Here we have "Reservoir Dogs: Sundance Institute 1991 June Film Lab", a 12-minute live action short film from 1991, so this one is already over 25 years old and it is of course an early approach by Quentin tarantino to one of his classics and when he made this one with the Sundance background, he was still in his 20s at that point. You see him and Steve Buscemi act in here for most of the film's second half and as I like them both, I certainly enjoyed this one. Tarantino's writing was really sharp and spot-on back then already. The character of Joe Cabot, maybe the most memorable from Reservoir Dogs, is portrayed by another younger actor here still, namely David Jensen and even if he did not return for the full feature film, he appeared in many other well-known films. So yeah if you like Q (and Buscemi) as much as I do or just love Reservoir Dogs just like I do, then feel free to check out this early rough version. It's not greatness, but still good enough that nobody should really be disappointed. I give it a thumbs-up.
2 Reviews
Writing is rewriting.
dreamingescapist9 July 2019
This short is like an audition tape of Quentin Tarantino for feature-length 'Reservoir Dogs' movie, but not to show his acting talent, but rather to showcase his writing chops. And, oh boy, what beautiful writing that is - edgy, witty and intelligent. This little gem was made with the help of the Sundance Film Institute to secure more funding for the feature-length movie.
Steve Buscemi is Mr. Pink (the role he reprised in the real movie), Tarantino is Mr. White (later portrayed by Harvey Keitel), and Joe Cabot is played by David Jensen (to whom this was the only collaboration with Tarantino). The writing is masterful, and proof to that besides fast dialogue is that the story is perfectly clear and characters are nicely drawn out. Steve Buscemi is brilliant, of course. Quentin Tarantino's own acting is atrocious but at the same time sincere and entertaining. But this is not important - he never wanted to show off his acting skills in this anyway. The direction is low key, but still interesting enough.
Don't expect too much from this. It is what it is - just a demo reel, a rehearsal of a couple of the scenes, yet it is a magnificently interesting piece of filmmaking that plays a much important part in the shaping of American independent cinema than it gets the credit for (this could be an overstatement by myself but nonetheless, check this short film out if you are a fan of Tarantino, 'Reservoir Dogs' or simply like indie movies).
Steve Buscemi is Mr. Pink (the role he reprised in the real movie), Tarantino is Mr. White (later portrayed by Harvey Keitel), and Joe Cabot is played by David Jensen (to whom this was the only collaboration with Tarantino). The writing is masterful, and proof to that besides fast dialogue is that the story is perfectly clear and characters are nicely drawn out. Steve Buscemi is brilliant, of course. Quentin Tarantino's own acting is atrocious but at the same time sincere and entertaining. But this is not important - he never wanted to show off his acting skills in this anyway. The direction is low key, but still interesting enough.
Don't expect too much from this. It is what it is - just a demo reel, a rehearsal of a couple of the scenes, yet it is a magnificently interesting piece of filmmaking that plays a much important part in the shaping of American independent cinema than it gets the credit for (this could be an overstatement by myself but nonetheless, check this short film out if you are a fan of Tarantino, 'Reservoir Dogs' or simply like indie movies).
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