whats in the briefcase in pulp fiction?

Question

there are many theories.. i have read one that ties in with various costume and information shots in the film . i am interested to hear peoples ideas

just read the answer the band aid and the combination. this ties in perfectly with the notion that the soul is removed from the back of the neck, however on the dvd trivia track the reason for the bandaid is to distract from a scar on ving rhames' neck and nothing more but its a very good theory all the same

Answer 1

Speculation abounds as to the nature of the mysterious glowing contents of the case:
Could it be Elvis's gold suit, seen worn by Val Kilmer (as Elvis) in True Romance (1993)?
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.

Answer 2

We'll never know for sure, and that's how Quentin Tarantino wanted it. He didn't want whatever was in the briefcase to take away from the plot of the movie, and he wanted to leave it a mystery.

Popular opinion is that it's Marcellus Wallace (John Travolta's boss's) soul.

Answer 3

I saw it the other day and I was thinking 'Huh???' I would have to guess it was the identity of the black mobster guy or something that could put him behind bars for good. It was a brilliant, but weird movie.

Answer 4

nothing, stuff like that in movies never lives up to expectations the audience has for it.

Answer 5

A light bulb.