Reservoir Dogs

Composite Score: 82.77

Starring: Harvey Keitel, Tim Roth, Michael Madsen, Chris Penn, Steve Buscemi, Lawrence Tierney, Randy Brooks, Kirk Baltz, Edward Bunker, and Quentin Tarantino

Director: Quentin Tarantino

Writers: Quentin Tarantino and Roger Avary

Genres: Crime, Thriller, Mystery

MPAA Rating: R for strong violence and language

Box Office: $2.91 million worldwide

Why should you Watch This Film?

                Reservoir Dogs is Quentin Tarantino’s feature film debut, an irreverent crime film about a group of criminals after a heist gone wrong. The simple thriller about honor among thieves and an informant in the midst of a criminal organization delivers on much of what makes the writer-director’s films so iconic. Its fast-moving, inappropriate exchanges are rich with clues, one-liners, and covert and overt threats, keeping the audience engaged in every scene. Though the violence is not quite as pervasive as in some of his films, it remains as over-the-top and bloody as ever, introducing fans to his style of filmmaking from the jump.

Why shouldn’t you Watch This Film?

                Like so many crime films of the 70s, 80s, and 90s, Reservoir Dogs contains some lines and characters that end up being at least mildly problematic. Though none of this film’s characters are meant to be model citizens or prime examples of how to live life, fans of the film will inevitably seek to emulate some aspects of their favorites, which could in this case mean some pretty racist rhetoric. The leading characters all have very particular opinions about working with black criminals and about black people in general that, while possibly comedic in the early 90s, come across as quite tone deaf in the 2020s. For a film set in the present with only one black character, Reservoir Dogs allows too many of its other characters to use the n-word quite flippantly, just to cap it all off.

So wait, why should you Watch This Film?

                Though it is a bit rawer than his successive films, Reservoir Dogs remains one of Tarantino’s best thanks to the simplicity of its storytelling. Even with its nonlinear storytelling, flashing back to the various members of the crew as they join in with the job, the story is beautifully self-contained, focusing on its criminals and the aftermath of their failed heist. The story is not so much about a big score as it is about figuring out who the informant is and how each of the members of the crew relate to one another, allowing the film to become more of an ensemble study than anything else.

                To that point, the film’s cast carries the film, each in his own way. Harvey Keitel does a great job as the past-his-prime veteran who is starting to go a little soft but still has what he needs to get the job done. Steve Buscemi delivers one of his best performances as the shifty and distrusting Mr. Pink, the man with his head very much on a swivel. Tim Roth’s Mr. Orange is an ideal newbie looking to break onto the scene with his first big job, delivering another of the film’s highlight performances. Michael Madsen’s villainous turn as the truly unhinged and oppressive Mr. Blonde brings all the worst parts of his character to bear in his scenes. Even Chris Penn and Lawrence Tierney as Nice Guy Eddie and his father Joe Cabot, the patrons of the job, play the two sides of crime bosses well, with Eddie as the aggressive up-and-comer and Joe as the established and business-minded head of the family. It’s a phenomenal ensemble that carries the film throughout its thrilling story.

                Reservoir Dogs is carried by Tarantino’s self-contained story about a group of criminals who can’t trust each other, which is itself carried by the excellent performances of its ensemble of a cast on its way to becoming one of the Greatest Films of All Time. Some of the portrayals and dialogue in the film have not aged well, but the overall effect at the end of the film is one of satisfaction with the story that has been told and the characters that have been explored. This film is currently available to stream via a Starz subscription or to rent on most other streaming services if you’d like to give it a watch.