There are more than six and a half billion people living on this planet (United Nations 2008). Within this figure, there are six and a half billion differences: traits, likes and dislikes, ways of thinking. How should these six and a half billion people consider who is trustworthy enough to be their friends?
Trust is essential in friendship; however, it’s not easy to get, especially when a person has just entered into a group or if a group has just been formed. It is natural for an individual to have reservations and doubts that spins in his mind as he enters a group, doubts about what the others are like, and whether they are trustworthy. Although finding out the answers for these doubts is possible, it takes time and the chances of coming up with correct descriptions or identifications are very slim. Moreover, it is not possible for an average human to accurately predict what another is thinking in that exact moment.
The movie Reservoir Dogs, directed by Quentin Tarantino, has described friendship in a criminal world. Here, time is the main contributor in determining the trustworthiness between criminals. Each member of the group found out who really is a friend and who is not. They found out in time who should be trusted, and who should not. The group started out happily but ended tragically.
In the movie, there are six men included: Mr. Brown, Mr. White, Mr. Blonde, Mr. Blue, Mr. Orange, and Mr. Pink. The 6 top notch criminals were brought together to rob a diamond warehouse (IGN 2008). All of them thought that the operation will go smoothly as planned, and the diamond robbery will be successful (IMDb 2008). They confidently thought that nothing could go wrong. Unfortunately, something did go wrong.
Friendship has two faces: The true and the pretentious
There are reasons why people wanted to make friends. Dishonest and unscrupulous people want to make friends because they are up to something like material benefits. They don’t recognize the real essence of friendship and are pretentious. On the other hand, there are those who wanted friendship because they want to connect to people spiritually – these kinds of people recognize the true meaning of friendship. One thing is that people share or are concerned with the welfare of the other (Helm 2005).
At first, they believed in and trusted each other, and that they have done what they were told. They went through all the plannings, rehearsals, storytellings and joking around to try to get along with each other. At that time, they considered each other as “friends.”
Joe, Eddie, and Vic (also known as Mr. Blonde) shared a unique kind of relationship than the rest of the gang. Joe is the group’s crime boss (IMDb 2008). One proof is that when Vic was called to Joe’s office to hear the robbery plan. Inviting a person to come over to visit the host’s residence requires a higher level of trust. Also, Vic and Eddie try to make a mess of Joe’s office by wrestling with each other without much restraint. All of these shows an intimacy of friendship is developed as trust elevated between them.
Another proof of the close ties that the three share is during the operation. Among the members of the group, only Vic has contact with Eddie:
[on the phone as he (Eddie) drives to the warehouse] All I know is what Vic told me. He said the place turned into a fucking bullet festival. He took a cop as hostage, just to get the fuck outta there. said Nice Guy Eddie.
Only Vic has the means to keep in touch with Eddie compared to the rest of the members of the group. This implies that the level of trust is high between Eddie and Vic.
Another proof to their relationship is the reaction that Eddie showed when Mr. Orange told a story about Mr. Blonde planning to kill Eddie:
Let me say this out loud, ’cause I wanna get it straight in my head. You’re saying that Mr. Blonde was gonna kill you, then when we got back, he was going kill us, take the satchel of diamonds, and scram. I’m right about that, right? That’s correct? That’s your story?
Eddie said this in a very angry way when he heard Mr. Orange’s story. He didn’t believe in Mr. Orange, as he remembered their friendship, that Vic did something for him and Joe in the past that he is happy about. Eddie trusted that Vic would never do such a thing because of the close relationship that they share. In response, he retorted at Mr. Orange explaining why he didn’t believe him:
Eddie said: He could’ve fuckin’ walked. All he had to do was say my dad’s name, but he didn’t; he kept his fucking mouth shut. And did his fuckin’ time, and he did it like a man. He did four years for us. So, Mr. Orange, you’re tellin’ me this very good friend of mine, who did four years for my father, who in four years never made a deal, no matter what they dangled in front of him, you’re telling me that now, that now this man is free, and we’re making good on our commitment to him, he’s just gonna decide, out of the fucking blue, to rip us off?
Afterwards, friendship was also displayed among the three of them. There was a time when the police caught and imprisoned Vic because of dealing with “hot items.” Although he was caught and had gone through a series of interrogations, he never mentioned anything about Joe and Eddie. Because of this act, after four long years, the tie that they shared between them became stronger – so strong that Joe and Eddie could trust him with what he does. The good thing is that their friendship didn’t end in betrayal. To them, Vic is always a true friend who is ready to help them, aside from being their “right hand” in the operation.
Friendship was also portrayed in a scene where Mr. White showed concern to Mr. Orange. Mr. White on the other hand, showed his concern to deeply wounded Mr. Orange while driving towards the abandoned warehouse (IGN 2008). At that point, he was very worried and had tried comforting his badly wounded friend, Mr. Orange. He tried every way that he could think of to do something about it despite their situation. He had never stopped arguing with almost everybody he sees about getting medical attention to his friend. He sought not only once or twice, but thrice for it which can be seen in the scenes when Mr. Pink arrived, when Mr. Blonde showed up and when Nice Guy Eddie arrived at the scene.
Joe arrived last and declared that the “rat” in the group is actually the wounded Mr. Orange. Mr White firmly believed this was not true and defended Mr. Orange from Joe’s accusation.
Mr. White said: You’ve made a mistake. He’s a good kid. I understand. You’re hot, you’re super fucking pissed. We’re all real emotional. But you’re barking up the wrong tree. I know this man. He wouldn’t do that.
A rat is an insult for somebody untrustworthy, mean and deceitful, who betrays his or her friends. Mr. White’s defense towards Mr. Orange has shown Mr. White’s confidence in his trustworthy friend Mr. Orange. When Mr. White asked for proof about the accusation, Joe said that, “He was the only one I wasn’t 100% on. I should have my fuckin’ head examined, going on a plan like this when I wasn’t 100%.” Mr. White still didn’t believe. Unfortunately in his case, his belief and trust got betrayed in the end as Mr. Orange confessed to him that he was indeed a cop. Whereas Joe and Eddie received loyalty from Vic, Mr. White received betrayal from Mr. Orange. It all turned out at the end that Mr. Orange was not a friend at all as he had lied to and betrayed the group from the very beginning.
Betrayal is an unexpected surprise
Betrayal does not only apply to friendship but to the own self as well. It is defined as going against promise, harming another person or a group by helping and giving information that is confidential to the enemy. It also includes delivering somebody or something to an enemy unintentionally. There are scenes in the movie that depict these kinds of actions.
One scene is when Mr. White betrayed the group by disobeying the rule ordered by Joe, that prohibits any group members to tell others about their personal information like names and where he is from. Because of circumstance, he reveals his name and where he was from to Mr. Orange in two separate incidents. First is he told his name when they were on the way to the rendezvous point. Second is when Mr. White was about to tell his name to Mr. Pink, Mr. Pink reacts hysterically:
… I didn’t tell him my name. I didn’t tell him where I was from. I didn’t tell him what I knew better than NOT to tell him! Fuck, fifteen minutes ago you almost told me your name!…
Not only did Mr. White break the rules, he killed Joe and Eddie in a Mexican confrontation (IGN 2008). At that time, Joe pointed his gun to Mr. Orange’s chest, Mr. White pointed his to Joe’s heart, and Eddie aimed his at Mr. White’s head. Eddie and Larry (Mr. White) were friends as what Eddie said: “…you and I have been friends, and you respect my dad and I respect you…” It shows Mr. White had betrayed his friend Eddie.
Another betrayal scene in the movie took place when Mr. Orange who actually works for the law, betrays his group by revealing information about the group’s plans and whereabouts to the authorities. He even shot Mr. Blonde (Vic) 12 times when he was about to burn Marvin, his police mate. Mr. Orange deceived and betrayed the whole group as he hid his true identity, as at the end, Mr. Orange confessed he is indeed a cop. Mr. White, at last ended up being killed by the policemen despite all the concerns that he showed to Mr. Orange. The complicated emotion of being betrayed swirled inside Mr. White. He pointed his gun at Mr. Orange and tried to kill him.
Mr. Pink also displayed betrayal to not only to the group but also to himself. As the movie comes to an end, although he tried to stop them from shooting each other, he just hid and waited until they finish. After that, he comes out of hiding, gets the bag of diamonds and tries to flee. His actions betrayed his words, as he gets too emotional in this incident, which shows he is not a professional even though he repeatedly said that he is.
Loyalty: willfully given and not forcefully demanded
After everything that had happened, each character displayed certain levels of loyalty. But the three most notable ones are the loyalty displayed by the police officer Marvin, undercover agent Mr. Orange, and Vic. First, Marvin kept what he knew to himself. An example of this is him not revealing any secret just to protect Mr. Orange. Even he risked his life and encountered extremely painful physical torture, for instance, when Mr. Blonde slowly sawed off his right ear, and fought until Eddie shot him three times, killing him. He ended up this way because he tried to maintain loyal to and protect Mr. Orange by not answering Mr. Blonde’s question as to who the rat is.
Mr. Orange, endured two gunshot wounds, which are an unexpected gunshot from a lady civilian and a bullet shot from Joe. This had tortured him badly, even gave him the idea that he was dying. He only screamed and swore around inside the escape vehicle. Even though he suffered that much, he remained loyal to his commitment as an undercover agent. Whatever happened to him, he didn’t review his secret agent identity to anybody.
Vic, on the other hand, displayed his loyalty to Joe and Eddie. As when he was facing the four years of persecutions and brutalities in prison, he managed to keep his mouth shut and kept the two from falling into the hands of the law. When Marvin asked Vic about their boss Joe, Vic denied knowing anything saying “Excuse me pal, one thing I wanna make clear to you, I don’t have a boss. Nobody tells me what to do.” The loyalties of Mr. Orange (also known as Freddy Newandyke), Marvin and Vic were unmatched all throughout the story. They fought for what they believed in until the end. They went through so much trouble and pain, and even death but remained loyal to their duties.
Eddie, despite his confusion, displayed his loyalty to Joe, as he threatened to shoot Mr. White if he doesn’t point the gun away from Joe. On the other hand, Mr. Pink showed a different kind of loyalty to the group and Joe, because he reacted hysterically and argued with Mr. White about mentioning names and other personal information. His loyalty to Joe and the group was proven at that point.
No one really knows what another is thinking. A person always carries a heart that cannot be exactly understood. Sometimes, a person is even not sure what his own heart is thinking about and would not be even surer of another’s. Proof of this is when Mr. Joe cannot accurately predict if Mr. Orange is truly an undercover agent. Nevertheless, despite this handicap, true friendship does not demand or require anything in return. Genuine friendship does not forcefully demand loyalty from another person, as loyalty presents itself voluntarily. Betrayal does not show up immediately but is found when the situation presents it.
As the world constantly changes through time, it is unavoidable the people come and go. It is accepted that people you know may either stay or leave you. There are people who stand by you or leave you when the sky is grey. Yet, even though the world is like this, there remains hope. There remain true friends who would stand, defend, share, feel, and accept a person for who he or she is. There remain friends who would stay with and never betray you.
References
Gladstein, R. N., Ronna Wallace, Monte Hellman (Producers), & Tarantino, Q. (Director). 1992. Reservoir Dogs [Motion picture]. United States: Miramax Films.
IGN Entertainment. 2008. Reservoir Dogs (1992). Web.
IMDb The Internet Movie Database. 2008. Reservoir Dogs (1992). Web.
Helm, B. Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy – Friendship. 2005. Web.
United Nations. World POPClock Projection. 2008. Web.
Yahoo! Entertainment Yahoo! Movies. 2008. Reservoir Dogs (1992). Web.