Reservoir Dogs Intro

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  • Reservoir Dogs Intro

    Madonna, sounds of the 70s, Toby Wong and tipping - in a world of everything must be relevant and drive the story forward, how does this opening (brilliant as it is) do just that? None of it springs up again (save for sounds of the 70s actually being broadcast). The only thing I saw as a foreshadowing was the Mr White/Mr Blonde exchange.
    M.A.G.A.

  • #2
    Re: Reservoir Dogs Intro

    Originally posted by SundownInRetreat View Post
    Madonna, sounds of the 70s, Toby Wong and tipping - in a world of everything must be relevant and drive the story forward, how does this opening (brilliant as it is) do just that?
    It's also relevant if it captures the audience's attention and helps to set a mood or tone. These things aren't scientific and shouldn't always be interpreted literally or in absolute terms - movies are also about what it feels like, unmeasurable qualities that give a work personality and intrigue. Directors, editors, and DoPs are always doing stuff just because it's cool or feels right and helps create a particular emotional subtext; some things don't need any other reason for being there. Like you said, "brilliant as it is" ...
    "Friends make the worst enemies." Frank Underwood

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    • #3
      Re: Reservoir Dogs Intro

      It entertains and gives a sense of the characters. Job done.

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      • #4
        Re: Reservoir Dogs Intro

        Originally posted by DavidK View Post
        It's also relevant if it captures the audience's attention and helps to set a mood or tone. These things aren't scientific and shouldn't always be interpreted literally or in absolute terms - movies are also about what it feels like, unmeasurable qualities that give a work personality and intrigue. Directors, editors, and DoPs are always doing stuff just because it's cool or feels right and helps create a particular emotional subtext; some things don't need any other reason for being there. Like you said, "brilliant as it is" ...
        "Dogs" is a heist film, but by its opening scene, it's not going to be a traditional heist film. Same thing with "The Wild Bunch". A group of Army soldiers are on horseback, riding into a Texas town, arriving at a railroad office. A group of scrappy gunmen are on the roof of another building. We think the gunmen are the bad guys, but it's the Army that robs the railroad office. This isn't a traditional western.
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        • #5
          Re: Reservoir Dogs Intro

          - because it's cool and sets up the vibe of the film maybe?
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          • #6
            Re: Reservoir Dogs Intro

            Imagine that the beginning wasn't there...

            So now we have a few men in a warehouse, one's bleeding and there's talk of more of their gang being on the run. Do you care?

            See: the beginning sets up the characters; it shows each and exposes a little of their personalities so that we can emote. In a technical sense, it does little to move the plot forward, true, but then, do we need to see the leading lady walking in on her man whilst he's screwing another woman? Surely it does nothing to move the plot forward, since it's information we can toss out off-hand, later on in the film ("My ex cheated on me").

            If there's truly no reason for a scene, then I'd say CUT IT! But if it does serve a purpose - especially if it helps draw the viewer in - then it deserves its place.


            To answer your question in a more direct fashion:

            - Mr. Pink is a free-thinker, witty, and we instantly either like him or don't. Whilst other personalities are revealed (the grass, who turns out to be a cop), we're entertained by Pink's view on tipping and a hit single.
            I've only seen the film once, and that was a long time ago, and where I wasn't a big fan, Pink's banter was so ground-breaking, that it spawned a million wannabe-Tarantino clones who, unfortunately, failed to realise that dialogue exists (in my opinion) for only one reason: exposition.

            Dialogue reveals character, mood, information or it's there because you have a comedy (which is a second reason, but I don't write them so don't count it).

            The flip-side, of course, is Clint's famously silent cowboy.

            I'd like to see a poll as to which of the two characters had more influence on screenwriters...
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            • #7
              Re: Reservoir Dogs Intro

              Originally posted by TheConnorNoden View Post
              It entertains and gives a sense of the characters. Job done.
              Yeppers.

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              • #8
                Re: Reservoir Dogs Intro

                A recent Cracked article titled 5 Brilliant Clues Hidden in the Background of Movies also goes into how this scene defines the characters and foreshadows their relationships throughout the film.

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                • #9
                  Re: Reservoir Dogs Intro

                  It's a valid question. Here's my two cents.

                  I think if Tarantino was trying to sell the script to a studio, prodco, or big producer, he might have had trouble getting them to read past the first 10 pages. But the engine to getting it made was Keitel, and whatever was in those pages appealed to him -- i.e., a lot of cool dialogue that entertains and informs the characters. I think a script in which every line of dialogue drives the story forward is great, but unless done expertly it can lead to a lot of uninteresting spoken words. This script was the opposite of that. Almost all the plot in Reservoir Dogs happened by the time the opening credits run. The flashbacks piece it together, introduce characters, and solve a mystery. The dialogue paints a picture more than it drives a story.

                  But the short answer: Keitel enjoyed the read, wanted to play the role, they raised the money, got more cast, Tarantino's a genius, and the rest is history.

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                  • #10
                    Re: Reservoir Dogs Intro

                    I wonder if there isn't a bit of foreshadowing with the talk about "The Night the Lights Went Out in Georgia"--a song about a crime committed by a mysterious perpetrator.

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                    • #11
                      Re: Reservoir Dogs Intro

                      The answer it extremely simple. To understand the purpose of the first scene, just recall the scene that immediately follows it (after the slo-mo credit sequence, that is)

                      What is happening in the scene? THE **** IS HITTING THE FAN, THAT'S WHAT! Orange has been shot! It's chaos! It's crazy! We have no idea what is going on or what when wrong! There is no time now to ease the audience into the premise or take the usual time to introduce the audience to the characters. You can't do that when **** IS FLYING OUT OF CONTROL!

                      This is the function of Dog's opening scene: to quickly and unobtrusively introduce the characters, suggest the nature of their relationship, and give the audience an idea of their individual personalities - done not overtly, but disguised behind something that distracts and entertains the audience - before it's too late and everything goes crazy. Sure, Tarantino could have take a more traditional route, but he wanted to hit the ground running with the shock of opening cold with Orange bleeding all over the backseat. Without the diner bit, the audience would not be fully in the moment in this cold opening because they would be distracted wondering who are these guys, what is their situation, and why they should care.
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                      • #12
                        Re: Reservoir Dogs Intro

                        Thanks for the responses. I understand and accept what you're all saying about intro'ing the characters (and the Cracked article was very useful too) but in the interest on debate in films we learn about characters through actions and so Res Dogs didn't need its intro. We could've just opened with White racing through the streets with Orange in the back seat. This shows he's a soft touch as does all his dialogue to Pink as to why he shared his name and his insistence throughout that Joe gets a doctor. Pink's dialogue to White indicates he's a thinker and a professional. He even says it outloud:

                        "Fuck you, White! I didn't create the situation, I'm just dealin' with it! You're acting like a first year fucking theif - I'm acting like a professional! If they get him, they can get you. They get you, they get closer to me, and that can't happen! And you, motherfucker, are lookin' at me like it's MY fault. I didn't tell him my name. I didn't tell him where I was from. I didn't tell him what I knew better than NOT to tell him! Fuck, fifteen minutes ago you almost told me your name! You, buddy, are stuck in a situation YOU created. So, if you wanna throw bad looks somewhere, throw 'em at a mirror.

                        And we didn't need the scene where he playfully rips the book from Joe's hand because the flashback scene with him in Joe's office indicates they go way back and that they're close (for violent criminals). So I'm guessing it's less "essential" in order to show characters and dynamics and more, as David said, a personal decision to do it that way.


                        Thanks for shedding more light on this great scene and FYI, I'm with Pink regarding tipping. When I first saw the film in the cinema I was gobsmacked - because Pink was reciting the exact same points I used.
                        M.A.G.A.

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                        • #13
                          Re: Reservoir Dogs Intro

                          IMO the point of the scene is to create tension in the audience. QT knows we came in for a heist film… then toys with our expectations for an endless 10+ minutes for mildly amusing regular-guys banter. No guns, no crime talk, just a subtle sense of social hierarchy.

                          Then when we're dropped into the chaos, the brutality of it hits us much harder by virtue of the juxtaposition of the non-events that preceded.

                          PS. If you don't tip waitresses, you suck as a person.

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                          • #14
                            Re: Reservoir Dogs Intro

                            Sometimes it's like Tarantino puts scenes in just to entertain his audience - how dare he.
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