Fantastic movie featuring brilliant performances.

Rating: 10/10 (22 July 2000)

Reservoir Dogs is one of my favorite movies. Unlike most people I prefer this film to Pulp Fiction, Quentin Tarantino's follow-up to Reservoir Dogs. The story line is fairly simple with a group of criminals who know nothing about each other meeting in a warehouse after a jewel heist turns violent. The criminals are the calm veteran played by Harvey Keitel (Copland, Bugsy), the dying young criminal played by Tim Roth (Rob Roy, Hoodlum), the sadistic but calm man played by Michael Madsen (Donnie Brasco, Free Willy), and the jumpy nervous guy played by Steve Buscemi (Desperado, Con Air). They are waiting for their boss well-played by Lawrence Tierney (Dillinger, Born to Kill) and his son played by Chris Penn (Deceiver, Rush Hour). As they wait what little trust there was disappears as they suspect that one of them is a rat leading to violent conflicts. There are several tough scenes to watch, especially a torture scene. The film however is very well-written and amazingly acted. Keitel, Roth, Penn, and Buscemi are all excellent. The film's best performance belongs to one of my favorite actors, Michael Madsen. Madsen delivers an unforgettable and chilling take on his sadistic character.