A seedy writer of sleazy pulp novels is recruited by a quirky, reclusive ex-actor to help him write his biography at his house in Malta.
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- DavidBunnyDadSeptember 20, 2026A dime-store novel brought to life. Michael Caine stars as the writer of preposterous but irresistibly juicy detective stories who gets wrapped up in a crazy story of his own on the coast of Malta. The role suits Caine; he ambles around like a bemused, Cockney Philip Marlowe, dashing off inspired one-liners in the kind of running voiceover one expects from a classic private eye movie. Mickey Rooney shows up in the second act playing a mysterious former movie star who's decamped to an island mansion, and he steals all his scenes, reminding you why he was once the biggest movie star in the world even at 5-feet-2 (a man that short would have to be a force of nature to land Ava Gardner). The great film noir star Lizabeth Scott is along for the ride as well, looking and sounding more gorgeous than ever in her first film role in 15 years. ``Pulp'' knows exactly how seriously to take itself. Its pleasures are of the lost variety, like reading a trashy paperback on a long bus ride, or watching a movie shot on glorious 35 mm film stock. This thing is so far removed from today's world of dim, flatly photographed and overly focused-group IP streaming fare it might as well be from the 18th century. It's quite a blast.
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Pulp was released on August 18, 1972.
Pulp was directed by Mike Hodges.
Pulp has a runtime of 1h 35m.
Pulp was produced by Michael Caine, Michael Klinger.
A seedy writer of sleazy pulp novels is recruited by a quirky, reclusive ex-actor to help him write his biography at his house in Malta.
The key characters in Pulp are Mickey King (Michael Caine), Preston Gilbert (Mickey Rooney), Ben Dinuccio (Lionel Stander).
Pulp is rated PG.
Pulp is a Drama, Mystery, Crime film.
Pulp has an audience rating of 3.8 out of 10.