10 "Gory" Movie Moments (That Didn't Show As Much As You Think)

10. Mr Blonde Severs An Ear (Reservoir Dogs - 1992)

Back in the day there were cinema-goers that walked out of Reservoir Dogs during this scene. It is clearly very violent, but the moment it’s most remembered for occurs out of shot.

A cop is restrained and tortured, but the only physical act of violence depicted on screen is a flick of the razor blade to the officer’s cheek. More concerning than the actual shown violence in this scene is the blithe sadism of Mr Blonde (Michael Madsen) as he dances around to “Stuck in the Middle With You” whilst revelling in his torment.

When Mr Blonde begins sawing off the officer’s ear, the camera pans away to spare us from witnessing such barbarism.

Yet there is something unsettling about this camera pan from Tarantino. It is such a self-aware act of cinematography that it actually adds to the cruelty of the sequence. Tarantino winks to us horrified viewers as he orchestrates his gleefully “cool” grand guignol.