What is in the brief case?

The brief case on Pulp Fiction. I think I know, but I want to hear your thoughts.

Interrobang2010-04-26T01:03:20Z

Favorite Answer

Its a MacGuffin, a plot device played by an object the audience have very little to no information about, and serves as a motivation for the characters and drives the story forward. Its "'the papers' in a spy movie, or 'the necklace' in heist film"

Others will say it a soul though, and mention the band aid on the back of his neck, and they offer compelling evidence, but I think theres even a interview where Tarantino himself says its just a Macguffin

Mark C2010-04-26T01:22:41Z

The theories about Marcellus's soul in the briefcase are pure malarkey. The contents of the case are left to the viewers imagination. It could be gold bars for all we know. The idea for the glowing suitcase was inspired by the movie Kiss Me Deadly, which also had a glowing briefcase. (In the latter movie it was because plutonium was in the briefcase.)

From IMDB trivia:
The most persistent theory (most usually attributed to a friend of a friend who saw it posted on a message board by someone whose brother had read a report of a radio interview with Tarantino himself) is that it is Marcellus Wallace's soul. The story goes that when the Devil takes a person's soul, it is removed through the back of the head (this isn't part of any known religion, but this is what the message board posters say). When we see the back of Marcellus's head he has a Band-Aid covering the precise spot indicated by tradition for soul removal. Perhaps Marcellus sold his soul to the devil which would also explain why the combination to open the briefcase is 666. - Quentin Tarantino has said that the band-aid on the back of Marsellus Wallace's neck had nothing to do with an allusion to the Devil stealing Marsellus's soul... but that the actor Ving Rhames had a scar on the back of his neck he wanted to cover up.

According to Roger Avary, who co-wrote the script with Quentin Tarantino, the original plan was to have the briefcase contain diamonds. This seemed neither exciting nor original, so Avary and Tarantino decided to have the briefcase's contents never appear on screen; this way each filmgoer could mentally "fill in the blank" with whatever struck his or her imagination as best fitting the description "so beautiful". The orange light bulb (projecting shimmering light onto the actors' faces) was a last-minute decision and added a completely unintended fantastic element. - In a radio interview with 'Howard Stern' in late 2003, Quentin Tarantino was asked by a caller the contents of the briefcase, and he answered, "It's whatever the viewer wants it to be."

Aggisport2010-04-26T00:09:56Z

Marcellus soul.

1.Marcellus has a band-aid on the back of his neck, and the Bible says that is the place where the devil extracts one's soul.
2.It glows.
3.The code to open the case is "666." 'Nuff said.
4.The men Jules and Vincent kill to get the case back are actually servants of the devil. Something went awry in the deal between Marcellus and the Devil, and it's "divine intervention" when all those shots miss the two hit men.

?2016-10-07T21:31:45Z

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Robert S2010-04-26T00:13:39Z

I have to agree, its his soul.

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