Reservoir Dogs (1992)
eservoir Dogs grabs you by the throat and digs its claws in deep. From the moment that the unwitting viewer tumbles into the realm of Lawrence Tierney's gang of eight, they are hopelessly trapped there until the final credits roll. As the first outing for actor/director/ writer Quentin Tarantino, this is a triumph, displaying all the marks of a longtime virtuoso of the genre.
A jewelry store robbery has gone wrong - badly wrong - for the thieves. One member of the gang is dead, and several are missing. The survivors, including Mr. White (Harvey Keitel), Mr. Pink (Steve Buscemi), and a critically-injured Mr. Orange (Tim Roth), are holed up in a warehouse, trying to figure out how to salvage the situation. Dissention and suspicion run high, as White and Pink discuss the possibility of a traitor in their midst, and the tension escalates when Mr. Blonde (Michael Madsen) shows up with a little surprise in the trunk of his car.
The cast, which includes Harvey Keitel, Tim Roth, and Michael Madsen, is first-rate, and the parts the actors have to play are fully fleshed out. Tarantino invests each member of his group with a unique and multi-faceted personality. Not content with stereotypes, the writer/director digs deeper, bringing out the humanity in even someone as viciously sadistic and reprehensible as Mr. Blonde. To go along with the characters is a surprising plot, filled with wonderful little twists and turns, and pervaded throughout by the sense of not knowing what's around the corner. The non-chronological manner in which the story is told is confusing at first, but everything eventually sorts itself out.
Tarantino's directing influences, from John Woo to Martin Scorsese, are all in evidence, and their synthesis creates a high-voltage style that's entirely his own. The writing is crisp and clean, providing line after line of snappy dialogue designed to leave the viewer alternately pondering and laughing aloud. The gallows humor and dark comedy are among many of Reservoir Dogs' defining elements. This is one of those rare motion pictures that's both intelligent and visceral at the same time.
Highly recommended with one caveat: those who are squeamish about blood should be wary. While the gore in this film isn't gratuitous, there's a great deal of it, and one particular torture scene is chillingly and vividly depicted. Gripping and gut-wrenching, Reservoir Dogs is likely to stay with you for a long time.
The Under-Seen Classic That Inspired Quentin Tarantino's Reservoir Dogs
Acclaimed actor/writer/director Quentin Tarantino is known for paying homage to classic films in his work, a signature move that he made even in his debut feature, the 1992 heist movie "Reservoir Dogs." The director's films frequently nod to foreign and obscure cinema, offering plenty of Easter eggs for the attentive viewer. A close watch of any of his films might feel like an unbroken string of cinematic references, but sometimes the influence of a single film is so strong that it permeates through the entire movie. Such is the case for "Reservoir Dogs," and the Hong Kong action movie "City on Fire."
The 1987 crime film by director Ringo Lam tells the story of Ko Chow, an undercover cop who is forced to take on another risky job when a fellow policeman is killed by a gang of thieves. Chow gets close with the gang — particularly to one member, Fu — and leads them into the police's trap by helping them organize a big jewelry heist. When one jumpy gang member shoots the jewelry store clerk for triggering the alarm, the troops come in guns blazing, shooting Chow in the stomach.
Once back at the warehouse hideout, the Boss and other gang members accuse Chow of being a rat, but Fu defends him, and there is a three-way stand-off. The cops arrive in a shower of bullets and Chow bleeds out on the floor. Before Fu is taken into custody, Chow reveals that he was a cop all along.
eservoir Dogs grabs you by the throat and digs its claws in deep. From the moment that the unwitting viewer tumbles into the realm of Lawrence Tierney's gang of eight, they are hopelessly trapped there until the final credits roll. As the first outing for actor/director/ writer Quentin Tarantino, this is a triumph, displaying all the marks of a longtime virtuoso of the genre.
A jewelry store robbery has gone wrong - badly wrong - for the thieves. One member of the gang is dead, and several are missing. The survivors, including Mr. White (Harvey Keitel), Mr. Pink (Steve Buscemi), and a critically-injured Mr. Orange (Tim Roth), are holed up in a warehouse, trying to figure out how to salvage the situation. Dissention and suspicion run high, as White and Pink discuss the possibility of a traitor in their midst, and the tension escalates when Mr. Blonde (Michael Madsen) shows up with a little surprise in the trunk of his car.
The cast, which includes Harvey Keitel, Tim Roth, and Michael Madsen, is first-rate, and the parts the actors have to play are fully fleshed out. Tarantino invests each member of his group with a unique and multi-faceted personality. Not content with stereotypes, the writer/director digs deeper, bringing out the humanity in even someone as viciously sadistic and reprehensible as Mr. Blonde. To go along with the characters is a surprising plot, filled with wonderful little twists and turns, and pervaded throughout by the sense of not knowing what's around the corner. The non-chronological manner in which the story is told is confusing at first, but everything eventually sorts itself out.
Tarantino's directing influences, from John Woo to Martin Scorsese, are all in evidence, and their synthesis creates a high-voltage style that's entirely his own. The writing is crisp and clean, providing line after line of snappy dialogue designed to leave the viewer alternately pondering and laughing aloud. The gallows humor and dark comedy are among many of Reservoir Dogs' defining elements. This is one of those rare motion pictures that's both intelligent and visceral at the same time.
Highly recommended with one caveat: those who are squeamish about blood should be wary. While the gore in this film isn't gratuitous, there's a great deal of it, and one particular torture scene is chillingly and vividly depicted. Gripping and gut-wrenching, Reservoir Dogs is likely to stay with you for a long time.
The Under-Seen Classic That Inspired Quentin Tarantino's Reservoir Dogs
Acclaimed actor/writer/director Quentin Tarantino is known for paying homage to classic films in his work, a signature move that he made even in his debut feature, the 1992 heist movie "Reservoir Dogs." The director's films frequently nod to foreign and obscure cinema, offering plenty of Easter eggs for the attentive viewer. A close watch of any of his films might feel like an unbroken string of cinematic references, but sometimes the influence of a single film is so strong that it permeates through the entire movie. Such is the case for "Reservoir Dogs," and the Hong Kong action movie "City on Fire."
The 1987 crime film by director Ringo Lam tells the story of Ko Chow, an undercover cop who is forced to take on another risky job when a fellow policeman is killed by a gang of thieves. Chow gets close with the gang — particularly to one member, Fu — and leads them into the police's trap by helping them organize a big jewelry heist. When one jumpy gang member shoots the jewelry store clerk for triggering the alarm, the troops come in guns blazing, shooting Chow in the stomach.
Once back at the warehouse hideout, the Boss and other gang members accuse Chow of being a rat, but Fu defends him, and there is a three-way stand-off. The cops arrive in a shower of bullets and Chow bleeds out on the floor. Before Fu is taken into custody, Chow reveals that he was a cop all along.
