6. The Innumerable Theories About The Pulp Fiction Briefcase
What's in the briefcase in Pulp Fiction? Nobody knows. Yet the film is still brilliant and fulfilling without this key bit of information, and that's pretty much the exact point. A MacGuffin is a plot device that appears in the form of a desired object (or goal) and acts as motivation for the protagonist's actions. In general, there is very little or no narrative explanation for the importance or significance of this object or goal, its motivational qualities are intrinsic. The briefcase in Pulp Fiction is the perfect example of a MacGuffin. But more importantly, it's knowingly that. When it comes to tropes, structure and film history, nobody in Hollywood is as proudly referential as Quentin Tarantino. The whole point of the (literally) glaringly obvious MacGuffin is exaggeration which is exactly what Tarantino does best. On top of that, it allows viewers to make up their own mind as to what's in the briefcase. Spending so much time trying to figure out what's inside (fans have gone so far as to suggest it's Marsellus Wallace's soul which was extracted from the back of his head) completely misses the point of the briefcase's function, which is to smile knowingly as Tarantino always does at a beloved trope, exaggerating it to extreme levels.
Brian Wilson
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Commonly found reading, sitting firmly in a seat at the cinema (bottle of water and a Freddo bar, please) or listening to the Mountain Goats.
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