ABSTRACT
Pulp Fiction, written and directed by Quentin Tarantino, marks a transitional moment in contemporary US independent-commercial cinema, signaling the start of Indiewood in the mid-1990s. Its critical and commercial success and popularity validate certain 1990s indie models. The film redresses past and present mainstream and alternative-to-mainstream commercial cinemas, especially regarding interests in genre and storytelling, and finds cross-over audiences. The film enacts retrospection in its address to viewers and its thematic treatments, situating itself in indie film history. The film’s metafictional qualities disclose discursive-power dynamics operating for this indie film and the institution of commercial-independent American cinema more broadly.
