Quentin Tarantino’s Reservoir Dogs is one of the greatest and most memorable directorial debuts of all time. Although the Stealers Wheel torture scene prompted a surprising number of walkouts, the movie went on to singlehandedly reinvigorate American independent cinema.
A lot of Tarantino’s hallmarks were established in Reservoir Dogs, like his satirically graphic violence and homage-driven storytelling. From the offset, as the characters analyze Madonna’s “Like a Virgin” in a diner, Reservoir Dogs introduced audiences to Q.T.’s unique dialogue style. Moviegoers were hooked right away. 30 years later, Tarantino’s filmography has some of the most quoted lines in film history, from “Royale with cheese” to “Gorlami.”
“I Don’t Tip Because Society Says I Have To.” – Mr. Pink
When the guys pay the check at the end of breakfast in the opening scene of Reservoir Dogs, Joe asks everybody at the table to chip in a dollar for the tip. Mr. Pink protests tipping etiquette, saying that he’ll tip if the waitstaff goes the extra mile, but that automatic tipping is “for the birds.”
A full eight years before Larry David would grace HBO’s airwaves with Curb Your Enthusiasm, Mr. Pink said, “I don’t tip because society says I have to.”
“Are You Gonna Bark All Day, Little Doggy, Or Are You Gonna Bite?” – Mr. Blonde
Mr. Blonde is one of the evilest and most sadistic characters in Tarantino’s rogue’s gallery. Even after the writer-director has introduced audiences to Col. Hans Landa and Calvin Candie, Mr. Blonde remains one of his most sinister villains.
But Michael Madsen’s ice-cool performance makes him oddly charismatic. When Mr. White is chewing him out for needlessly killing innocent civilians, Mr. Blonde coolly says, “Are you gonna bark all day, little doggy, or are you gonna bite?”
“Dead As Dillinger.” – Joe Cabot
When Joe finally arrives at the rendezvous point, he’s pretty unhappy with how the job turned out. He says, “You don’t know jack sh*t. I do. The c**ksucker tipped off the cops and got Mr. Brown and Mr. Blue killed.”
Surprised to hear about the second one (but not the first one), Mr. Pink asks, “Mr. Blue is dead?” Joe replies, “Dead as Dillinger.”
“The Entire Song Is A Metaphor...” – Mr. Brown
In the opening scene of Reservoir Dogs, the characters sit around a diner and talk about pop culture before the big heist. Mr. Brown, played by Tarantino, explains his interpretation of the Madonna classic “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.”
“You Shoot Me In A Dream, You Better Wake Up And Apologize.” – Mr. White
When Mr. White and Mr. Blonde clash 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. Blonde ends up being shot dead by Mr. Orange.
“Stop Pointing That F****** Gun At My Dad!” – Nice Guy Eddie
The climax of Reservoir Dogs sees the surviving characters caught in a standoff in the warehouse. Joe wants to kill Mr. Orange, and Mr. White threatens to kill Joe if he does so, so Joe’s son “Nice Guy” Eddie pulls his own gun on Mr. White.
The line, “Larry, stop pointing that f*cking gun at my dad,” was tweaked slightly and included in Shaun of the Dead as “Don’t point that gun at my mum!”
“No Real People?” – Mr. Pink
Since Mr. Orange has a bullet wound that’s bleeding like a sieve, Mr. White doesn’t get to discuss the aftermath of the robbery until Mr. Pink arrives at the rendezvous. They have an interaction that truly shows the callousness of these thieves and their line of work.
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."
“Torture You? That’s A Good Idea. I Like That.” – Mr. Blonde
The most iconic scene in Reservoir Dogs — and the one that caused the most people to walk out during early screenings — is the torture scene. Mr. Blonde ties the cop he kidnapped, Marvin Nash, to a chair in the warehouse, then the others unwisely leave Mr. Blonde alone with the hostage. Marvin tells Mr. Blonde, “I already told you I don’t know anything about any f*cking setup. You can torture me all you want.” Mr. Blonde playfully replies, “Torture you? That’s a good idea. I like that.”
As Stealers Wheel’s unnervingly upbeat “Stuck in the Middle with You” plays on the radio, Mr. Blonde cuts off Marvin’s ear and pours gasoline on him.
“Let’s Go To Work.” – Joe Cabot
One of the funniest scenes in Reservoir Dogs sees Joe Cabot giving out the color-coded names to his crew. They all argue over which colors they’ll get. Mr. Brown says his name is too close to “Mr. Sh*t.” Joe sternly tells them they’re not changing their names and says, “Let’s go to work.”
Although this quote is now most commonly associated with this movie, it’s one of several lines of dialogue Tarantino took from an earlier movie: Richard Brooks’ The Professionals.
“Larry... I’m A Cop.” – Mr. Orange
While the heist takes place off-screen, it’s made clear that the robbery went horribly wrong due to someone on the crew being an undercover cop. Throughout the movie, Mr. White develops a kind of father-son bond with Mr. Orange as he tries to nurse his gunshot wound. He even tells him his real name.
In the heartbreaking final scene, Mr. White cradles a dying Mr. Orange as the building is swarmed by cops and Mr. Orange confesses, “Larry... I’m a cop.”