Kicking the Dog

The teen sex genre has been tired since everyone decided to rip off American Pie in the late 90s/easrly 00s. So it's refreshing when a movie comes along that somewhat re-writes the style - and it's actually funnier than most teen comedies - and I dare to say that it will appeal to a wider audience range - meaning from 14 to 40. What it lacks in plot it more than makes up for in laughs.

What we have is a group of friends who have just graduated college and are hanging out at a friends house. I don't know where the parents are at for what seems like 2-3 weeks, but it doesn't really matter. Unlike previous movies in this genre, these guys aren't desperately trying to have sex to lose their virginity - they're just acting like 22 year olds. They want sex, want to get drunk, want to have fun and want to hang out with their friends. And their conversations about life is so perfect and non-stop that you feel like you've been there.

The main story is that the lead actress (elizabeth schimdt is very good and offers an emotional aspect that offsets the boob jokes) is going to graduate school across country while her boyfriend declines a job offer to stay with her, not realizing she's leaving. He feels betrayed and she's confused. She carries these scenes, which saves this underdeveloped plot line. There is also some minor plot lines with some young eye candy as well as some innocent geeks - one of which steals every scene - sometimes with his words and other times with simple expressions.

It only slows a couple times, and never for long. The conversations and jokes come at you as fast as any movie - and much faster than any teen comedy - which makes up for the lack of a great plot (but tell me, how many teen comedies have a great plot) and the fact that too much of the movie is in 1 location. That may be my biggest complaint, I understand it was low budget, but 2 more locations could have made this movie, as they say at the end, "LEGENDARY!" I guess the haters just don't get it. I don't know how. I think of the scenes and just laugh.

First off, I would like to start by saying that this movie deeply upset me, but not in a way where i thought it was emotionally poignant. No, this movie deeply upset me because I cannot believe that someone "Randy Scooter Lammey" thought that this piece of garbage would ever make a living soul laugh. You know what? I did laugh. I laughed at the fact that we were suppose to relate to a bunch of college guys, who thought that having five inch penises was something to brag about! How is that cool????!!! Oh and I'm suppose to relate to the character of Matt, a 25 year old player who in real life is actually 42? Oh and you know how every great comedy has that one fat guy who people always remember? Yeah well, in Kicking the Dog we are presented with two fat depressing failures who by volunteering to be in this movie have destroyed any possible chance to ever converse or interact with a woman. Their logic in this movie and existence in real life is unacceptable and and as a nation we need to castrate these two kids for walking off that set thinking they were ever remotely cool. I can seriously right a novel about why this movie should be lynched, if it was ever possible, but I don't think this movie is worth another second of my time.

Very funny dialog-and-antics driven movie - but mostly dialog. Not the typical antics like "I have to lose my virginity this summer", or trying to see a girl naked, or get a date with the hottest girl, etc. Basically it's unlike the movie you think it's going to be. This may be because the box cover has NOTHING to do with the movie (not sure if this is a good or bad marketing ploy or why they didn't just use something from the movie).

It's a sex comedy based around friends just out of college with an older friend and some high schoolers. It has a few of the generic characters from these types of movies - the older guy who still hangs out, the hot high school girl, the geeky kids - but the main characters are somewhat normal - and are just trying to find their way in life while they reminisce about the good old days. And isn't that what we all do when we are settling down - we don't make new fun as much as talk about the fun we used to have?

Drawbacks - too much of the action takes place in 1 house. That's the only big one. Also could have sacrificed some of the stand-alone comedic scenes for a little more story, but that's not too big.

Positives - Very, very funny. Writer has a keen ear for dialog and humor. The actors, generally, are very good. More than half are memorable. Soundtrack is better than most movies, and there are a lot of songs since there are a lot of party scenes. It looks good - by that I mean, the quality is better than most lower budget comedies I've seen.

It's funny. Period.

That's how I would describe this little indie comedy that's almost a gem. It follows a group of friends - not quite the stereotypical group you find in most teen comedies - as they hang out for a week over summer. You have the younger hot girls who are impressed by the older guys - although there is only one older guy interested - and his slightly dry performance brings more than a few laughs as well as some laugh-out-loud moments. His younger brother and his friends are the ones who really want the girls, but don't realize they have no chance. Throw in a hilarious guy who wants footjobs and a job in a sex store (and dreams of little people), and this script almost never lets up.

The lead actress - Elizabeth Schmidt - brings a realness and tenderness to a role that isn't often seen in a sex comedy - and she truly is impressive and appears just as comfortable with her comedic timing as in her emotional scenes, which moves this movie beyond a typical sex comedy.

I had to rewind the movie a few times when I started watching it because the jokes were coming fast, often with little build up or space between. And some were just so funny or unique I had to hear them again. But be warned - you have to pay attention, if you don't, you're not going to enjoy this movie. I've seen enough bad teen sex comedies to know how they work - guys pursue hot unattainable girls, hi-jinx pursue and builds up to an uncomfortable funny moment every 5 minutes. Well, that is NOT Kicking The Dog. It doesn't rely on much build-up - just an impressive fast-paced script, quick editing, above average delivery and a unique take on everything "sex". That's right, I did say "unique".

Besides the fact you absolutely have to pay attention every second to get the jokes (90% are in the conversation) you also need to know the scenes take place in few locations, which is what ultimately keeps this movie from being rated higher. I feel as though it needed more unique hang-outs to put the actors in - or separate them from each other. I think that could have helped the overall look.

Basically, you;re going to laugh start to finish, you'll have to rewind it a few times to hear what you missed, and you'll be impressed by the touching moments...but you're going to wish you saw more places, or saw the cast out doing more.

Soundtrack - Very good. The songs used at the beginning and end are great! A few fast paced and a very slow song near the end.

Actors - Recognized one (Vedette Lim from true Blood), but a few others have done TV and movie work, so you may recognize more. Lead actors were all very good. A ton of actors with lines in this film.

Writer / Director - Randy Scoot Lammey. Not sure about the knickname - is it cool or corny? I guess if he's famous it's cool, otherwise it was a bad decision. His comedic writing is gold, but could tweak his storyline skills. Directing seemed adequate, but it's tough to judge.

BTW, even though there is almost no swearing in this film, I doubt you'll see it on USA anytime soon simply because of the topics - sex, sex, sex. And some little people.

I gave it a 6. I think that's fair. It's definitely above average - just because of the dialog and humor. The actors being tied to one major location holds it back. Some story lines could have been more developed.

It's worth a watch. A couple friends do quote it a lot. "you're not a little fella after all"

First off, this is an independent film, basically in the same vein as two of the most famous - Clerks and Slacker. We all know Kevin Smith made Clerks and went on to a successful career. But you may not realize that Slacker was the first effort by Richard Linklater who's second effort was the legendary movie that began as a cult classic and is now a staple of every teen and 20- something - the great Dazed and Confused. Why am I mentioning this? Because I think that Slacker is one of the worst movies I have ever seen. It couldn't hold my attention for more than a few minutes and I only laughed two times. And yet Linklater went on to make an iconic movie about high school kids a couple years later. Lammey's Kicking The Dog, although rough around the edges (we'll get into that in a moment), is a hundred times better than Slacker - basically because it's really funny. I read a review that said something like "Linklater's sophomore effort was Dazed and Confused, which is a classic. Lammey's first effort is a superior movie than Linklater's Slacker, so I'm setting my Google alert so I don't miss his next film"

Basically that's how I feel. each went a different route with their low budget indie films. Slacker roamed around town, never staying on a character for more than a few minutes and never being very funny. Kicking The Dog stays in a single home and has a bunch of characters interact with each other in that house. But the key difference - The Dog is really funny. Both films went in these directions because of their budget. But someone saw that Linklater had potential and he went on to make D&C. As far as pure comedy goes, Slacker is not in the same league as KTD. KTD is funny and often hilarious. Show it to a group of 18 year olds and watch their reactions. Yes, the acting is up and down, as is the story. Staying in one house feels awkward at times. But if you just watch and listen to the comedy, it will keep you laughing.

Sorry it's not really a review. I just watched the movie after not seeing it for a few years and tried to see if Lammey made another and I stumbled upon the review comparing it to Slacker, which made me think. If you like teen sex comedies, watch it. You will laugh.