Quentin Tarantino’s directorial debut, Reservoir Dogs is regarded as a cult classic, not least for the filmmaker’s style and talent, but for his sharp, and funny-as-hell pop culture references.
Reservoir Dogs was officially released via cinemas on October 9, 1992, which marks this week as its 30th anniversary. Wholly original in storytelling, violence, and pop culture references, Tarantino’s debut film holds all of the hallmarks that have gone on to define him as one of the greatest filmmakers of his generation.
Starring heavyweights, Harvey Keitel, Tim Roth, Chris Penn, Steve Buscemi, Lawrence Tierney, Michael Madsen, Tarantino, and Edward Bunker, Tarantino tells a classic tale of crime gone wrong.
Reservoir Dogs follows eight LA gangsters as they try to pull off a jewel heist. With a killer script and some serious acting chops, Reservoir Dogs single-handedly launched the career of Michael Madsen, aka the terrifying Mr. Blonde, and has become a must-watch for cinephiles.
Despite not being heavily promoted during its theatrical run, the film went on to become a critical success and achieved major popularity after the success of Tarantino’s next film, Pulp Fiction (1994).
Here are the top five most memorable quotes from Reservoir Dogs.
“The Entire Song Is A Metaphor…”
The opening scene, sees the characters sit around a table at a diner, discussing Madonna’s 1984 hit Like a Virgin.
“Let me tell you what ‘Like a Virgin’ is about,” he explains. “It’s all about a girl who digs a guy with a big d*ck. The entire song is a metaphor for big d*cks.” – Mr. Brown
Mr. Blonde disagrees with Mr. Brown, and says he thinks the song is about a woman who has been hurt by several relationships, and who eventually finds a nice guy.
Two weeks after the film’s release, Madonna reportedly wrote a response on an autographed copy of her ‘Erotica’ record which she gave to the director at a party in Europe. “To Quentin, it’s not about dick. It’s about love. Madonna.”
“I dont tip because society says I have to.”
Mr Pink refutes tipping etiquette, saying that he’ll tip if the waitstaff goes the extra mile, but that automatic tipping is “for the birds.”
“All right, if someone deserves a tip, if they really put forth an effort, I’ll give them something a little something extra. But this tipping automatically, it’s for the birds. As far as I’m concerned, they’re just doing their job.” – Mr Pink
“You Shoot Me In A Dream, You Better Wake Up And Apologize.”
When Mr. White and Mr. Blonde argue at the diner in the movie’s opening scene, Mr. Blonde asks the boss, “Joe, you want me to shoot this guy for you?”
Mr. White ominously tells him, “Sh*t, you shoot me in a dream, you better wake up and apologize.” – Mr. White
“Are You Gonna Bark All Day, Little Doggy, Or Are You Gonna Bite?”
Mr. Blonde may well be the scariest bad guy in the film, his chilling role as Mr. Blonde is next-level bad ass. The character’s ice-cool tone makes for an oddly charismatic performance. When Mr. White is giving him a hard time for him for killing innocent civilians, Mr. Blonde coolly says, “Are you gonna bark all day, little doggy, or are you gonna bite?” – Mr. Blonde
“No real people?” “Just cops.”
Talking about the casualties of the heist, Mr. Pink says, “I tagged a couple of cops. Did you kill anybody?” Mr. White says, “A few cops,” and Mr. Pink says, “No real people?” “Just cops.” – Mr. Pink
To celebrate the 30th anniversary of Quentin Tarantino’s first feature film, Dendy Cinemas are set to Reservoir Dogs from December 1st to the 7th.
