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Movies / On DVD / Dog Days
Dog Days

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Dog Days (2002)

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Reviews Counted:33

Fresh:16

Rotten:17

Average Rating:5.4/10

Consensus: A relentlessly disturbing, depressing work.

Runtime: 2 hrs 1 min

Genre: Dramas

Synopsis: DOG DAYS is a scathing satire, exposing the ugly underbelly of contemporary suburban mores. It is the first dramatic feature of notorious documentarian Ulrich Seidl (ANIMAL LOVE). With a keen... DOG DAYS is a scathing satire, exposing the ugly underbelly of contemporary suburban mores. It is the first dramatic feature of notorious documentarian Ulrich Seidl (ANIMAL LOVE). With a keen visual sense and lacerating wit, Seidl weaves together the sordid tales of a large group of people in suburban Austria during a heat wave. There's the Greek divorced couple who continue to live together, miserable and haunted by the memory of their young daughter's death. There's the alarm system salesman who has to find a scapegoat when the cars in a housing complex that he has serviced are vandalized. There's the desperate older woman whose sadistic boyfriend brings a friend along to watch him humiliate her. There's the elderly control freak who weighs every item he's bought at the supermarket when he gets home. Tying them all together is Anna (Maria Hofstatter), who hitches rides to nowhere, verbally assaulting those who pick her up with a constant barrage of inane top ten lists, advertising jingles, and embarrassing personal questions. Seidl gets solid performances from his cast, many of whom are not professional actors. For those who can stomach it, he offers a compelling glimpse of hell on earth. This film was included in the 31st New Directors/New Films 2002 series presented by The Film Society of Lincoln Center and The Department of Film and Media of The Museum of Modern Art in New York City. [More]

Starring: Maria Hofstatter, Christine Jirku, Victor Henneman, Georg Friedrich

Starring: Maria Hofstatter, Christine Jirku, Victor Henneman, Georg Friedrich, Alfred Mrva, Erich Finsches, Gerti Lehner, Franziska Weiss, Rene Wanko, Claudia Martini, Victor Rathbone

Director: Ulrich Seidl

Director: Ulrich Seidl
Screenwriter: Ulrich Seidl, Veronika Franz
Producer: Helmut Grasser, Philippe Bober

[See More Credits]

Reviews for Dog Days

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1 - 20 (sorted by comments; UK critics are listed first)
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N/R

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Full Review Source: Guardian [UK] | comment Comment
10/02/02
Guardian [UK]
Top Critic Icon Top Critic
N/R

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Sight and Sound | comment Comment
10/06/04
Sight and Sound
Top Critic Icon Top Critic
N/R

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Time Out | comment Comment
01/26/06
Time Out
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Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Empire Magazine | comment Comment
12/30/06
Empire Magazine
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

Missing ... is any real feeling of compassion towards these forlorn individuals, any sense of the humanity that lies beneath the grotesque façades.

Full Review Source: BBC | comment Comment
08/26/02
Tom Dawson
Tom Dawson
BBC
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N/R

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Jam! Movies | comment Comment
10/06/04
Jam! Movies
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

Those who know that human beings are more than just the sum of their worst impulses ... will wonder where the rest of the story went.

Full Review Source: Los Angeles Daily News | comment Comment
01/09/04
Bob Strauss
Bob Strauss
Los Angeles Daily News

Mosaic filmmaking at its most irresolute... [its few affecting] moments are antiseptic, sealed off from any larger relatable context or emotional arc.

Full Review Source: Entertainment Today | comment Comment
01/12/04
Brent Simon
Brent Simon
Entertainment Today

A loser in almost all respects, boasting a parade of nudity that you don't want to see, and over two hours of conversation yielding nothing of interest.

Full Review Source: eFilmCritic.com | comment Comment
11/16/03
Brian Mckay
Brian Mckay
eFilmCritic.com

Just because something is degrading and disturbing, doesn't mean it's art. This dog doesn't deserve a day.

Full Review Source: TheMovieChicks.com | comment Comment
12/05/03
Cherryl Dawson and Leigh Ann Palone
Cherryl Dawson and Leigh Ann Palone
TheMovieChicks.com

lewd and lurid

Full Review Source: Filmcritic.com | comment Comment
07/30/09
Chris Cabin
Chris Cabin
Filmcritic.com

Director Ulrich Seidl presents a mean spirited satire of Austrian suburbia in this ugly movie that is quite possibly the worst film (foreign or domestic) of 2003.

Full Review Source: ColeSmithey.com | comment Comment
04/19/09
Cole Smithey
Cole Smithey
ColeSmithey.com

...it's the second half that kills Dog Days.

Full Review Source: Reel Film Reviews | comment Comment
10/06/04
David Nusair
David Nusair
Reel Film Reviews

See it only if you're ready for a bumpy, sometimes nasty ride.

Full Review Source: Christian Science Monitor | comment Comment
08/21/03
David Sterritt
David Sterritt
Christian Science Monitor

This startling debut fiction feature goes to great, hectoring lengths to prove its final line: 'People are so cruel' -- a judgment from which the filmmaker himself is presumably not exempt.

Full Review Source: Village Voice | comment Comment
08/19/03
Dennis Lim
Dennis Lim
Village Voice

This is a lament on the human condition, free of scented roses and free of solemnity.

Full Review Source: San Francisco Chronicle | comment Comment
10/03/03
Edward Guthmann
Edward Guthmann
San Francisco Chronicle

An engrossing and disturbing film that feels like a Dogma 95 film made by Todd Haynes.

Full Review Source: New York Times | comment Comment
07/16/03
Elvis Mitchell
Elvis Mitchell
New York Times
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

Dark, probing, and truly disturbing, Seidl's astonishing feature debut explores angst, anomie, and alientaion in Vienna's upscale suburbs in visually audacious mode that goes beyond Todd Solondz and Todd Haynes.

Full Review Source: EmanuelLevy.Com | comment Comment
06/13/06
Emanuel Levy
Emanuel Levy
EmanuelLevy.Com

Oddly compelling, disturbing -- some might say disturbed -- look at suburban life, Austrian style.

Full Review Source: Houston Chronicle | comment Comment
01/29/04
Eric Harrison
Eric Harrison
Houston Chronicle

Ultimately lacking depth or resonance, Dog Days is willfully provocative, much like a small child performing outrageous acts just to get some attention.

Full Review Source: Hollywood Reporter | comment Comment
08/21/03
Frank Scheck
Frank Scheck
Hollywood Reporter
Top Critic Icon Top Critic
 
 
1 - 20 (sorted by comments; UK critics are listed first)
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