvey Weinstein, the studio’s co-chairman, loved it, and Pulp Fiction became the first movie to be green-lighted by Miramax since its acquisition by Disney.   The budget was set at $8.5 million, which was only achieved by paying reduced rates to all the movie’s lead actors on a weekly basis.   Despite this measure, actor’s wages still accounted for $5 million of the budget.

With finance in place, casting of the roles began.   Tarantino had written a number of parts with specific actors in mind:

 The role of Jules Winnfield was written for Samuel L. Jackson after his failed audition for the part of Mr. Orange in Reservoir Dogs, although he nearly lost the part following an impressive audition from Paul Calderon, who would end up playing one of Marcellus Wallace’s henchmen in the movie.   Jackson had assumed the part was his and that the audition was merely a reading, so Harvey Weinstein persuaded him to audition a second time.   His performance of the final diner scene convinced Tarantino he was the right man for the job, and Jackson would receive a Best Supporting Actor Oscar nomination for his performance in the film.   Laurence Fishburne was also briefly considered for the role, but was reportedly reluctant to accept a supporting role.

 The role of Winston Wolf was written for Harvey Keitel, who had played an instrumental part in bringing Reservoir Dogs, Tarantino’s debut movie, to the screen.   Keitel had played a similar role in Point of No Return the year before.

 The roles of Ringo (Pumpkin) and Yolanda (Honey Bunny) were written for Tim Roth and Angela Plummer.   Roth had appeared in Reservoir Dogs, but although Tarantino had written the part for him, had Columbia-TriStar not backed out of financing, the part may have been taken by Johnny Depp or Christian Slater – TriStar chief Mike Medavoy’s preferences.   Roth had actually introduced Plummer and Tarantino, telling the director, ‘I want to work with Amanda in one of your films but she has to have a really big gun.’

All other roles were cast after Tarantino and Avary had completed work on the script, although Tarantino had written the part of Vince Vega for Michael Madsen, who had played Vic Vega, the brother of Vince, in Reservoir Dogs.   However, Madsen chose to appear in Kevin Costner’s Wyatt Earp, a decision he has publicly admitted regretting.   In the end, the role went to John Travolta, despite Harvey Weinstein’s preference for Daniel Day-Lewis.   Travolta, whose career was in serious decline prior to making Pulp Fiction, accepted a reduced fee of somewhere between $100,000 and $140,000 for the part.   It proved to be a smart move on Travolta’s part: the role of Vince Vega earned him a Best Actor Oscar nomination and revived his career.

The biggest star to appear in the film at the time was Bruce Willis, although he had suffered a run of box-office flops prior to appearing in Pulp Fiction.   He was still a major box office attraction overseas, however, and his presence in the film ensured worldwide rights of $11 million – $3 million greater than the film’s budget.   Like Travolta, Willis took a pay cut to appear in the film, although he earned a percentage of the gross, ensuring his final pay day ran into millions.   He had originally hoped to win the part of Vince Vega, but accepted the part of Butch when Tarantino changed the character from a young up-and-coming boxer to an older man after Matt Dillon failed to commit to the part.   As with Travolta, appearing in the film also helped put Willis’s career back on track.   Mickey Rourke and Sylvester Stallone were both briefly considered for the role.

Another key part in the film is Mia Wallace, wife of mob boss Marcellus, played by Uma Thurman.  Again, Tarantino’s choice went against the preferences of Miramax who wanted Holly Hunter or Meg Ryan.   The director was reportedly so intent on Thurman playing the role that, when she turned it down, he read the script over the phone to her to persuade her to change her mind.   Other names attached to the role included Alfre Woodard, Meg Tilly, Isabella Rossellini, Daryl Hannah, Joan Cusack and Michelle Pfeiffer.   Rosanna Arquette also auditioned for the role, but was offered the part of Jody instead.   Thurman’s performance earned her a Best Supporting Actress nomination, and it was a shot of her, lying on a bed with a cigarette in her hand, that was the prominent image in the marketing campaign for the film.   Thurman and Tarantino would later re-unite for the Kill Bill films.   Marcellus Wallace, her onscreen husband in Pulp Fiction, was played by Ving Rhames after Sid Haig, the star of many 70s blaxploitation movies, turned down the part.

 Other roles: Tarantino awarded the role of Fabienne, Butch’s forgetful girlfriend, to Maria de Medeiros, the star of Henry & June (in which Uma Thurman had also appeared) after meeting her in Europe while promoting Reservoir Dogs on the European film festival circuit.   He had originally wanted Swiss actress Irène Jacob for the part but she turned it down.   The role of Lance, Vince Vega’s drug dealer who helps save Mia’s life after she accidentally overdoses, is played by Eric Stoltz.   Courtney Love claimed the role was originally offered to her late partner Kurt Cobain, and that she would have played his wife had Cobain accepted – a claim refuted by Tarantino.   The role of Lance’s wife actually went to Rosanna Arquette after Tarantino turned down Pam Grier for the part because he felt audiences wouldn’t believe her being pushed around by Lance.

 As well as directing, Tarantino also cast himself in the role of Jimmie, the friend to whom Jules turns when Vince accidentally kills Marvin in the back of his car.   Tarantino was torn between playing Jimmie or the drug dealer Lance, but eventually chose Jimmy so that he could direct Mia’s overdose scene from behind the camera.   Steve Buscemi was also set to play Jimmie, but other filming commitments prevented him from doing so and so he appeared in a cameo role as a waiter at Jack Rabbit Slim’s.

 With the cast in place, and using key crew members from Reservoir Dogs – cinematographer Andrzej Sekula, editor Sally Menke, and production designer David Wasco – Tarantino began shooting the film on 20^th September 1993.   He chose to use 50 ASA film stock in order to create an image as close as possible to 1950s Technicolor.   Filming took place in various locations around Los Angeles and Pasadena, including the Raymond Theater on Raymond Avenue, Pasadena; the Riverside Motel on Riverside Drive in LA (which has since been demolished); Pacoima (for the junkyard scenes) and Glendale Boulevard in Silver Lake, LA.   The diner scenes were filmed at the Hawthorne Grille (formerly Holly’s) on Hawthorne Boulevard in Hawthorne, California, but fans hoping to visit the scene of Pumpkin and Honey Bunny’s hold-up will be disappointed as the building was torn down shortly after filming.   The Jack Rabbit Slim scenes were shot on a $150,000 purpose-built set in a Culver City warehouse – a building which doubled as the film’s production offices.   Filming was completed on 30^th November 1993.

 The film received its world premiere at a midnight screening at the Cannes Film Festival in May 1994 at which the entire cast was present.   The film was an overwhelming success and won the Palme d’Or, the festival’s top award.   The film, accompanied by Tarantino, then embarked on a tour of the festival circuit, playing at Locarno, Munich, Nottingham, San Sebastian and Taormina.  In late September it opened the New York Film Festival.

Pulp Fiction went on general release at 1,100 cinemas in the United States on 14^th October 1994, and was the highest-grossing film at the box office on its opening weekend, beating Sylvester Stallone’s The Specialist, which was playing at more than twice as many venues.   It eventually grossed $107.93 million domestic, and nearly $213 million worldwide, making it the first independent film to surpass $100 million.  The film would go on to win a total of over 40 awards in various categories.  

 The film made an immediate impact around the world, becoming an iconic emblem of low-life cool that influenced both moviegoers and filmmakers.   Less than a year after its release, critic Jon Ronson attended the British National Film School’s end of year screenings and commented, ‘Out of the five student movies I watched, four incorporated violent shoot-outs over a soundtrack of iconoclastic 70s pop hits, two climaxed with all the main characters shooting each other at once, and one had two hitmen discussing the idiosyncrasies of The Brady Bunch before offing their victim. Not since Citizen Kane has one man appeared from relative obscurity to redefine the art of moviemaking.’  

 Pulp Fiction has been widely praised as one of – if not the – most influential films of the 1990s, and consistently ranks amongst the top ten in popular polls of the Greatest Movies of all time. 

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