One of the most famous films of Quentin Tarantino, this is not just another well made crime drama to be exact. It was rated to be amongst the most violent films ever made in the year of its release and was even condemned by many for its brutal treatment. No doubt, today we get to see much more blood & cruelty on the screen than before. But at that time of the decade RESERVOIR DOGS was not a normal film at all and it was really shocking as well as painful to watch such realistic, pure and truthful depiction of crime on the screen, brilliantly portrayed by its lead actors.
An all men film, relying completely upon the mutual interactions between the characters, it actually revolves around a heist gone wrong and the developments post that unexpected failure. Six criminals, not knowing each other are brought together by a crime boss to do a diamond robbery. False names are given, the plan is laid down in details and nobody has any doubts of it becoming a success. But right on the spot, police is waiting to grab them red-handed and the group is attacked from all sides. As one of their members gets killed, there is panic among the team and they are all onto each other in order to spot that in-house mole who is an undercover cop standing right amongst them shamelessly. And the real film is all about these crucial moments of finding that one betrayer only, supported by some fabulous writing, witty dialogues and extremely believable performances.
Another worth mentioning point about this masterpiece is that though it talks about the detailed planning of a heist, yet the heist is never shown to the viewer and it always remains an off camera job followed by the extreme violence and tension (particularly in the ear cutting scene). It has a tight & completely focused screenplay which takes care of all the six characters in the team superbly. Nevertheless its quite possible that many viewers might not enjoy its first long talkative sequence and find it less intriguing too in the beginning. But once you start flowing with the effortless acting on the screen, the film starts growing and then ends on a solid impressive note which stays in your mind for long.
Tarantino also plays a significant role in this fascinating thriller but the veteran simply makes a kill as the writer-director of this tense crime drama without any doubts. Ironically at one end RESERVOIR DOGS is universally accepted as a cult film in the world of cinema, but on the other it has also been criticized for being inspired or copied from various sources including Ringo Lam’s CITY OF FIRE (1987) aka Lung Fu Fong Wan. Hence it is also one of those rare films which are both widely appreciated and accused of plagiarism together. Interestingly Bollywood too made a version of it called KAANTE in 2002 featuring Amitabh Bachchan & Sanjay Dutt in the lead and RD still continues to be an inspirational source for many crime thrillers till date. So if you are a die-hard lover of this particular genre then you got to see this cult-classic as a must since it rightly deserve the status its enjoys due to its novel, brutal yet highly realistic treatment of a gruesome tale.
Directed by Quentin Tarantino
Starring : Harvey Keitel, Tim Roth, Michael Madsen, Chris Penn, Quentin Tarantino and more.
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Reservoir Dogs (1992), Movies To See Before You Die Thriller, Quentin Tarantino Films, Must See Films List by Bobby Sing at bobbytalkscinema.com, Not to Missed Movies List by Bobby Sing, Worth Waching World Cinema, Hollywood Gets Inspired,
