The Colors of Cool

Throughout the semester, we have been studying different areas and portrayals of cool. While this movie, Reservoir Dogs, wasn’t one of my favorites, it portrayed a good variety of cools. Joe, Mr. Blonde, Mr. Pink, Mr. Orange, and Mr. White all have their own style and flare.

Joe

Joe Cabot is the man in charge, the head honcho, the man with the plan. He is the criminal mastermind, the one planning numerous jobs. He seems to know everything and everyone. All of the guys like him; they kid with him and seem to have a good time with him. They also trust that his plan is thorough and efficient. Joe is not a man to mess with, though. Mr. Orange described him as like The Thing from Fantastic Four, and the description was a great one. Joe has the growling voice and the big person to make a person think twice about confronting him. He has an overpowering and competent cool.

Mr. Blonde

Mr. Blonde is complex. He is a tough, almost crazy guy. He seems like a loose cannon, one who is going to go his own way. Calling you out, Mr. Blonde will challenge you, but he won’t get in your face. He has a collected air about him, and he isn’t one to get angry or excited or anything beyond calm. There is one cool you would never expect from this man: loyalty. He did four years in prison for Joe when he could have betrayed Joe and gone free.

Mr. Pink

Mr. Pink is a confusion. He cares the most of the guys about being cool, but he just can’t gain that status. He tries to take on too many different types of cool: professional, macho and in your face, and a rebel. Throughout the movie, he is always exclaiming that the guys need to be professionals. He also defends his masculinity by complaining about being called ‘Mr. Pink’. Finally, he tries to stand out from the rest by making a big deal about tipping. He enjoyed and felt intelligent when he criticized something no one else did.

Mr. Orange

Mr. Orange is somewhat like Mr. Pink in that his cool is one he created. Unlike Allen in Play It Again, Sam, Mr. Orange is successful in acting like criminal. Everyone, even Joe until the end, is fooled by this undercover cop’s act.

Mr. White

Finally, Mr. White, my favorite character, is unlike any criminal type. He is caring, almost motherly. He cares the most about Mr. Orange when he is shot, and protects him when Joe is about to take Mr. Orange out. To a fault, Mr. White shows loyalty and compassion for those he takes under his wing. Him as a mother bear is a perfect image: he cares so much for his cub and is terribly fierce when danger jumps upon that cub.