Reservoir Dogs (1992)

Director:

Quentin Tarantino

Writers:

Quentin Tarantino (written by)
Roger Avary (background radio dialog) ...
(more)

Release Date:

23 October 1992 (USA)

Genre:

Crime | Drama | Mystery | Thriller

Tagline:

Seven Total Strangers Team Up For The Perfect Crime. They Don't Know Each Other's Name. But They've Got Each Other's Color

Plot:

After a simple jewelery heist goes terribly wrong, the surviving criminals begin to suspect that one of them is a police informant.

Plot Keywords:

Police | Robbery | Diamond | Heist | Flashback

Awards:

8 wins & 5 nominations

Cast

Harvey Keitel	...	Mr. White - Larry Dimmick
Tim Roth	...	Mr. Orange - Freddy Newandyke
Michael Madsen	...	Mr. Blonde - Vic Vega
Chris Penn	...	Nice Guy Eddie Cabot
Steve Buscemi	...	Mr. Pink
Lawrence Tierney	...	Joe Cabot
Randy Brooks	...	Holdaway
Kirk Baltz	...	Ofcr. Marvin Nash
Edward Bunker	...	Mr. Blue (as Eddie Bunker)
Quentin Tarantino	...	Mr. Brown
Steven Wright	...	K-Billy DJ (voice)
Rich Turner	...	Sheriff #1
David Steen	...	Sheriff #2
Tony Cosmo	...	Sheriff #3
Stevo Polyi	...	Sheriff #4 (as Stevo Poliy)
Michael Sottile	...	Teddy
Robert Ruth	...	Shot Cop
Lawrence Bender	...	Young Cop / Radio Play Background Voice
Linda Kaye	...	Shocked Woman
Suzanne Celeste	...	Shot Woman
Laurie Latham	...	Radio Play Background Voice (voice)
Maria Strova	...	Radio Play Background Voice (voice)
Burr Steers	...	Radio Play Background Voice (voice)
Craig Hamann	...	Radio Play Background Voice (voice)
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Rowland Wafford	...	Diner Patron (uncredited)

Directed by
Quentin Tarantino

Writing credits
Quentin Tarantino		(written by)
Roger Avary		(background radio dialog) &
Quentin Tarantino		(background radio dialog)

Produced by
Lawrence Bender	....	producer
Richard N. Gladstein	....	executive producer
Monte Hellman	....	executive producer
Harvey Keitel	....	co-producer
Ronna B. Wallace	....	executive producer

Cinematography by
Andrzej Sekula

Film Editing by
Sally Menke

Casting by
Ronnie Yeskel

Production Design by
David Wasco

Set Decoration by
Sandy Reynolds-Wasco

Costume Design by
Betsy Heimann

Makeup Department
Michelle Bühler	....	makeup artist (as Michelle Buhler)
Iain Jones	....	hair designer
Jamie Melbourne	....	assistant hair stylist
Jamie Melbourne	....	makeup artist
Rachel Tanner	....	hair stylist (as Rachelle Tanner)
Wayne Toth	....	special makeup effects artist (uncredited)

Production Management
Paul Hellerman	....	production manager

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Jamie Beardsley	....	first assistant director
Kelly Kiernan	....	second assistant director
Francis R. Mahoney III	....	first assistant director
Andy Spilkoman	....	second second assistant director
Steven K. Thomas	....	second second assistant director

Art Department
Jonathan Bobbitt	....	swing gang
Jonathan R. Hodges	....	property master
Clifford Lane	....	property assistant
Douglas Matthew McMahon	....	property assistant
Edward J. Protiva	....	swing gang
Brett C. Smith	....	lead man
Greg Wilkinson	....	assistant propmaster

Sound Department
Ron Bartlett	....	sound re-recording mixer
Matthew C. Beville	....	weddington recordist
Mark Coffey	....	weddington recordist
Stephen Hunter Flick	....	supervising sound editor (as Stephen H. Flick)
Dwayne S. Henkel	....	boom operator
John Hulsman	....	assistant sound editor
Dave Moreno	....	weddington recordist
Donald Ortiz	....	assistant sound editor
Cecilia Perna	....	foley mixer
Mary Louise Rodgers	....	foley artist
Geoffrey G. Rubay	....	supervising sound editor
Michael Salvetta	....	foley artist (as Michael A. Salvetta)
Curt Schulkey	....	sound editor
Ken Segal	....	production sound mixer
Charles Ewing Smith	....	sound editor (as Chuck Smith)
Steve F.B. Smith	....	stereo sound consultant: Dolby
David E. Stone	....	sound editor (as Dave Stone)

Special Effects by
Stephen DeLollis	....	special effects (as Steve DeLollis)
Pat Domenico	....	key special effects
Larry Fioritto	....	special effects coordinator
Rick Yale	....	special effects

Visual Effects by
Dave Gregory	....	optical supervisor: Title House Inc. (uncredited)

Stunts
Marian Green	....	stunts
Marcia Holley	....	stunts
Ken Lesco	....	stunt coordinator
Ken Lesco	....	stunts
Pat McGroarty	....	stunts

Camera and Electrical Department
Dink Adams	....	best boy grip
Joey D. Brown	....	electrician
Linda R. Chen	....	unit photographer (as Linda Chen)
Jay Dahlquist	....	best boy electric
Ziad Doueiri	....	first assistant camera
Randall Guth	....	second assistant camera
Ross Katz	....	grip (as Ross Andrews Katz)
Greg R. McCullough	....	gaffer
Neil Michaels	....	electrician
Mark Emery Moore	....	Steadicam operator (as Mark Moore)
Katie Nilson	....	best boy electric
Chris J. Rossi	....	grip (as Chris Rossi)
Alan Sherrod	....	director of photography: second unit
Lynn Smith	....	first assistant Steadicam
Robert John Speer	....	generator operator
Miles Thomas	....	best boy grip
Ric Urbauer	....	key grip
Dennis K. Wilson	....	dolly grip
Frank H. Woodward	....	electrician

Casting Department
Peggy Kennedy	....	casting associate
Mary Santiago	....	extras casting
Cheryl Faye	....	extras casting (uncredited)

Costume and Wardrobe Department
Jacqueline Aronson	....	set costumer
Melinda Eshelman	....	assistant wardrobe (as Melinda Adele Eshelman)
Mary Claire Hannan	....	costume supervisor
Steve Petix Jr.	....	assistant wardrobe
Steve Petty Jr.	....	assistant wardrobe

Editorial Department
Doug Cawker	....	apprentice editor
Michael Chaskes	....	apprentice editor
Kelley Dixon	....	first assistant editor
Carrie Elizabeth Foresman	....	first assistant editor
Mark Lass	....	negative cutter
Brandon McNaughton	....	apprentice editor
Nancy Perry	....	first assistant editor
Jennifer Pyken	....	post-production assistant
Boyd Steer	....	negative cutter
William W. Williams	....	first assistant editor
Chuck Winston	....	color timer

Music Department
Nancy Lynn Hurlbut	....	assistant music supervisor
Kathy Nelson	....	music supervisor: MCA
Karyn Rachtman	....	music supervisor

Transportation Department
David Coffee	....	driver
Steve Croff	....	driver
Michael Doggett	....	transportation consultant (as Mike Doggett)
Ben C. Giller	....	transportation captain
James Lowder	....	transportation coordinator (as James R. Lowder)
Robert John Speer	....	driver

Other crew
L. Wayne Alexander	....	legal services
Roger Avary	....	creator: Dog Eat Dog logo
Marina Bailey	....	unit publicist
Wendy Baker	....	production assistant
Warren Betts	....	public relations: Live America
Ian Blackman	....	reader
Suzanne Celeste	....	dialect coach
Bruce Comtois	....	set security
R. Blaine Currier	....	production accountant
Billy A. Fox	....	location manager
Judith E. Goldman	....	assistant location manager (as Judy Goldman)
Carlos K. Goodman	....	legal services
Debra Grieco	....	assistant accountant
Jim Harper	....	reader
Enid L. Kantor	....	production coordinator
Jeannie H. Kelly	....	craft service
Martin Kitrosser	....	script supervisor
Stephanie Jo Meckler	....	legal services: Live America
Melanie Molyneux	....	set medic
Cathy Ragona	....	assistant: Richard N. Gladstein
Moses Robinson	....	production assistant
Julie Rohde-Brown	....	assistant coordinator (as Juliet Brown)
Scott Sampler	....	production assistant
Nicholas Toth	....	animal handler
Elizabeth Treadwell	....	production assistant
Michael Mendelsohn	....	financial consultant (uncredited)
Marino Pascal	....	location scout (uncredited)
Jon Sperry	....	dialect coach: Harvey Keitel (uncredited)

Thanks
Rebecca Boss	....	special thanks (as Becka Boss)
Timothy Carey	....	dedicatee
Michael D. Carlin	....	special thanks (as Mike Carlon)
Merry Cheers	....	special thanks
Yun-Fat Chow	....	dedicatee (as Chow Yuen Fat)
Roger Corman	....	dedicatee
André De Toth	....	dedicatee (as Andre DeToth)
Peter Flood	....	special thanks
Terry Gilliam	....	special thanks
Jean-Luc Godard	....	dedicatee
Ulu Grosbard	....	special thanks
Alison Howard	....	special thanks
Cathryn James	....	special thanks (as Cathryn Jaymes)
John Lieberman	....	thanks (as Mr. John Lieberman)
Kenneth McGregor	....	special thanks (as Kenneth McGreggor)
Jean-Pierre Melville	....	dedicatee (as Jean Pierre Melville)
Harry Nilsson	....	special thanks
Lilly Parker	....	special thanks
Laurie Post	....	special thanks
Stephen Sacks	....	special thanks
Tony Safford	....	special thanks
Michelle Satter	....	special thanks
Tony Scott	....	special thanks
Stacey Sher	....	special thanks (as Stacy Sher)
Todd M. Thaler	....	special thanks (as Todd Thaler)
Lawrence Tierney	....	dedicatee
Bill Unger	....	special thanks
Greta von Steinbauer	....	special thanks (as Greta Vonsteinbauer)
Lionel White	....	dedicatee

Production Companies

• Live Entertainment (as Live America Inc.)
• Dog Eat Dog Productions Inc.

Distributors

• Miramax Films (1992) (USA) (theatrical)
• Artisan Entertainment (2002) (USA) (DVD)
• Ascot Elite Entertainment Group (1992) (Switzerland) (theatrical)
• Ascot Filmverleih (1992) (Germany) (theatrical)
• Dendy Films (Australia) (theatrical)
• Egmont Film (1993) (Sweden) (theatrical)
• Rank Film Organization (1993) (UK) (theatrical)
• Cine Company S.A. (Spain)
• Columbia TriStar Home Video (Australia) (VHS)
• Egmont Film
• Flashstar Home Vídeo (200?) (Brazil) (DVD)
• Flashstar Home Vídeo (Brazil) (VHS)
• Fox Crime (2007) (Japan) (TV)
• Impuls Home Entertainment (2003) (Switzerland) (DVD)
• Lions Gate Films Home Entertainment (2006) (USA) (DVD)
• Live Video (video)
• Maple Pictures (2007) (Canada) (DVD)
• Metropolitan Filmexport (France)
• Momentum Pictures (2000) (UK) (DVD)
• Nordisk Film (2004) (Sweden) (DVD)
• Penta Distribuzione
• PolyGram Video (1995) (UK) (VHS)
• Universal Pictures (Italy) (DVD)
• Universum Film (UFA) (2003) (Germany) (DVD)
• VCL Communications (2000) (Germany) (DVD)

Special Effects

• K.N.B. Effects Group (special makeup effects)

Other Companies

• Mi Casa Multimedia  DVD audio mix & mastering 5.1
• Banque Paribas  banking services
• Cine Sound 5  production sound and communication equipment
• Dolby Laboratories  sound post-production
• Film Finance  completion bond guarantee
• Innovative Cutting  negative cutting
• Judy Garland & Associates  productional thanks
• Keylite Production Services  production equipment
• Mario's Catering  production catering
• Matrix Alliance Inc.  editorial facilities
• NBA Properties Inc.  productional thanks
• Pepsi-Cola Company  productional thanks
• Post Plus Inc.  editorial facilities
• Quaker Oats  productional thanks
• Scenario Agentur für Fernsehen und Film  set construction
• Secure Locations  set security
• Special Effects Services  equipment furnishing
• Star Casting Service  extras casting
• Sundance Institute, The  special thanks
• Title House  titles and opticals
• Truman Van Dyke Company  production insurance
• Weddington Productions  sound post-production services

Also Known As:

Reservoir Dogs - Wilde Hunde (Austria) (Germany) [de]
аЕЬЕММШЕ оЯШ (Russia) [ru]
Cães Danados (Portugal) [pt]
Cães de Aluguel (Brazil) [pt]
Calbay Ashmoret (Israel: Hebrew title) [iw]
Cani da rapina (Italy) (reissue title) [it]
De hänsynslösa (Sweden) [sv]
De hensynsløse (Norway) [no]
Gauneri (Czechoslovakia: Czech title) [cs]
Hånd langerne (Finland: Swedish title) [sv]
Håndlangerne (Denmark) [da]
Kutyaszorítóban (Hungary) [hu]
Le iene (Italy) [it]
Perros de la calle (Argentina) [es]
Reservoir Dogs (Finland) [fi]
Reservoir Dogs (Spain) [es]
Reservoir Dogs (France) [fr]
Stekli psi (Slovenia) [sl]
Ulicni psi (Serbia) [sr]
Wsciekle psy (Poland) [pl]

MPAA:

Rated R for strong violence and language.

Runtime:

99 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Eastmancolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Certification:

Finland:K-16 (cut) | Finland:K-18 | Hungary:18 | Argentina:16 | Singapore:M18 (cut) | Philippines:R-18 | Brazil:18 | USA:TV-MA (cable rating) | South Africa:16 | Singapore:R(A) | Argentina:18 (DVD rating) | Canada:18A (Alberta) (2009) | Australia:MA (Cable TV rating) | Canada:18+ (Quebec) (Original rating) | Australia:R | Belgium:KNT | Canada:16+ (Québec) | Canada:R | Denmark:15 (DVD rating) | France:-16 | Germany:18 | Hong Kong:III | Iceland:16 | Ireland:18 | Israel:18 | Italy:VM18 | Japan:R-15 | Netherlands:16 | New Zealand:R18 | Norway:18 | Portugal:M/16 | South Korea:(Banned) (original rating) | South Korea:18 (re-rating) | Spain:18 | Sweden:15 | UK:18 | USA:R

Filming Locations:

Johnie's Coffee Shop - 6101 Wilshire Boulevard, Fairfax, Los Angeles, California, USA

Company:

Live Entertainment

Trivia:

The film contains 272 uses of the word "fuck".

Goofs:

Errors made by characters (possibly deliberate errors by the filmmakers): When Mr. White and Mr. Pink are talking about Mr. Blonde going "psycho" at the heist, Mr. White says he almost took Mr. Blonde out himself. When the two later confront Mr. Blonde about his antics, Mr. White says to Mr. Pink, "You said yourself you thought about taking him out."

Quotes:

[first lines]
Mr. Brown: Let me tell you what 'Like a Virgin' is about. It's all about a girl who digs a guy with a big dick. The entire song. It's a metaphor for big dicks.
Mr. Blonde: No, no. It's about a girl who is very vulnerable. She's been fucked over a few times. Then she meets some guy who's really sensitive...
Mr. Brown: Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa... Time out Greenbay. Tell that fucking bullshit to the tourists.
Joe: Toby... Who the fuck is Toby? Toby...
Mr. Brown: 'Like a Virgin' is not about this sensitive girl who meets a nice fella. That's what "True Blue" is about, now, granted, no argument about that.
Mr. Orange: Which one is 'True Blue'?
Nice Guy Eddie: 'True Blue' was a big ass hit for Madonna. I don't even follow this Tops In Pops shit, and I've at least heard of "True Blue".
Mr. Orange: Look, asshole, I didn't say I ain't heard of it. All I asked was how does it go? Excuse me for not being the world's biggest Madonna fan.
Mr. Blonde: Personally, I can do without her.
Mr. Blue: I like her early stuff. You know, 'Lucky Star', 'Borderline' - but once she got into her 'Papa Don't Preach' phase, I don't know, I tuned out.
Mr. Brown: Hey, you guys are making me lose my... train of thought here. I was saying something, what was it?
Joe: Oh, Toby was this Chinese girl, what was her last name?
Mr. White: What's that?
Joe: I found this old address book in a jacket I ain't worn in a coon's age. What was that name?
Mr. Brown: What the fuck was I talking about?
Mr. Pink: You said 'True Blue' was about a nice girl, a sensitive girl who meets a nice guy, and that 'Like a Virgin' was a metaphor for big dicks.
Mr. Brown: Lemme tell you what 'Like a Virgin' is about. It's all about this cooze who's a regular fuck machine, I'm talking morning, day, night, afternoon, dick, dick, dick, dick, dick, dick, dick, dick, dick.
Mr. Blue: How many dicks is that?
Mr. White: A lot.
Mr. Brown: Then one day she meets this John Holmes motherfucker and it's like, whoa baby, I mean this cat is like Charles Bronson in the 'Great Escape', he's digging tunnels. Now, she's gettin' the serious dick action and she's feeling something she ain't felt since forever. Pain. Pain.
Joe: Chew? Toby Chew?
Mr. Brown: It hurts her. It shouldn't hurt her, you know, her pussy should be Bubble Yum by now, but when this cat fucks her it hurts. It hurts just like it did the first time. You see the pain is reminding a fuck machine what it once was like to be a virgin. Hence, 'Like a Virgin'.
Joe: Wong?

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Die Nacht der lebenden Loser (2004)

Soundtrack:

HARVEST MOON

Ten years on - still brilliant!

It's hard to get your head around the fact that 'Reservoir Dogs' has been around for ten years. It's almost difficult to remember a time before Tarantino made such an enormous impact (good and bad) on movies, but I saw this movie first time round before the hype. All I knew was that, like another "dog" movie from the same era that I saw, 'Man Bites Dog', that it was supposed to be violent, funny and disturbing, and that it starred a long time favourite of mine Harvey Keitel, and Tim Roth, who I mainly knew from Greenaway's 'The Cook The Thief His Wife & Her Lover'. Okay, I hope it's good I thought as I waited in the cinema listening to some half remembered 70s A.M. pop and a strange conversation about Madonna's sex life (the cinema was playing the soundtrack album before the main feature, but what did we know). Then the movie itself, electrifying and fascinating from the word go. It's impossible to describe the impact of seeing this for the first time without knowing what to expect! Still one of my greatest movie memories. Ten years later I've seen it countless times so the surprise has obviously worn off, but it is still a brilliant movie because beneath the violence and wise-cracks of Mr. Pink (Steve Buscemi - 'In The Soup'), Mr. Blonde (Michael Madsen - 'Thelma & Louise'), and Nice Guy Eddie (Chris Penn - 'At Close Range'), there is a lot of depth, that being the very human relationship between Mr. White (Keitel) and Mr.Orange (Roth). To me that is one of the things that elevates this above the many lame and unoriginal "Tarantinoesque" movies we've had to endure since 'Pulp Fiction'. His imitators just simply don't have a clue!

Simply brilliant cinema, and a modern classic. This is absolutely essential viewing!