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Movies / Upcoming / Reservoir Dogs
Reservoir Dogs

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Reservoir Dogs (1992)

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95 %
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Reviews Counted:43

Fresh:41

Rotten:2

Average Rating:8.9/10

Runtime: 1 hr 40 mins

Genre: Dramas

US Box Office: $0

Synopsis: Former video store clerk Quentin Tarantino's directorial debut, RESERVOIR DOGS, is a brutally funny, supercharged introduction to his supremely distinct cinematic vision, which was later to become... Former video store clerk Quentin Tarantino's directorial debut, RESERVOIR DOGS, is a brutally funny, supercharged introduction to his supremely distinct cinematic vision, which was later to become one of the most mimicked styles of the 1990s. Mastermind Joe Cabot (Lawrence Tierney) assembles a crew of top-notch criminals to pull off a jewelry store heist. As the film opens it becomes immediately clear that the plan backfired, forcing the survivors, who have gathered at an abandoned warehouse, to figure out if one of them is, in fact, a police informer. The crew--Mr. White (Harvey Keitel), an aged veteran; Mr. Orange (Tim Roth), a wounded newcomer; Mr. Blonde (Michael Madsen), a psychopathic parolee; Mr. Pink (Steve Buscemi), a bickering weasel; and Nice Guy Eddie (Chris Penn), Joe's son--begin to unravel as the pressure becomes too much for them to handle. When Joe arrives, the truth becomes clear in a vicious Mexican standoff. Tarantino takes liberally from Hong Kong action flicks, most notably Ringo Lam's CITY ON FIRE, but his ultra-hip ‘70s soundtrack and hysterical pop culture dialogue make the film seem wholly original and new. Taking a cue from the French New Wave--most notably Jean-Luc Godard--RESERVOIR DOGS remains one of the decade's most influential motion pictures. [More]

Starring: Harvey Keitel, Tim Roth, Chris Penn, Steve Buscemi

Starring: Harvey Keitel, Tim Roth, Chris Penn, Steve Buscemi, Lawrence Tierney, Michael Madsen, Quentin Tarantino, Eddie Bunker, Kirk Baltz, Stephen Wright

Director: Quentin Tarantino

Director: Quentin Tarantino
Screenwriter: Quentin Tarantino
Producer: Lawrence Bender
Composer: Karyn Rachtman

[See More Credits]

Reviews for Reservoir Dogs

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1 - 20 (sorted by comments; Australian critics are listed first)
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The movie feels like it's going to be terrific, but Tarantino's script doesn't have much curiosity about these guys.

Full Review Source: Chicago Sun-Times | comment 21 Comments
01/01/00
Roger Ebert
Roger Ebert
Chicago Sun-Times
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

Tarentino has the craft down but lacks the depth and moral wisdom to avoid merely gleeful bloodletting.

Full Review Source: Deseret News, Salt Lake City | comment 4 Comments
01/01/00
Chris Hicks
Chris Hicks
Deseret News, Salt Lake City

For Tarantino, the age of heroic competence is as dead as his characters are at the fadeout.

Full Review Source: TV Guide's Movie Guide | comment Comment
07/30/03
TV Guide's Movie Guide

Tarantino exploits audience savvy, preferring to build anticipation, mesmerise, and then cut away at the climax.

Full Review Source: BBC | comment Comment
04/17/01
Almar Haflidason
Almar Haflidason
BBC

Tarantino's camera has instinct.

Full Review Source: Film Freak Central | comment Comment
08/14/02
Bill Chambers
Bill Chambers
Film Freak Central

memorable

Full Review Source: Filmcritic.com | comment Comment
08/02/09
Blake French
Blake French
Filmcritic.com

I can't remember a movie getting me so excited about what you could do with a little bit of money, some fine actors, and lots of beautifully profane rhythmic dialogue.

Full Review Source: Film Threat | comment Comment
12/08/02
Brad Laidman
Brad Laidman
Film Threat

While Reservoir Dogs is probably Tarantino's most unpolished work, it strongly contends for the distinction of being his best.

Full Review Source: eFilmCritic.com | comment Comment
03/19/03
Brian Mckay
Brian Mckay
eFilmCritic.com

A classic well worth watching.

Full Review Source: Apollo Guide | comment Comment
01/01/00
Brian Webster
Brian Webster
Apollo Guide

Chock full of witty and quotable dialogue and eye-popping scenes.

Full Review Source: Filmcritic.com | comment Comment
01/01/00
Christopher Null
Christopher Null
Filmcritic.com

A highly cinematic blast for those who can stomach its brutality...Like Glengarry Glen Ross with guns.

Full Review Source: FulvueDrive-in.com | comment Comment
01/09/07
Chuck O'Leary
Chuck O'Leary
FulvueDrive-in.com

In 1992 Quentin Tarantino did something that hadn't been done since 1986 with David Lynch's "Blue Velvet;" he reinvented cinema.

Full Review Source: ColeSmithey.com | comment Comment
10/03/09
Cole Smithey
Cole Smithey
ColeSmithey.com

The one QT film that always manages to rope a knot in my stomach and keep a firm grip, pulling, twisting, tightening and re-tying it.

Full Review Source: Cinemania | comment Comment
03/09/04
Dan Jardine
Dan Jardine
Cinemania
N/R

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Newsweek | comment Comment
03/31/08
David Ansen
David Ansen
Newsweek

You don't have to love it to be impressed with its riveting treatment of criminals in action.

Full Review Source: Ozus' World Movie Reviews | comment Comment
06/28/05
Dennis Schwartz
Dennis Schwartz
Ozus' World Movie Reviews

A nod to such noir crime classics as Stanley Kubrick's "The Killing," the movie's more than savvy sensationalism. Suspense, horror and humor are expertly interwoven.

Full Review Source: Washington Post | comment Comment
01/01/00
Desson Thomson
Desson Thomson
Washington Post
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

Those who survive it emerge in a shell-shocked euphoria -- so good and so blunt is the writing.

comment Comment
10/15/02
Duane Byrge
Duane Byrge
Hollywood Reporter

Structurally, Tarantino may have borrowed from Kubrick's crimers and Hong Kong films, but for a debut, it's brilliantly written and acted and it captures the paranoia of white working-class men, threatened by gays, women and other groups.

Full Review Source: Screendaily | comment Comment
12/23/06
Emanuel Levy
Emanuel Levy
Screendaily

Fantastic crime movie. Awesome dialogue, plot structure and acting. Doesn't get much better.

comment Comment
07/14/03
Fred Topel
Fred Topel
About.com

It's brutal, it's funny and you won't forget it.

Full Review Source: Washington Post | comment Comment
01/01/00
Hal Hinson
Hal Hinson
Washington Post
Top Critic Icon Top Critic
 
 
1 - 20 (sorted by comments; Australian critics are listed first)
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Latest News for Reservoir Dogs

August 11, 2009: Quentin Tarantino talks Inglourious Basterds - RT Interview
With his sixth film, Quentin Tarantino has fashioned the ultimate in pulp fiction, a Second World War epic set in Nazi-occupied France that sees two parallel assassination plots... More...

September 21, 2007: Quentin Tarantino Stimulated to Write Swedish Soft-Core Film
Quentin Tarantino has a penchant for reviving under-recognized genres. Next on his revivalist roster: Swedish Soft-Core. More...

September 18, 2007: QT Talks Death Proof: What's Different In the DVD Release?
At a press conference at Cannes, the Death Proof gang talked about the differences between the stand-alone version and the Grindhouse cut, as well as Tarantino's influences, his... More...

June 27, 2007: Is Tarantino Preparing Two "Kill Bill" Sequels?
Well, according to one source he sure seems to be ... maybe. More...

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