Reservoir Dogs (1992)

ANOTHER GREAT MASTERPIECE

This is another great masterpiece from the great director Quentin Tarantino , great story , great acting , not as good as Pulp Fiction in my opinion but still a great movie and highly recommended. June 17, 2008

Every dog has its day; this day is mighty sweet...

One of my favorite films, and definitely Tarantino's finest (I love `Pulp Fiction' but in all seriousness I just like this one better), `Reservoir Dogs' is a landmark in modern cinema. I'm ashamed that this was not the film to garner Tarantino his first Oscar nomination for, while `Pulp Fiction' may be a more intricate work, `Reservoir Dogs' is a stronger work. At times `Pulp Fiction' can seem to be all over the place (the script is pure genius, don't get me wrong, but you have to admit it really pushes it sometimes) `Reservoir Dogs' is a much cleaner film in that it follows its main objective very closely and allows the audience to keep focus and never find themselves lost.

`Reservoir Dogs' follows a group of criminals after a jewelry heist they were all in on goes terribly wrong. Mr. Orange (you'll notice that none of the men know each others names and all refer to one another by colors) is bleeding to death, Mr. White is trying to get a handle on the situation, Mr. Pink is panicking out of control, Mr. Brown is apparently dead, Mr. Blue is missing and Mr. Blonde, who apparently started the bloodbath that was the heist, seems determined to make matters worse. As we are introduced to these men and given a little background information on them we are caught up in the same game as the criminals, trying ourselves to uncover the rat, the leak, the man responsible for tipping of the cops.

There you have it; that's the movie in a nutshell. What makes `Reservoir Dogs' so amazing though, is that that is not all there is. It may seem like your average gangster type film, but it's not. Tarantino masterfully uses his humor, his values and his visual stylings to bring us a gangster flick that is superior to most all other gangster flicks. In fact, I'm tempted to go ahead and say that Scorsese only wishes he could direct this kind of masterpiece.

Ouch.

The violence is extreme if not mostly implied rather than grotesquely embellished. The heart of this film is not the blood spilled but the blood running through the veins of these mad men. When these men are faced with the possibility of a rat within their midst we begin to see their true colors. There is a certain code of honor that swallows these criminals whole, and then that code is broken they start to unravel one by one.

The film hinges strongly on the performances by the ensemble cast, most notably that of Steve Buscemi, Harvey Keitel, Michael Madsen and Tim Roth. Michael Madsen is effortlessly collected as the ruthless killer Mr. Blonde. His calm veneer gives way to the psychotic madness running loose behind his gaze. When he snaps you tell yourself that you saw it coming yet you're so utterly winded by it that you can't believe all that you're taking in. Steve Buscemi (who won the Independent Spirit Award for this performance) is marvelously on edge throughout the entire film. His nerves are shot through his skin as he prances around as if on broken glass trying to figure a way out for himself. It's a brilliant performance, one that is eye-catching and very real. Tim Roth has that explosive opening sequence where he's covered in blood and screaming for his life in the backseat of the car and that scene alone is award worthy in its own right, but he continues to build his characters pain and guilt and fear so that he becomes a fully fleshed out participant in the film instead of merely falling into token gimmicky territory.

And then there is Harvey Keitel.

In an ensemble piece with no clear leading actor, Keitel ultimately dominates the audience's attention with his marvelous portrayal of Mr. White. White becomes the moral centerpiece of the film and really the one character that establishes the point of this film. His dedication and loyalty to his partners, especially to that of the dying Mr. Orange is noteworthy and moving. He conquers all emotions, from irritation to sympathy to desperation to mortal disappointment, always following through one-hundred-percent to deliver a rich and commanding performance. His final scene is devastating to watch because you know everything that is running through his head at that very moment.

Quinton Tarantino is a brilliant director, we all know this. The opening sequence alone cements that belief. As White, Orange, Brown, Blue, Blonde and Pink sit at a diner with Joe, the man responsible for setting up this rendezvous, and Eddie (Joe's son), they discuss the meaning behind Madonna's classic `Like a Virgin' and the end result is one of the most entertaining scenes in Hollywood history, and a scene done so efficiently and so masterfully that it alone should have garnered Tarantino a directing Oscar.

From his smash hit `Pulp Fiction' to his stunning follow up `Jackie Brown' to his marvelous `one-two-punch' that is `Kill Bill', Tarantino is always on point and ahead of his game. His visual flare is uncompromised and incomparable and his sick sense of genius shines through with reckless abandon on everything he touches. `Reservoir Dogs' marks the beginning of his illustrious career, and honestly, it is the best thing he's ever done. June 17, 2008

Reservoir Dogs (15th Anniv)

The movie, of course, was excellent, as it was when it was released. I would have thought that a 15th anniversary edition would have had either more interesting or at least equally intense extra features. This however, was not the case. You can't go wrong with the movie, though. June 4, 2008

Not Sold As Advertised :-(

The film is advertised on Amazon as a special edition coming in unique "special edition" packaging. When I got my copy it was in a regular DVD box. I was disappointed even though the film is great. May 22, 2008

Great film made even better on Blu-Ray

All films need to be made on Blu-Ray!!! So, as for the viewing audience not to see them in an upscaled version, because there is a huge difference. And now that the war is over, the Blu-Ray producers need to start utilizing the 50 GB space available to them on the BD disc and give us many, many extras, especially for the prices we have to pay in order to get them. May 19, 2008

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