Quentin Tarantino Changed This ‘Pulp Fiction’ Scene to Avoid An NC-17 Rating
Quentin Tarantino has made a name for himself by combining arthouse filmmaking with grindhouse themes. That unlikely juxtaposition marks the Oscar-winning director’s gritty signature style. But sometimes, his cinematic renderings are a bit too gritty for the likes of the Motion Picture Association of America. Tarantino has tangled with the MPAA multiple times regarding the depiction of onscreen violence. When he submitted Pulp Fiction for classification, the rating board objected to one scene in particular: Marvin’s (Phil LaMarr) death sequence.
If you can’t quite recall the setup, I’ll provide a brief primer. John Travolta’s character, Vincent Vega, accidentally shoots Marvin in the head during a conversation about the unpredictable nature of projectiles. Collider reports that the scene was initially filmed with much more viscera following the accidental shooting. The original cut features brain matter and blood flying to and fro. Tarantino ultimately compromised with the MPAA and reworked the scene so all we see is a brief shot of Marvin’s blood hitting the windshield of the car they’re sitting in.
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For anyone unfamiliar, Pulp Fiction plays out like this:
Vincent Vega (Travolta) and Jules Winnfield (Samuel L. Jackson) are hitmen with a penchant for philosophical discussions. In this ultra-hip, multi-strand crime movie, their storyline is interwoven with those of their boss, gangster Marsellus Wallace (Ving Rhames); his actress wife, Mia (Uma Thurman); struggling boxer Butch Coolidge (Bruce Willis); master fixer Winston Wolfe (Harvey Keitel) and a nervous pair of armed robbers, “Pumpkin” (Tim Roth) and “Honey Bunny” (Amanda Plummer).
That’s all we’ve got for you, dear reader. Stay tuned to the site for more behind-the-scenes trivia as we uncover it. Also, be sure to follow @DreadCentral on Twitter so you never miss one of our updates.
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