«Dogman» is the best film I have seen by French director-screenwriter Luc Besson, reminiscent of his previous works «Nikita» (1990) and «Léon» (1992).
Besson made an auspicious debut with the science-fiction drama «Le dernier combat» (1983), whose main merit was its absence of dialogue. And from there, he has had a career of more falls than peaks, with titles such as «Subway», «Le grand bleu», «The Fifth Element», «The Lady» and the adventures of Arthur, the minimoys or Adéle Blanc-Sec.
However, years make us wise and this time Besson has written a tragicomic fantasy that combines all his merits and limitations, but to which you must be very cynical and blind to deny the maximum score. Anyone can cry, laugh, and be moved by the incidents of «Dogman», but at the center of everything is a stunning performance by Caleb Landry Jones, who in my (cynical) eyes has become an acting monster, without the mannerisms of the "method", following the performance for which he won the Best Actor award for «Nitram» in the 2021 Cannes Film Festival.
«Dogman» tells the story of Doug, an aquarian, millennial boy abused by his father, who sends him to live in a cage with dozens of dogs, and makes him disabled for life, when he shoots him, and the bullet ricochets and lodges nears his spine. Cared for and liberated by the dogs, Doug grows up and has an incredible journey, despite his physical limitation: in an orphanage he meets an actress who introduces him to the world of theater through Shakespeare, he graduates in Biology, but when the municipality closes the kennel where he works, the only job Doug gets is in a drag show, in which he impersonates Edith Piaf, Marlene Dietrich and Marilyn Monroe.
Doug lives with dozens of dogs and assigns them to the homes of lonely folks or people who need protection, but at the same time he uses them to steal from the rich (and balance the distribution of wealth, as he confesses) and leads a violent life that culminates in tragedy. All of this is seen through his eyes when he is caught and relates his life to psychiatrist Evelyn (very good work too by Jojo T. Gibbs), a woman who is also a key character in the story, with her own her drama.
«Dogman» contains reflections on appearance versus reality, popular philosophy, the love of dogs, the hoarding of wealth, and resilience, which will probably have greater exposure as a cult film. In truth, the film, the direction, screenplay, and performances have been ignored at festivals and annual awarding of prizes, but if you come across it, do not miss it.
Besson made an auspicious debut with the science-fiction drama «Le dernier combat» (1983), whose main merit was its absence of dialogue. And from there, he has had a career of more falls than peaks, with titles such as «Subway», «Le grand bleu», «The Fifth Element», «The Lady» and the adventures of Arthur, the minimoys or Adéle Blanc-Sec.
However, years make us wise and this time Besson has written a tragicomic fantasy that combines all his merits and limitations, but to which you must be very cynical and blind to deny the maximum score. Anyone can cry, laugh, and be moved by the incidents of «Dogman», but at the center of everything is a stunning performance by Caleb Landry Jones, who in my (cynical) eyes has become an acting monster, without the mannerisms of the "method", following the performance for which he won the Best Actor award for «Nitram» in the 2021 Cannes Film Festival.
«Dogman» tells the story of Doug, an aquarian, millennial boy abused by his father, who sends him to live in a cage with dozens of dogs, and makes him disabled for life, when he shoots him, and the bullet ricochets and lodges nears his spine. Cared for and liberated by the dogs, Doug grows up and has an incredible journey, despite his physical limitation: in an orphanage he meets an actress who introduces him to the world of theater through Shakespeare, he graduates in Biology, but when the municipality closes the kennel where he works, the only job Doug gets is in a drag show, in which he impersonates Edith Piaf, Marlene Dietrich and Marilyn Monroe.
Doug lives with dozens of dogs and assigns them to the homes of lonely folks or people who need protection, but at the same time he uses them to steal from the rich (and balance the distribution of wealth, as he confesses) and leads a violent life that culminates in tragedy. All of this is seen through his eyes when he is caught and relates his life to psychiatrist Evelyn (very good work too by Jojo T. Gibbs), a woman who is also a key character in the story, with her own her drama.
«Dogman» contains reflections on appearance versus reality, popular philosophy, the love of dogs, the hoarding of wealth, and resilience, which will probably have greater exposure as a cult film. In truth, the film, the direction, screenplay, and performances have been ignored at festivals and annual awarding of prizes, but if you come across it, do not miss it.
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