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Reservoir Dogs

Quentin Tarantino, now a cinematic legend in his own time, cemented his status as a certifiable filmmaker extraordinaire with his first film, Reservoir Dogs (1992).

Assuming the roles of writer, actor, and director, Tarantino crafts a work that embodies his signature style. The story revolves around societal derelicts, the darlings of all his films, and their crimes. But as with most of the characters created by Tarantino's pen, the five criminals in Reservoir Dogs reveal the dichotomy of good versus evil within man.

Tarantino stages this age-old conflict within the confines of a warehouse, where the anonymous hired thugs meet following a robbery gone awry.

Through many intricate flashback scenes, the viewer pieces together the crime bit by bit. However, this crime is merely a vehicle through which Tarantino seems to explore the moral fibers of the professional criminal.

The crime scene takes second chair to the post-crime warehouse, where the five men struggle to identify the "rat" who leaked the diamond heist to the police. This warehouse takes on the feeling of a Greek ampitheatre, and the action that of a Greek tragedy.

Despite the static nature of the setting, performances by Harvey Keitel, Steve Buscemi, Tim Roth, and Michael Madsen keep the action fast and furious. Their abilities to maintain such convincing emotional intensity are addictive. They keep the viewer hanging on until the bloody end.

The film's low budget forces it to rely heavily on brilliant writing and top-notch performances. As a result, Reservoir Dogs is Tarantino's piece de resistance to date.

Written by: Laura Thomas

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