Resevoir Dogs

This movie by Quentin Tarentino is excellent, but it hits you like a train wreck. It's violent, bloody and somewhat senseless. But you have to remember that its about the mob. The set up is that 5 or 6 guys go to rob a diamond wholesaler and somehow botch the job. Horribly botch the job.

Steve Buschemi is Mr. Pink, the only guy who really has his head on his shoulders. The movie is set up so that you grow to like all the characters, except Vince Vega aka Mr. Blonde. Yet, they're all scumbags, including the cop (Mr. Orange). In one scene the cop is talking to his buddy and the buddy says "He's not a good guy, he's selling out all his friends", which ultimately is what Mr. Orange is doing. He's also the only person seen killing a civilian.

The scene in the diner shows humanity of the characters. It's a great scene. There are a number of scenes like this- Mr. Pink wanting to be a different alias, Vince Vega and Nice Guy Eddie wrestling in Eddie's dad's office, etc.

The style is very interesting. It goes back and forth between current events and the past, basically what brought the characters to that point. Their movie does not flow linearly and this makes it hard to tell what happened when. Even so,the robbery is never actually shown.

The movie is well worth watching, because of the acting, the directing, and the writing but it is very violent (one character slowly bleeds to death and another has his ear cut off), so if you are at all squeamish do not watch it. The violence is senseless, but that is the point. The movie does have a point, but I still cannot say whether or not I enjoyed watching it.

Angelo's

Angelo's is a local Italian Restaurant downtown on Clayton street. It features a more traditional menu than Depalma's, however the food is not quite as good. Most of the food is good, but I would stay away from the spinach lasagna. The calzones and some of the meat dishes are much better. However all the food is made in advance and reheated upon order, which is the main problem with the food. I seem to remember that they had good pizza, but its been a long time since I've had any.

What really makes this place is the atmosphere. The walls are decorated with photos of Dean Martin, Frank Sinatra, and actors from famous mafia movies like Al Pesci (Goodfellas). They also play classic American- Italian songs like Frank Sinatra's Luck Be A Lady and Dean Martin's That's Amore.

Although the food leaves a little something to be desired, its still good and worth a try. I would recommend the calzones or the stromboli and save the lasagna for your Italian grandmother (what? you don't have an Italian grandmother? well neither do I, so learn to cook it yourself).