ENG 201 - 20420
30 April 2015
CE - 2
Reservoir Dogs & Pulp Fiction: Life’s Parodies

In the film Reservoir Dogs, Joe Cabot organizes the group that will participate in a diamond robbery. No one in the crew knows each other’s name. Since that is his intention, Cabot gives them codenames from a color chart. He names them Mr. Orange, Mr. Pink, Mr. White, Mr.
Blue, Mr. Purple, and Mr. Brown. It is odd to Cabot that the gentleman referred to as Mr. Pink disliked his codename. The name is just a code that will help the crew identify each other so no one expects him to start arguing about the name. Mr. Pink represents the outcasts of this society.
Every time he argues in the movie, everyone is quick to counter him. That is like today’s feminists, civil rights activists, and the differences between politicians, anyone who is against society’s “norms” is subject to criticism.
An expectation for a group of criminals is the fact that they can handle the pressure that comes with the crime. Yet, in this film, the group is made up of bluffers. They act desperately in almost every situation they find themselves in. For instance, when they found out someone was double crossing the, they all become panicky and start pointing their guns at each other. Another example is when Mr. Orange gets shot, he panics and pleads with Mr. White to take him to the hospital. This film teaches the audience that if one gives guns to an individual that has childlike characteristics, someone will get shot.
The film expresses Tarantino’s ideas as funny. The crew constantly argues on who got a better code name. They also make fun of each other. They also engage in conversation about how black girls don’t take harsh treatment from their men contrary to white women. All this illustrates the comedic part of this movie. The fact that the crew is made up of bluffers that are not really tough brings out the funny part of the film. It is a parody of this society and its men.
This society encourages one to go through extreme measures to mirror unrealistic standards. Be someone you are not or prepare to be an outcast. That is society’s message nowadays. Now regarding men, it has been a well-known fact that a man’s greatest weakness is his ego. If one emasculates a man, he will do anything to prove his worth. In this movie, when Mr. Brown says,
“Are you going to bark all day little doggy? Or are you going to bite?” Mr. White becomes outraged of the statement and immediately threatens to kill his own friend. Tarantino depicts the way a man’s head really works. They may be the heads of society but they are actually weaker than they look.
In the film Pulp Fiction, Vincent is a reckless killer. He and his partner are heading to a violent scene and they find humor in it. Vincent is a man that does not know how to clean up after himself when he kills. Usually, a killer covers his tracks to ensure his safety from the police. However, he is lucky enough to have people clean up after him. What is even more absurd is when Vincent and his wife have a heated debate on how they kill. This illustrates how they take their profession seriously. Another time people find a killing couple is in the movie Mr.
& Mrs. Smith. Vincent does not take consequences into consideration.

It is a movie of individuals that commit murder for a living. Captain Koons is a military officer that tells a tale of how he obtained a gold watch in explicit detail. He presents it as a gift to a young boy. To enhance the comedic storyline is when Vincent and Cpt. Koon engage in humorous discussions about their killings. This portrays the horrific reality some people face.
There are people out there who enjoy killing others. Assassins exist. Assassins are willing to take thousands of lives for money. As long as they get paid, they have no regrets. Also, of course, there are various stories about psychotic serial killers (John Wayne Gacy aka scary killer clown, anyone?) who take pleasure (literally) in homicide. Tarantino satirically portrays murder in this film because this is a real life issue. A real life issue no one dares to challenge nor put a stop to.
This is the society we live in today, ego over rationality and death is brushed off as long as one’s self is not involved. This is Tarantino’s allegory in his two life’s parodies.