Director Todd Solondz
Genre Comedy
Cast Charlie Tahan, Greta Gerwig, Zosia Mamet, Danny DeVito
Rating R
Release Date June 24th, 2016
“A dachshund passes from oddball owner to oddball owner, whose radically dysfunctional lives are all impacted by the pooch.”
Wiener-Dog is a dark comedy directed by Todd Solondz, whom previously directed Happiness, Storytelling, and Dark Horse. The film is considered a comedy drama but falls more in the category of dark comedy. Wiener-Dog stars Keaton Nigel Cooke, Tracy Letts, Greta Gerwig, and Kieran Culkin (brother of Mr. Home Alone himself Macauley Culkin).
Director Todd Solondz must have stock in Zoloft and other antidepressant medications because after watching his latest film Wiener-Dog, you will need something with clinical strength to uplift your mood. I was warned that in order to enjoy the film you must have the ability to appreciate Solondz dark sense of humor and "unique" style as it relates to filmmaking. Much to my surprise, this proved to be a task I was unprepared for. I'm not sure what I expected the film to be like but this was far from anything I thought it would be. It was overly depressing, dry, and held a feeling of hopelessness throughout (thankfully it is only an hour and 30 minutes). If they decided to create a genre of film that was the opposite of coming-of-age, Wiener-Dog would fit right in. I am unfamiliar with any of Solondz previous work but I feel pretty good about skipping anything he has made in the past or anything he releases in the future. Do me a favor and look the guy up on IMDb, the look on his face in his profile picture screams "point me in the direction of the nearest building so that I can nose dive from the roof." I wish I was kidding. Actually I looked through a few more of his photos and this guy makes me feel very uncomfortable.
I can't bash on the acting in Wiener-Dog because it was solid and by far the highlight of the film. The problem with that is the fact that the actors play such depressing roles you find it impossible to invest in any of them. You feel bad for them, which speaks to how effective the performances are. The film plays out in somewhat of a chapter format which seemingly tells various short stories, some of which are connected and others that aren’t at all. Danny DeVito is phenomenal as usual and I also really enjoyed the chemistry between Greta Gerwig and Kieran Culkin. If I was rating the acting alone I would say it deserves at least a B, maybe even a B+.
The bottom line is simple, Wiener-Dog is very much an acquired taste somewhere along the lines of black licorice or Moxie (both if which I despise, especially black licorice), meaning that fans of the film will most likely be few and far between. I actually have a very high tolerance for films that stray from what we would consider normal or acceptable in society, but believe it or not I do have a line, and although it is rarely crossed, clearly it is possible. I would suggest avoiding this one unless you feel the need to walk around for a week with drooped shoulders and a very bleak outlook on life. After I finished it, I had no choice but to watch 2 ½ episodes of Spongebob Squarepants just to lighten my mood and allow myself a few hours of light unadulterated sleep.
