Review of Dogtooth (2009) by Jon A — 08 Feb 2011

Nominated for Best Foreign film, the Greek work of art DOGTOOTH is "theater of the absurd" on the silver screen. The original story and structure will keep you focused and interested or at least it kept me, never failing to surprise in the next scene, and the next and the next.

It is all right for you to ask: What is going on? What is wrong with this picture? You might never find the answer, because the film is so unique, dark and unpredictable, that you might never even care, you just want to see what will happen next.

A nameless PATER NOSTER like head of a secluded family is distorting the reality and playing mind games with his teenage children, while the mother dutifully complies. A testament to "we only know, what THEY tell us" the rest we will imagine.

That is exactly what the almost innocent two nameless girls and a nameless boy will do to entrance you for over 90 minutes. I don't think it was meant to be incestuous, but it turned out to be and it is very clear from this Tarkovsky meet Pasolini meet George Orwell blend, that we, human animals will do what we need and can do to become free.

It is a metaphor for so many things in life, and a lesson for so many who try to shield children from reality, from reason, from living. Distorting reality, feeding people with lies and taking liberties away, will almost sure end in a disaster.

This beautifully photographed, well-acted and amazingly directed film is not easy to digest or even to watch at times but it will make you talk about it, hate it or love it. Isn't that what ART supposed to do to our intellect? Co-writer and Director Giorgos Lanthimos, 38 is a young director to watch.

This film is his 3rd feature.