Dogtooth (2009)

The next movie is an indie-drama from Greece that was a surprise at several festivals and then even received a nomination for an academy award for Best Foreign Language Film in 2011.
It's about the life of a family; perhaps the weirdest family you have ever met.

During the first scene you might ask yourself if the three young adults are somewhat retarded.
Socially they are indeed. This is the result of life-long isolation.
It was the parents' choice to raise their three kids - two daughters and a son - entirely in and around their estate far away from other people and surrounded by a high wall. You could also say they confined them and refused to let them live a normal life.

So they grew up. With no names, no knowledge of anything (that the parents did not teach them), no contact to civilization. At the mercy of the authorities' power and living against the will of nature.

The parents reign in total command. Their system is tight. There are clear rules and a well planned routine of daily life. The children (have to) solve certain exercises and play weird little games to strengthen their obedience und affection towards father and mother and to control their physical conditions. The winner gets a reward. Of course there is also punishment for misbehavior.

They also learn a slightly different language as some objects have different names. For instance, when they are at dinner and ask for the "telephone" they are handed the salt.

It's like on another planet, a lost and forgotten world. But the three children don't know any different. They are told that it's not possible for them to leave the house - especially without a car - until they are old enough. The father is the only one in the family who is able to go outside to work and to buy the things they need.

This film will feel strange in the beginning but develops nicely from there.
Its close observation shows us all the mechanisms crucial for that little family system to work.
It got me involved despite the lack of emotion within the family.

The children have no sense of real emotion or social behavior due to the oppressive guidance of their parents. They have no understanding of essential human needs like love and sexuality and a general lack of education.
Overall there is a lack of humanity under this restrictive regime.

I use that word because a common interpretation is that the film functions as a politcal allegory.

The children don't have a free spirit. They are not allowed to develop individual ideas, thoughts or their own ideology. Their minds are formed only by the experiences they share with each other, only by the things their parents want them to experience. They are like a breed; a breed of dogs.

Thus an even more extreme film came to mind watching 'Dogtooth': Pasolini's '120 days of sodom', where four fascists enslave a group of teenagers and exploit and abuse them in various different ways.

In 'Dogtooth' the major conflict begins when influences from the outside start to distort the life of the little community. Although the parents want to prevent anything alike at least one of the daughters eventually starts to question things and wants to break free.

'Dogtooth' was directed by Giorgos Lanthimos. It's a very intimate film but the viewer is always watching from a certain distance criticizing the grotesque scenery. All the actors and actresses do a great job and bring authenticity to the table. Despite all obscurity we believe that this family may exist somewhere.

The plot is original and offers rich psychological content and can either be seen as a political allegory (as probably intended) or (as I prefer) a study of human nature.

It is a strong premise that provides countless issues to analyze and interpret.

But, unfortunately, the ending is a downer. The movie raises questions but doesn't seem to have the right answers to them. It's like the movie suddenly stops before a last act of revelation where these interesting answers maybe could have been explored. It feels like you were forced to leave the cinema earlier but of course you want to know the resolution. I wonder what the actual conclusion is meant to be here - if there is a conclusion at all.

Still it is a very interesting film with an intriguing basic approach, wonderful photography and fantastic acting.

If you are open for some bizarre arthouse cinema and don't mind mature and sporadically violent content you should give it a try.