Pulp Fiction
There was certainly no sophomore slump for Quentin Tarantino. After the success of his debut feature Reservoir Dogs, he returned two years later with one of the most influential films of the last three decades - Pulp Fiction.
The transgressive tone, hip lingo, and non-linear structure basically created an entirely new sub-genre of crime thriller. And yet - there were many detractors who felt this bold new voice in cinema was simply repackaging characters, moments, and even dialogue he'd seen in other movies.
This is an interesting one to look back on now in the wake of all the rip-offs it inspired and even just in terms of how Tarantino evolved as a filmmaker after this.
Topics include: the dire straits Travolta's career was in before this and how hard Tarantino had to fight for him, the original actor they had lined up to play Butch and how Bruce Willis' involvement changed the script, Spike Lee's ire towards Tarantino's work and whether or not some of that was justified, The Vega Brothers prequel that never materialized, your Real Life Retweets, and much much more!