Quickie: Yorgos Lanthimos’s Dogtooth (2009)

It’s basically Game Night taken to a whole other level.

Episode 1 (of 2 so far) in Yorgos Lanthimos’s “Shitty Families” saga, Dogtooth, is an ugly look into a parenting duo that raises their offspring under the lenses of an ideology that taunts the social trends of common cultures. This ideology infamously involves keeping these three descendants enclosed in the boundaries of their luxurious house until they lose their so-called “dogtooth.” It’s a pretty great scheme overall (Yorgos can never disappoint with his godly original storylines) but it is a couple steps away from a masterpiece like The Lobster, The Killing of a Sacred Deer, or The Favourite.

But yeah, this is definitely a Yorgos Lanthimos film; an early debut that accurately flares off what he’s all about. I still view him as if Stanley Kubrick had the dirty intentions of a Lars von Trier that perceived comedy as a cinematic necessity. I see this as a deliciously positive allegory.

And for those moms who force their 4-year-old daughters in sickly inappropriate dresses for beauty pageants that air on national television, this movie is (kinda) about you. Congrats.

Or if you’re Michael Jackson’s father.

Verdict: B

Nicolas Winding Refn vs. Yorgos Lanthimos

“Dogtooth” is now available to rent and buy on Tubi and Amazon Prime.

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