Reservoir Dogs (1992)

Swedish title:
“The Ruthless”

Written & Directed by: Quentin Tarantino

Starring: Harvey Keitel, Tim Roth, Michael Madsen

Running Time: 1 hour, 39 minutes

Rating: R

Pre-conceived Notions: I know what you’re shouting at your computer right now. I can hear it through my monitor: “You’ve never seen Reservoir Dogs? Are you kidding me right now?” Nope. I don’t kid. Okay, I do kid, but I only not kid when it is interesting to not kid. And this time, I’m not kidding. Reservoir is Tarantino’s film debut, and so it’ll be very interesting to see how it is. I’ve heard a lot about it, and about the Tarantino Canon in general. Rumor has it Michael Madsen’s character in this film and John Travolta’s character in Pulp Fiction are brothers, because every Tarantino film belongs to the same universe. Okay. Sure. They kinda look alike if you squint and huff stuff for a sufficient amount of time. But if all the films in the canon are a part of the same universe, is Tim Roth’s character the same guy who holds up the café in Pulp Fiction? Makes you think, don’t it? (Actually, I’m sure the answer is out there somewhere, but I’m just too lazy to google it right now.) The only other thing I know about it is it’s got shades of Clue where everybody is known by a color. Because, Tarantino. 

Why I Haven't Seen This Film: I don’t know why I haven’t seen this movie. I’m getting really tired of this question, and it’s only Day 2 of the official project. I guess it’s because I have no clue what a reservoir dog is. Is it a dog that guards municipal drinking supplies? Is it a dog-shaped squirt gun? It’s probably some kind of drug slang. That’s what I’m going to go with for now.

1 hour, 39 minutes later…: I’m going to go out on a limb and make a suggestion: Reservoir Dogs the Musical. They’ve done it with Shrek, and Legally Blonde, and The Holy Grail. Why not with this? The whole movie reads like a stage play anyway with most of the action taking place in the warehouse. And then you’ve got the climactic ending. I’ve already come up with snappy song titles: I’ve Been Shot! I’ve Been Shot!, You Each Get a Color, and my personal favorite: I’m Going to Go All Mike Tyson on You and Then Light You on Fire. I’m a genius. I can’t help it.

Back to the meat and potatoes of the film. I really liked it, and I’m kind of sad at the way that I liked it. I didn’t like it from the point of view that someone from 1992 would have liked it, not having seen a Tarantino movie before and being blown away at what they saw on the screen. Rather, I liked it from someone who’s very familiar with the kind of movies Tarantino produces. Instead of repeatedly saying, “Wow, did he just do that?!”, I said, “Classic Tarantino.” I guess I’m just desensitized to Tarantonian (Tarantinonian?) blood and gore. Whoever Q’s fake blood supplier is, he is set for life! 

To wind this post down, here are a couple of observations: 

1.) I am totally on board with everything Mr. Pink says about tipping. I’ll always tip 20%, but isn’t it kind of sad that restaurants in the US can’t pay their wait staff a living wage so they don’t have to depend on the whim of Joe Q. Public to be decent enough to tip so they can live? Waitpersons in the Netherlands not only get paid a living wage, but they also get benefits. Think about that. 

And, 2.) How did Buscemi come to play the most level-headed character in the movie? He’s kind of a twit, but he’s pretty much got everything figured out. It was very refreshing to see him in such a role.

Final Thoughts: I’m going to give this movie 4 out of 5 slices of pizza. There was plenty of action, high body count, and a heaping wheel barrowful of that trademark Tarantino dialogue, but I still don’t know what a reservoir dog is. And that is a definite black mark against this film.