Dogtooth (2009) starring Christos Stergioglou, Michele Valley, Angeliki Papoulia, Hristos Passalis, Mary Tsoni, Anna Kalaitzidou directed by Yorgos Lanthimos Movie Review

Dogtooth (2009)   3/53/53/53/53/5


Dogtooth (2009)

A Very Peculiar Family

In a large house in the middle of nowhere lives a father, a mother, their son and two daughters. Whilst the father leaves home to head to the factory he owns the rest of the family never leave, in fact the children have never seen what is on the otherside of the tall fence which surround their home having been home taught and been told killer cats live on the other side of the walls. But the father and mother has some weird ways such as teaching their children the wrong words for things but also bringing in a woman from the factory to have sex with their son.

I could go on with that synopsis to "Dogtooth" but there would be no point as it doesn't so much have a storyline but is an experience which you won't be able to take your eyes off of but will find absolutely absurd. Not only that you will find yourself wondering whether to laugh or be shocked as it is so absurd but also so entertaining. In truth I am kind of at a loss for words as to "Dogtooth".

The best way to try and describe "Dogtooth" is to explain one scene to you where the Father brings home the security guard from work to have sex with his son. He walks her into his son's room, turns down the bed brushes his hair and leaves, then the son and security guard strip off and have emotionless, mechanical sex. In a later scene the security guard bribes the elder daughter to give her oral sex, not that the elder daughter understands what she is doing. It is so strange you find yourself wanting to laugh yet at the same time creeped out by the matter of fact style existence and what the father and mother have done to their children by preventing them from leaving. I could go on because almost every scene has that effect of making you want to laugh yet also being disturbing at the same time.

The strange thing is that whilst "Dogtooth" builds to some drama I struggle to find a storyline in the traditional sense, instead we are observers of a very perculiar family, entering the world that the Father has created. And it is a world which creeps you out as you question why any man would go to such lengths as to teach his children the wrong words for things.

What this all boils down to is that "Dogtooth" is an experience which left me at a loss for words. I don't know whether I enjoyed it or not because it is comically absurd yet uncomfortably creepy. All I know is that I couldn't keep my eyes off of it.


LATEST REVIEWS