PULP FRICTION
Reservoir Dolls is a witty, sharp satire of several sociological concerns currently occupying center stage in the cultural consciousness of both “tinsel town” and the nation: the exploitation of women in films and their limited access to roles in an image-driven industry; the institutional gender inequality and barriers facing women in the studio hierarchy; and the corporate world at large.
In tackling the issues of sexism and gender bias, writer and performer Lani Harms has employed a concept first introduced in 1924 by Buster Keaton in Sherlock Jr., and later retooled in Woody Allen’s The Purple Rose of Cairo (1985) and Pleasantville (1998), which allow the central protagonist to explore the ills of their society by entering within the media that is credited with holding a mirror up to it – though more often than not a cracked mirror.
Harms takes on this conceit in this solo outing at Broadwater Studio, adding a touch of Groundhog Day and a twist of Luigi Pirandello’s Six Characters in Search of an Author.
Harms begins as Atlanta, who finds herself in a rough urban watering hole, playing out a scene that abruptly halts – and she finds herself starting back at the beginning, playing out the same scene with minor adjustments until it abruptly halts again – and she’s back at the beginning – again!
Her confusion ends with the realization that she is a character undergoing rewrites by Quentin Tarantino as he struggles with his new script. Knowing the unhappy fates of the majority of Tarantino’s female characters, Atlanta is desperate to find a way out of whatever story plot he has in mind for her.
To this end, Atlanta seeks the advice of Tarantino’s past celluloid creations of the fairer sex: Melanie Ralston (Jackie Brown), Beatrix Kiddo (Kill Bill), Mia Wallace (Pulp Fiction), and Shoshanna Dreyfus (Inglorious Bastards.)
From here, the play follows a predictable course and arrives at an M. Night Shyamalan’s ending – the psychologist is dead, it’s a disguised gated community, the shrubbery is slaying everyone!
What uplifts Reservoir Dolls is the commitment – and I don’t throw that word out lightly – of its five-person cast (well, one…) as Harms gives her all in the multi-roles she plays, jumping from stage into video projections which are shot and edited by Alex Harms. Director Laurie Magers shuffles all the cards here with determination and skill to satisfying results. Reservoir Dolls is another Fringe show that despite some tiny flaws, scores big on the ambition scale.
Reservoir Dolls: The Women of Quentin Tarantino
The Broadwater (Studio), 1078 Lillian Way
part of The Hollywood Fringe Festival
30 minutes; ends on June 28, 2025
for tickets, visit Reservoir Dolls
