I am focusing my study on the 1992 film Reservoir Dogs which was directed and written by Quentin Tarantino. I am going to be looking at the narrative, iconography, settings, characters, themes, style, audience response and the target audience, and how the genre is shown throughout the film. These factors all come together as the Repertoire of Elements. Genre, meaning type or kind, is “seen as offering an important way of framing texts” (Dunn, 2015) and is defined by the repertoire of elements which are the characteristics that make up the film, which are always developing. This means that “Genres are seen no longer as sets of fixed elements” (Branston, 2010).
Narrative
The narrative of a film is often a key indication of the film genre, as stated by (Toolan, 2001) “narratives often seem to have bits we have seen or heard” which allows the audience to recognise the genre due to other films they have seen within the same genre. In most films the genre becomes apparent in the first scene of the film however in Reservoir Dogs this is not the case. Tarantino works with non-linear storylines which means that the first scene in the film is not the beginning of the story.
Reservoir Dogs begins immediately with group of men sat round a table in a diner talking. At this point there has been no introduction to the characters and the audience has no real indication as to what the genre is or what the film is about. We then jump to a scene where two characters, Mr Orange and Mr White, are in a car. At this moment Mr Orange is in the back seat covered in blood holding a gun shot and crying out in pain, this is the moment it becomes clear that the film is to do with crime and drama. I would say this scene is the first key moment of this film, not the opening scene.
In most cases in film there is a set balance to the narrative (state of equilibrium) and then as the story progresses and events happen there is a change in balance, this is called the disruption of equilibrium (disequilibrium). Due to the constant flashbacks throughout the film it is not possible to determine a clear disruption of equilibrium. One key point of the film that could be classed as disequilibrium is when the characters realise that the heist was a set up and one of the men on the job is in fact an undercover police officer. The change in emotions to the characters becomes clear as they get stressed and violent, this leads to the audience being in suspense, awaiting to find out which character is undercover.
Iconography
Iconography is the use of significant objects, either audio or visual, to help indicate the genre, time and place of which the film takes place. In reservoir dogs a good indication to the time is the phones that are used by the characters, these are very large and seen as the first mobile phones that existed. Also the classic cars that they drive round in indicates that it is the early 90s. The fashion sense throughout the film indicates at the genre. Most of the main characters are seen only wearing black suits which is a clear indication of them being serious and ‘gangsters’. (Langford, 2005) describes the film as “A parodic underworld ‘uniform’ of black suits, white shirts and skinny black ties, in homeage to the early 1960s style” which states that Tarantino has used examples from other films and used the same iconic fashion. The particular use of fashion also suggests that there is more to the characters than just being criminals, stated by (Langford, 2005) “This retro intertextual styling immediately announces these gangsters distance from ‘real’ crime”.
Another key feature of the film is the music that is played however this is a contrast of the time. The radio station that is played throughout the film airs a show that plays music from the 70’s, this is thought to be because “Tarantino wanted to make the time period somewhat ambiguous” (Shmoop, 2008). The songs played give a contrast to the time as these songs are upbeat whereas what the audience see’s is violence and crime.
Settings and Locations
Often genres can easily be determined by the settings and locations throughout films. Genres are often associated with certain locations, for example, horror films typically take place in old houses and dark woods. Reservoir Dogs takes place in Los Angeles in the early 90’s, the audience is able to tell this due to the locations that are used. A lot of the film takes place in an old abandoned building which is out of they way, therefore it will be difficult for them to be found; this indicates to the film being about crime. A couple of the scenes also take place in diners which are an iconic setting for films based in America and indicates the time frame due to the interior design of the diners.
Characters
Not just in film but in a range of media texts the genre can often be worked out due to the characters and them having recognisable roles, for example the hero and the villain. Propps theory is that in every narrative structure is it “possible to group its characters and actions into: eight character roles” (Branston and Stafford, 2006) this basically suggests that within every film there will be the villain, the hero, the donor, the helper, the princess, the father, the dispatcher and the false hero; not every film will include each of these characters but atleast a few will be present. Majority of the characters in this film are villains, due to the film being about a robbery it is difficult to establish a hero/protagonist. When the audience finally finds out that the undercover police officer is Mr Orange he then becomes the ‘hero’ as he is trying to stop the robbery, however this is found out very late in the film. Holdaway can be seen as the ‘helper’ as he recruits Mr Orange and sends him on his way to successfully go undercover to stop the robbery.
Themes
A main theme within the film is violence and this is known almost immediately with one of the first scenes being Mr Orange bleeding out in the back of a car. Throughout the film more violent scenes happen involving torture, shootings and aggressive confrontations. Another key theme could be loyalty and trust. This is shown throughout the film as none of the characters know each other apart from the boss, Joe, who has recruited each man. A high level of trust would be crucial between the men so that the heist could go well, this however changes when the characters realise the heist was a set-up.
Style
Lighting and shot types are critical within film to help tell the story and set the mood. The mood is set throughout Reservoir Dogs by the use of low-key lighting. This means that the shots are quite dark and create a sense of drama and mystery. “Lowkey lighting is typically used when the director wants to either isolate a subject or convey drama” (Ward, 2015). The use of low-key lighting fits well with the film genre as it keeps the audience suspecting something will happen and keeps them engaged. In contrast to the lighting creating a dramatic atmosphere the music is a juxtaposition as it is upbeat and gives a happy feel. In the scene where Mr Blonde is left alone in the warehouse with the police officer the audience know that something intense is going to happen due to the lighting, however in the background is an upbeat song which contrasts the mood of that scene.
Shot types play a big part in telling a story as they capture the characters mood. In the opening scene, where the audience first meets the characters, Tarantino used a “tightly composed shot, creating an intimate relationship with them” (Interiors, 2012), this technique is quite intense however it is a good way to get the audience engaged right from the beginning. A lot of shots throughout the film are long shots which allows the audience to see the full performance from characters through their facial expressions, body language and actions.
Audience Response
Every film that is made aims to have a certain response from the audience depending on the genre, for example, a comedy would result in laughter from the audience and a horror would result in the audience being scared and possibly jumping and screaming. Reservoir dogs has elements of a range of genres such as action, thriller, mystery, drama and crime, therefore it could be said that there would be a variety of responses from the audience. A main response would be suspense, due to the revelation of a character being undercover. There is also a sense of sympathy that could come from the audience in the scene where Mr Blonde cuts off the ear of a police officer.
Target Audience
Tarantino is an extremely popular director and is widely known for his interesting storylines and brilliant work on films. This means that Tarantino films as a whole have a mass target audience and all it would take for people to be interested in watching a film is for them to find out it has been directed by Tarantino. Due to the strong language and violent scenes the film was rated 18, this could also lead to a stereotype that the audience could be predominately male due to the action and aggression.
I feel in this study i have analysed the films repertoire of elements and how the genre is shown throughout the film. Taking into consideration all the different aspects of crime/drama films and locating them within Reservoir Dogs. I have also shown how narrative structure links into the genre of a film and how even the slightest of details in a film can be an indicator to the genre and plot.