RottenTomatoes.com
Log In | Register | What is RT?
Found a Bug? Squash It! Report Bugs Here
  • Home
  • Movies
  • DVD
  • Celebrities
  • News
  • Critics
  • Trailers & Pictures
  • CommunityBeta
  • Box Office
  • | Best Of
  • | Certified Fresh
  • | Showtimes
RT Search Powered by Google
help icon Enhanced RT
searches on Google
Click here to turn on enhanced search results from RT on your Google searches.
 
Movies / On DVD / Dummy
Dummy

Rate this Movie Help Icon

  • Write a Review
  • Read Reviews
  • Add to List
  • Buy Poster External Icon
  • Visit Official Site External Icon
Bookmark and Share

Dummy (2003)

  • T-Meter Critics
  • Top Critics
  • RT Community
  • My Critics
  • My Friends
  • DVD
72 %
Tomatometer
Template ImageTemplate Image

How does the Tomatometer work Help Icon

Reviews Counted:32

Fresh:23

Rotten:9

Average Rating:6.2/10

Runtime: 90 mins

Genre: Television

Synopsis: Family, friendship and romance find a voice in Dummy, the smartly offbeat and charming debut comedy from writer and director Greg Pritikin. Steven Schoichet (Adrien Brody, Academy Award® winner... Family, friendship and romance find a voice in Dummy, the smartly offbeat and charming debut comedy from writer and director Greg Pritikin. Steven Schoichet (Adrien Brody, Academy Award® winner for The Pianist) is browbeaten at every turn, by his family, his dead-end job, the faceless suburb where he still lives at home. That is until he decides to make a change. Ventriloquism. Hey, a dream’s a dream.

His family barely pays him enough attention to even dismiss the idea – his mother (Jessica Walter, Slums of Beverly Hills) is only concerned that he eat something, and his father (Ron Liebman, Tony Award® winner for “Angels In America”) only thinks of his model ships. Steven’s sister (Illeana Douglas, Grace of My Heart) recently broke off her engagement to an unstable accountant (Jared Harris, Happiness), which makes her career as a wedding planner an emotional minefield. His only supporter is neighbor Fangora (Milla Jovovich, Resident Evil) – really it’s Fanny, but that’s not very punk – who has her own aspirations to stardom.

After Steven loses his job, things actually start to turn around. He falls for his counselor at the unemployment office (Vera Farmiga, Fifteen Minutes), and through the best efforts of Steven and the little friend on his knee, good things start to happen for everyone around him. A restraining order leads to new love, a rock band learns Yiddish, and everything clicks into place at somebody else’s wedding. Funny, winsome, quick-witted, and brave – this Dummy is pretty sharp. -- © Artisan Pictures [More]

Starring: Adrien Brody, Milla Jovovich, Illeana Douglas, Vera Farmiga

Starring: Adrien Brody, Milla Jovovich, Illeana Douglas, Vera Farmiga, Jessica Walter, Ron Liebman, Jared Harris

Director: Gregory Pritikin

Director: Gregory Pritikin
Screenwriter: Gregory Pritikin
Producer: Bob Fagan, Richard Temtchine
Composer: Paul Wallfisch
Studio: Artisan Entertainment

[See More Credits]

  • Trailers
  • Pictures
1 - 5 of 9

See More Movie Trailers & Pictures

Reviews for Dummy

  • T-Meter Critics
  • Top Critics
  • RT Community
  • My Critics
  • My Friends
  • DVD
 
 
1 - 20 (sorted by rotten rating; UK critics are listed first)
Text View | 1 2 >> >|
Arrange By:Fresh | Rotten | Comments | Name | Source | Date
 
 

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: ViewLondon | comment Comment
06/25/09
Matthew Turner
Matthew Turner
ViewLondon
N/R

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Boston Phoenix | comment Comment
07/02/03
Boston Phoenix
Top Critic Icon Top Critic
N/R

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Variety | comment Comment
06/26/08
Variety
Top Critic Icon Top Critic
N/R

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Cinema Crazed | comment Comment
04/29/09
Felix Vasquez Jr.
Felix Vasquez Jr.
Cinema Crazed
N/R

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: eye WEEKLY | comment Comment
10/01/03
Jason Anderson
Jason Anderson
eye WEEKLY

The result is the kind of oddball independent film that's almost a parody of the genre.

Full Review Source: E! Online | comment Comment
09/11/03
E! Online
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

Like its mini-mouthpiece, as pleasantly entertaining as Dummy often is, this ultimately hollow film sounds a few too many wooden notes and creaky jokes.

Full Review Source: Vue Weekly (Edmonton, Canada) | comment Comment
01/29/04
Brian Gibson
Brian Gibson
Vue Weekly (Edmonton, Canada)

It's a sweetly sad and sadly funny tale, conceived with quirky sensitivity, but, though its actors are adept, it only just hangs together, like a sitcom still in rehearsal stages.

Full Review Source: Boxoffice Magazine | comment Comment
09/12/03
Bridget Byrne
Bridget Byrne
Boxoffice Magazine

No review available.

comment Comment
03/13/06
Cole Smithey
Cole Smithey
ColeSmithey.com

Brody ... is the movie's weakest link, turning in a performance almost as wooden as the doll that sits on his knee.

Full Review Source: L.A. Weekly | comment Comment
09/11/03
Ella Taylor
Ella Taylor
L.A. Weekly

Pritikin ... serves up the sort of shrill 'satire' of middle-class Jewish vulgarity in which the mere mention of words like 'brisket' and 'klezmer' is automatically presumed to be hilarious.

Full Review Source: Entertainment Weekly | comment Comment
09/10/03
Owen Gleiberman
Owen Gleiberman
Entertainment Weekly

Definitely lives down to its name -- you can see the lips moving on this wooden thing.

Full Review Source: Globe and Mail | comment Comment
09/26/03
Rick Groen
Rick Groen
Globe and Mail

Dummy might have been a better movie if Greg Pritikin had done a few more rewrites on his script, and if he'd had more than a few weeks in which to shoot it.

Full Review Source: Film Journal International | comment Comment
09/13/03
Shirley Sealy
Shirley Sealy
Film Journal International

What could have been a biting dark comedy is, instead, uninspired and generic.

Full Review Source: New York Post | comment Comment
09/12/03
V.A. Musetto
V.A. Musetto
New York Post

Pritikin's shrewd comedy-drama catches a fine flock of family emotions on the wing, and not the over-exposed ones.

Full Review Source: Newark Star-Ledger | comment Comment
09/12/03
Bob Campbell
Bob Campbell
Newark Star-Ledger

This is a great date movie - it's funny, sweet, and just the right amount of zaniness to keep it from being too sappy.

Full Review Source: TheMovieChicks.com | comment Comment
04/09/03
Cherryl Dawson and Leigh Ann Palone
Cherryl Dawson and Leigh Ann Palone
TheMovieChicks.com

A mildly engaging addition to that curious sub-genre of American independent filmmaking, the whimsical comedy of Long Island alienation.

Full Review Source: New York Times | comment Comment
09/11/03
Dave Kehr
Dave Kehr
New York Times
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

Walter and Douglas stand out in particular.

Full Review Source: Slant Magazine | comment Comment
08/30/03
Ed Gonzalez
Ed Gonzalez
Slant Magazine

Has many of the qualities comedy movie fans have been missing in cinema today: charm, wit, romance and winning performances across the board.

Full Review Source: FilmJerk.com | comment Comment
09/06/03
Edward Havens
Edward Havens
FilmJerk.com

An ultimate crowd-pleaser.

Full Review Source: Film Threat | comment Comment
03/21/03
Eric Campos
Eric Campos
Film Threat
 
 
1 - 20 (sorted by rotten rating; UK critics are listed first)
Text View | 1 2 >> >|
See All

More DVDs

Top Rentals
Tomatometer Percentage Movie
36% 36% Angels & Demons
25% 25% Four Christmases
68% 68% Funny People
95% 95% Star Trek
14% 14% The Ugly Truth

More Rentals…

New On DVD This Week
Tomatometer Percentage Movie
83% 83% Harry Potter and the H…
67% 67% Public Enemies
75% 75% Julie & Julia
95% 95% The Cove
85% 85% World's Greatest Dad

More New Releases…

What’s Hot On RT

Twilight Saga: Eclipse

Twilight Saga: Eclipse

5 facts straight from the cast.

Disney Animation

Disney Animation

We chart the studio's classics.

Avatar

Avatar

An exclusive look at the human hardware.

Eric Bana

Eric Bana

The Star Trek star talks cars with RT.

Other News

  • Top Stories
  • Popular
  • Interviews
 
 

Comments

 
 
Top Stories
Headlines Comments
  
  • Avatar Picks Up Golden Globes Buzz Source: HitFix
44
  • Disney's Upcoming Hand-Drawn Movies Revealed Source: Slashfilm
12
  • Cameron Explains Blue Avatar Aliens Source: MTV
37
  • Matt Damon Expects Greengrass to Return for Fourth Bourne Source: Collider.com
10
  • Burton's Dark Shadows Rising in 2010 Source: Sci Fi Wire
11
  • Exclusive: The World of Where the Wild Things Are
27
  • Peter Jackson Talks Hobbit, LotR Blu-ray Source: Collider.com
20
  • Woman Jailed for Filming New Moon Screening Source: Chicago Sun-Times
18
  • McG Has Plans for Fifth and Sixth Terminator Movies Source: Gizmodo
207
  • Spielberg Hops Away from Harvey Source: Variety
22
Popular
Headlines Comments
  
  • Five Favorite Films with Jason Reitman
57
  • Critics Consensus: Everybody's Fine Is Just OK
50
  • 10 Horrifically Profitable Films
46
  • Sundance 2010: RT's 10 Most Anticipated Movies
41
  • Five Favorite Films with Jesse Ventura
40
  • Weekly Ketchup: Tron Team to Remake The Black Hole
37
  • Box Office Guru Wrapup: The Blind Side Takes the Lead
29
  • Awards Tour: National Board of Review Winners List!
28
  • Five Favorite Films With Avatar's Sam Worthington
25
  • Friday Harvest: Iron Man 2, Harry Potter, and more!
24
Interviews
Headlines Comments
  
  • Five Favorite Films With Avatar's Sam Worthington
25
  • Director Ruben Fleischer Talks Zombieland
2
  • "I Don't Hate Women": Lars von Trier on Antichrist
17
  • Eric Bana talks Love the Beast - RT Interview
12
  • Fight Club Sound Designer Reflects on Film's 10th Anniversary
23
  • James Schamus talks Taking Woodstock - RT Interview
8
  • John Hurt Talks Harry Potter, Quentin Crisp and Alien - The RT Interview
15
  • Terry Gilliam Talks Doctor Parnassus
22
  • Wes Anderson Talks Fantastic Mr. Fox - RT Interview
9
  • Wolverine Creator Len Wein Talks About the Film
28
 
 

Sponsored Links

Around The Network

  • Dummy at Rotten Tomatoes
  • Dummy at AskMen

Fresh Links

Featured
RT on YouTube
RT on YouTube External Link

Subscribe to RT's YouTube channel and don't miss a second of our cracking video content.

RT on Twitter
RT on Twitter External Link

Follow Rotten Tomatoes and join us as we tweet about the week's releases.

 
 
About| Site Map| Help| RT To Go| Contact Us| Critics Submission| Linking to RT| Licensing| Movie List| Celebs List| Newsletter
IGN Logo

IGN.com | GameSpy | Comrade | Arena | FilePlanet | GameSpy Technology
TeamXbox | Planets | Vaults | VE3D | CheatsCodesGuides | GameStats | GamerMetrics
AskMen.com | Rotten Tomatoes | Direct2Drive | Green Pixels


By continuing past this page, and by the continued use of this site, you agree to be bound by and abide by the User Agreement.
Copyright 1998-2009, IGN Entertainment, Inc. About IGN | Support | Advertise | Privacy Policy | User Agreement | Subscribe to RT's XML feed! IGN RSS Feeds
IGN's enterprise databases running Oracle, SQL and MySQL are professionally monitored and managed by Pythian Remote DBA
Certain product data ©1995-present Muze, Inc. For personal use only. All rights reserved.