Recensioni degli utenti

This is the kind of movie that independent film fans search for and hope to find. It's well-written, acted and directed with a story that's off the beaten path a bit, to be sure. It concerns the odd relationship between two people who don't exactly fit in the world an upscale suburban housing community. One is a 10 -year old girl named Devon (Mischa Barton) whose parents want her to be the perfect little daughter. She'd rather live in her own world, one in which she entertains herself with her favorite fairy tale of the child-menacing witch, Baba Yaga. The other is a twentysomething yard worker named Trent (Sam Rockwell), who is treated in this paranoid community almost like a black South African under apartheid, i.e. get in, do you work and get out.

Both of them display their non-conformist behavior early on. She climbs out her bedroom window to her roof, takes off her nightgown and watches it magically float away into the night sky. He stops on his way home from work on a one-lane bridge, blocking the traffic, and proceeds to disrobe and take a leap into the river below. Devon gets interested in him, especially after she witnesses his blatant and subtle humiliation at a neighborhood cookout, where he's come to get paid for some work. She more or less stalks him at his mobile home, even spying on him making love to one of the community's young women, a girl who will barely acknowledge him otherwise. Trent tries to shoo Devon away at first, but he can't help but be flattered by the young girl's interest.

Of course the potential for misunderstanding in this kind of relationship is great and it inevitably happens. I feared that the movie was about to fly apart after Devon's father and some others confronted Trent, but the fantastic ending (fantastic in the sense of fantasy) made me smile. If you are looking for something different, this movie definitely qualifies.

Mischa Barton really blew me away in this film. I usually don't care much for child actors, and I went into this film thinking that way. But Barton seemed, with few exceptions, to BE her character. But there's a lot more than just pretty good acting from a precocious child. Barton was a major league charmer. You just couldn't take your eyes off her whenever she was on-screen. Sam Rockwell was decent, and no one else really showed much except maybe Angie Harmon in a small part. (She did have a rare topless scene in this film) But most of the characters do weird things, with no tie-in at all to any reason for their conduct. I think this may be thought by some to be character development, but I think it is either laziness or insufficiently imaginative screenwriters. But in any case you should check out this film just to see Barton. Grade: B

Sam Rockwell is one of those actors who, no matter what role he's playing, is totally natural. He's immediately likable. I've always been a big fan of his, and up until yesterday had never before seen Lawn Dogs, one of the earliest films wherein he has a bigger role. He's very quietly, calmly good in it, and even in the scenes where he's playing and goofing around with Mischa Barton and it seems awkward, he maintains a pure, natural presence.

Lawn Dogs says something important about the most generic slice of American life, the geometrically shaped and calculated life in the suburbs. The film doesn't unmask it. Cleverly, it maintains that quiet, perpetually sunny, middle-of-nowhere feeling of a classic subdivision, and then displays a sad and maddening scenario of misunderstanding in a closed-minded, insular neighborhood and the hauntingly realistic characters. There is a bit of animal violence in this movie, but it's played out in a tautly spare way that's just as frustrating as vain, judgmental people and matter of the rest of the film.

Lawn Dogs is a refreshing sort of film. The relationship between Rockwell and Barton is heartwarming and broadly, gently natural. It's good to experience a story that altruistically communicates the genuine existence and state of mind that is often questioned and often misunderstood.

Sam Rockwell has been had. He lit up the screen in "Box of Moonlight," is a major player in the upcoming "Midsummer Night's Dream," and yet he didn't get equal billing for screen time in either of those films. What gives? In "Lawn Dogs" Rockwell is stunning as the lawn boy who accepts a little "rich" girl as a friend and gives her a new view of the world. The movie is rich in atmosphere and color. The central Southern United States has rarely appeared so docile and yet so menacing. Every time I thought I knew where "Lawn Dogs" was going...it pulled another pleasant surprise. Mischa Barton is amazing as Devon Stockard, the little girl with more on her mind than selling cookies. This is truly one of the best American films of the 90's. If you like off-beat slices of America with a twisted view, then "Lawn Dogs" is the best movie you'll see in a long time. It is quite simply full of the magic, menace and imagination alive in the heads and hearts of little girls...about to become young women. Oh yeah, and give Sam Rockwell his due!

I first saw this film on late night BBC in England and was half watching it while packing for college. By the half way mark, i was sucked in and couldn't not watch.

The first thing that will knock you out is Sam Rockwell. Over the last few years he has risen in fame due to high-profile parts in Charlie's Angels, The Green Mile and Mamet's Heist, but here is the arrival of a veritable acting talent. His is a simple, truthful unshowy performance that resonates throughout the film without crushing it. He is the film's heart, rather than a scene-stealer. As we learn more about his poor, white-trash lawn cutter, we sympathise and begin to realise how easily the reactions of others higher up on the food chain conspire to create chaos for him.

I won't give too much about the story away, because it frequently heads off in new, interesting directions, but essentially this is the story of Devon (newcomer child actor Mischa Barton) and the above mentioned Trent (Rockwell) and their relationship. He is poor, she comes from wealthy stock, but feels out of place in her materialistic world and they are both children of nature. What makes it compelling is that she knows this and revels in it and Trent has to be shown, by her.

John Duigan does a wonderful job of introducing strands and themes which at first seem offbeat and peculiar but which all add to the sense prejudice, division and isolation felt by these two brillaintly-wrought characters. Each find the other intriguing but are hesitant to become close because of others' values. Eventually they become friends and just as they accept this, the world around them turns on them and what started out as an irreverent comedy-drama, turns into something much darker and even terrifying.

Where the film goes from there, I will leave to you to discover. Please do, because this is a very unique film in American independent cinema. Much like the more high-profile American Beauty, what at first seems like character cliche and predictability rapidly leads you down the path least expected. Its beautifully shot, making full use of a handful of gorgeous locations, wonderfully acted, particularly by Barton and Rockwell, but also by the ever-reliably sleazy Christopher Mcdonald (Shooter McGavin in Happy Gilmore and Louise's husband in Thelma & Louise), the quietly strong Kathleen Quinlan and the lesser spotted Bruce McGill in one of his best roles as security guard Nash. The music is also peerless, at first playful and calm, building to a dramatic climax.

That climax is what makes this film stand head and shoulders above the rest. An emotional pay-off such as you have never seen in a film of this ilk. 9/10

Trent is a young man living in a trailer in a wooded area beyond the suburbs. He makes a living cutting the massive lawns of the populace of a gated suburb village. He befriends a young girl from within the suburb, who herself has some stability issues, despite being only 10 years old. The two build a friendship despite the resentment towards the `white trash' Trent from within the suburb,

I didn't know what this film was about before I sat and watched it, reading the plot summary in the tv guide as the title sequence began, I wondered if I would bother, but I'm glad I did. The film works on several level – the most apparent of which is the simple story of a friendship that is threatened. This part works well as the friendship never seems forced and, although the spectre of sexual tension is there (in Trent occasionally feeling uncomfortable), it is not a strand that is actually part of their relationship.

This all works well due (in most part) to two great performances from Barton and Rockwell. Barton shows amazing maturity and ability to carry the role off without it being like many child stars (where it is clear they are forcing everything). Rockwell meanwhile is a mass of subtleties and little touches that make his character likeable.

However this part wouldn't work as well if it weren't for the wider theme of the trash being poorly treated by the smugger middle classes. This theme creates the reason for the threat to their friendship (more or less) but it also serves as a humbling attack on a class that lives a selfish, scared life behind gates with private security guards. Such places are increasingly common in America and this film is clear as to their effect on both those inside them as well as the wider community of America. Although it keeps a gentle tone for the most, the film depicts those in the suburb as selfish, aloof and fearful. Even more condemning about this depiction is that it never feels like they have been exaggerated or monsterised in any way!

The script is well written and certainly makes the actors jobs a lot easier – certainly Barton benefits from great dialogue and character development. Rockwell meanwhile benefits more from direction as much of his best work is not dialogue based. McDonald, Quinlan and McGill all do solid work in support. The end of the film is a little worrying as it appears to veer off at a tangent, but the final sentiment is beautifully presented and encouraging (albeit due to a child's apparent naivety).

Overall this is a lovely film that I'm very glad I watched. About more than just an adult/child friendship, this film is moving and involving in both it's core plot and it's wider themes.

LAWN DOGS

Aspect ratio: 1.85:1

Sound format: Dolby Digital

The haves and have-nots are put under the microscope in John Duigan's diverting drama LAWN DOGS, and it's the haves who come up wanting in every respect. Sam Rockwell (CONFESSIONS OF A DANGEROUS MIND) is the penniless gardener-cum-handyman who makes a fragile living tending the lawns of contemptuous rich folk, all of whom view him with deep suspicion whilst indulging their own dubious peccadilloes behind closed doors. Mischa Barton (THE SIXTH SENSE, TV's "The O.C.") is a lonely 10 year old girl who's been shielded from the world by her wealthy parents following a recent health scare (she has a faulty heart), but she dares to strike up a friendship with Rockwell after stumbling onto his ramshackle home in the woods, a friendship which she pursues against Rockwell's wishes, until their 'secret' is forced into the open and grossly misinterpreted by Barton's vengeful family.

While the moneyed set lives in antiseptic splendour and conceals its hypocrisy behind security measures of every description, Rockwell's character enjoys an open life in a beautiful forest environment, like the witch Baba Yaga in Barton's favourite fairy tale. In fact, there's a magical, otherworldly quality to much of the film (rendered explicit in the final reel), though the central narrative is fairly low-key and revolves around Rockwell's frequent encounters with the dissolute low-lifes who dare to think themselves superior. With his wiry frame and white trash southern accent, Rockwell strikes something of a romantic figure (watch out for his full-frontal nude scene early in the film), though he never stoops to eccentricity or excess. For one so young, Barton is excellent in such a demanding role, and she holds her own against an experienced adult cast (including Christopher McDonald and Kathleen Quinlan as Barton's narrow-minded parents, and Eric Mabius as the rich jock who can barely conceal his attraction to Rockwell). Beautiful cinematography by Elliot Davis (KING OF THE HILL).

This superb film, directed by John Duigan, the gifted director of THE YEAR MY VOICE BROKE, is about a friendship between a young girl (Mischa Barton of "The OC") and a free-spirited young, adult man (Sam Rockwell).

It's self-aware enough to acknowledge the inherent sensitivity of its subject matter, but it doesn't cave into conservative conclusions about how such a relationship ought to be portrayed.

At heart, LAWN DOGS is about trust, not the death of innocence or the festering political correctness all around us that sees danger in every unconventional relationship. It does touch on the subject of sexual abuse, but it doesn't come at it from the angle you'd suspect...and that's the whole point, isn't it? Sexual abuse, for the most part, usually visits as someone you've known well enough to trust completely.

Beyond its politics, this is a unique, bracing fantasy that is more European than American (or Australian) in its view world both morally and visually. The climax is an unexpected treat and its moral resolution arrives just in the nick of time.

Sumptuously photographed and written with great intelligence by Naomi Wallace, it dares to be erotic, provoking, unconventional and incisive.

Don't pass it up if you get an offer.

I thought this film was excellent and the performance of Sam Rockwell was a real star turn for the actor. But being the father of a daughter, the relationship between Rockwell and the 10 year-old girl made me uneasy. It really pushed the envelope about their relationship.

Lawn Dog is about a newly moved family in a small up-market rich county town in a guarded - walled neighborhood Devon - a 10 year old girl is sent around to make friends by distributing cookies made at home Unlike the routine - Devon gets to know the poor lawn mower young lad Trent - staying in a vehicle trailer in a forest - and both of them forges an innocent love friendship But things turn ugly because of the unusual friendship and the unfolding of events

The story is written by Naomi Wallace and the movie is directed by an Australian director John Duigan (A Masters in Philosophy student)

This story is based on the Russian folklore of Baba Yaga

220px-Bilibin._Baba_Yaga.jpg

Baba Yaga is an ugly ferocious looking old women who flies around and descends on a forest in a hut. She may either hinder or may help those whom she encounters

The folklore of Baba Yaga is very famous in Eastern Europe and there are those who consider Baba Yaga as a helper or a villain or something obscure and ambiguous.

She is remarkably adored as a multi-faceted figure head There are many stories of Baba Yaga in local Eastern European and Southern Russian Literatures from a wild witch to an Old Angel - depending on the plot she takes the role the story teller wants her to take to take the story forward.

**** In Lawn Dogs - Devon is the 10 year old child who is a figurative representation of Baba Yaga.

The writer Naomi Wallace has brilliantly narrated the tale - by giving an unkind characterization of the child that is weird, quirky, lonesome, brave, stupid, yet likable

From the beginning The Director John Duigan has planted stories of biases across gender roles and rich-poor / educated - illiterate divide filled with underlined biases and prejudices.

There is also a deliberate effort to show sexual overtones in all characters around this 10 years old child Devon - who is a growing girl just on the verge of adolescence.

Due to which as an audience there is always this uneasy feeling about this relationship of this young girl with this older young man - they belong to different strata of the society - with nothing in common between them

They Devon and Trent become close friends.

This movie was controversial was because of several reasons It was banned in United Kingdom and USA - until the Director agreed to cut a few scenes

Sexual scenes, frontal nudity, brutal killing scene of a dog and above all this unusual relationship between Devon and Trent which was frowned and looked down upon by the UK and US audiences

But the relationship between Devon and Trent is pure and innocent. They are just very good friends.

The tempo of the movie is nice and builds up with events till it reaches a climax which - as predicted is detrimental to our hero Trent's survival and life.

That is the time the story takes a magical turn where Devon shows her power as a Baba Yaga witch.

The movie is nothing but a beautiful poignant fable - One more addition to the Baba Yaga Legend.story telling

I liked the movie a lot - especially because it showed pure true LOVE between two human being with totally contrasting - everything

I would go 7.5 out of 10 for this small marvel. Watch it.

'Lawn Dogs' may well be the best movie to come out of America this decade. It's a film that lazily unravels itself, yet succeeds in impacting like a sledgehammer, and does so in such a perfect, unforced and magical way that the experience of viewing it leaves the movie goer completely fulfilled, perhaps like no other film ever has before it.

Even more intriguing is the difficulty one has at distinguishing exactly why it is that this film works so flawlessly and just how such a slow moving film can leave a person so thoroughly energized and rejuvenated.

Only a few movies of recent times have even come close to carrying off this irony- think 'Fargo' or better still, 'Love Serenade' (interestingly and perhaps not coincidentally also directed by an Australian).

Every single element of 'Lawn Dogs' is magical. From the direction, cinematography, music and fairytale infused storyline which deals with the universally important issues of friendship, self-identity, family, community and class divisions, to the powerhouse performances from the two lead performers and amazing supporting cast.

John Diugan has demonstrated with 'Lawn Dogs' that he is indeed a true alchemist of the film world that can mix and dabble with the elements to produce pure, solid gold.

I watched LAWN DOGS for the second time and was again puzzled that this film got such great reviews. Oh, the performances were fine. But the ill logic that permeates this piece, as demonstrated by the characters and situations, are entirely unforgivable. I felt my intelligence insulted until, twenty minutes before the ending, I turned it off. I just couldn't take it anymore.

Before elaborating on that, though, I found it disturbing that a ten year old girl was in the center of what was a very adult film.

Second, I thought the character of Devon was pretty, well, awful. Her behavior, her thoughtlessness, I found to be unlikable. Some things she did were entirely senseless.

Trent was equally problematic to me. His language (I'm no stranger to profanity, but most decent people try to curb it around impressionable kids). Still, I found him a bit more likable than Devon.

If unlikable characters make a film for you, then LAWN DOGS might b your cup of tea.

Now, to the ill logic. Trent, 20s, tells Devon, 10, to keep their friendship a secret...and then does everything, it seems, to broadcast it! Repeatedly!

At a key point in the story, he commits an act that would and will most assuredly get him in trouble and then, instead of doing the obvious thing to minimize trouble for himself, does just the thing to incriminate himself!

There is sooo much I could say about this film but I don't want to give away spoilers. Suffice it to say I found LAWN DOGS to be overrated and ill logical. It relies on evoking sympathy for two "misunderstood" protagonists but they are rendered in such a way that they come across as stupid and repugnant. That does not a good movie make. I wanted to like Devon and Trent. But I just couldn't. And that was a shame for a movie that has such a promising premise--a premise that, in fact, has been explored to better effect in other films.

Lawn Dogs left me breathless. Thank God that small, quality films like this one pop up every now and then. Two others that I'd recommend if you loved this film are "Eye of God", and "Little Boy Blue".

A film of tenderness and human understanding, set against a cruel, vapid American suburban existence. This film is more metaphoric than literal. Anyone suggesting that a daily relationship between a ten year old girl and a young adult male is a real, acceptable occurrence misses the point, and the film's purpose, and the film maker's "weltanschauung". That said, what you do have here is a story about two displaced and misunderstood soul that find comfort and meaning, despite the harshness and rejection of soon to be millennial America. The moral just may be that if the false reality you're in is too unacceptable, make one of your own, even if it's unconventional. Just as long as it's genuine and authentic.

A beautifully made modern day fairy tale that lingers with you long after the credits stop rolling. This movie has it all! The cinematography is breathtaking, the soundtrack is haunting and the writing is superb. Watching this movie is like peeling an onion. Every time you pull back a layer, there's another one underneath. Every time I watch this movie, I learn something new, and as strange as it may sound, I feel like I grow a little more as a person. It is a wonderful little gem of a movie with thousands of tiny details hidden within it waiting to be found. The care with which this movie was made is obvious from beginning to end, overall, a stunning piece of work.

This film will blow you away. Whatever your expectations may be, it will surprise and delight you. Mischa Barton is a revelation, turning in a precocious performance as young Devon that signals the emergance of a major talent. Sam Rockwell provides excellent support; in this tale of forbidden and dangerous friendship. Devon longs to escape her claustrophobic existence in her walled community, and uses Trent (Rockwell) to help her break away from her miserable existence. The supporting cast of characters, a classy and bitter take on modern suburban america, reflect well the virtues of Trent and Devon. Different, independent and with a wondeful darkness to her personality, it is often shocking to see just how knowing young Devon is.

This is such a beautiful film, everyone should own it. A very modern tale of innocence and its inherent dangers; watch this film and let a young girl named Devon teach you about life. 10 out of 10

When I was a little boy, my mother told me to be careful when in the company of young girls, particularly preteens. I asked her why and she said that they lied and believed the lies and that could get me into a lot of trouble I did not need. When I asked her how she knew this, she said, "Because I was a little girl once, trust me!" Well, her advice was based on the assumption that I was straight and would be interested in girls other than for occasional acquaintance. I avoided them mostly because they seemed to detect that I was a young gay boy who was 'not in the market' and just another form of competition, I suppose, so the advice was moot.

This movie illustrates my mother's warnings to a tee. It ought to be required for hetero boys. On the surface, this movie seems to have a lot going for it--adequate actors all, plot, subplots, etc. You are slowly drawn in and then the tension builds which Hitchcock would have appreciated. It unfortunately loses me with the rather abrupt contrived ending. This little girl, first of all, is obviously extremely aware of her power over the people around her. She may not be obviously manipulating her parents, but nonetheless, with the lying, withholding, going along with their lies, she aids and abets. The parents mimic every Republican I've ever known, having grown up in a mixed community of both wealth and middle to low-middle class. The two young men, Sean (closeted gay attracted to Trent) and Brett (hetero gigolo servicing Kathy Quinlan while her husband barbeques himself silly) evoke every town bully I've ever run into--both gay and straight. They are just idiotic testosterone driven manimals played adequately by Mr. Mabius and Mr. Gray. The costar to the main character, Sam Rockwell (aka Trent) is extremely James Dean enough to get you to pathos and empathy for his hard luck life and lack of breaks. Actually, if one looks differently at the film, the manipulative little girl ends up being his answer to freedom. Unfortunately, in the process of plot, I assume to move things along in the time allotted, they have her implicate Trent (her supposed friend) and again, let events go where she wants them to. I think it was intended to be more about the perceived powerlessness of youngsters who are shown to be actually pulling all the strings with their deviant daydreams and behavior towards the adult world that they both long to be a part of and detest and rebel against. In life, I do NOT believe this girl would have shot the young man with the stick. I think she'd have let it happen and watched voyeuristically. Trent would have been dogmeat. Perhaps, years later as a repentant adult she'd have told a stranger what really happened or written a book and done the talk shows after having gone through some fake therapy. I just don't believe that particular character capable of that ending. I think it was obvious where she was headed from the start. She knew the power of her seductive behavior in the guise of friendship with this poor slob, Trent, and what she could do with it. She also knew how predictable her parents were and set them up constantly. This doesn't exempt them from being the most horrible parents on record for alienation of affection and misteaching of general rules of life. The parents are like the Bushes or Kennedys, externally real but internally vacant. Even when they are present, nobody is home. Like most wealthy people, they are masters of self-deception and withholding. All is surface. I think, however, the notion that those two bimbos could've raised a young woman with somewhat human attributes is silly. As most animals with genetic programming, we tend to turn out very much like those who sired us. She more likely would've toyed with this guy because of her boredom and lack of friends, but then set him up (which she does in fact) and walk away. It would've given her a sense of power, having some control. That ending would've been believable, but not very popular with audiences. Rank was famous for taking risks, however, I think they gave in to pressure to 'normalize' the message. The chance that Trent in the end would get away is not reality based either. Anyone with that much money would hire lawyers and detectives to drag Trent to justice (alive or dead) and then massage the media to conjure up and prove the false stories they would create to live with this situation.

So, nice try guys, but no 10s here.

This is one of the best movies I have seen all year. There is an amazing blend of surrealism and realism that makes this movie work. The overuse of color and the picture perfect scenery used in creating Devon's neighborhood allows the audience to see the artificial world she lives in. This is offset very well by Devon's more realistic and down to earth life style.

I can continue to ramble on about how great this movie is, but really you must see it for yourself.

An outstanding success!

This had plenty of clichè characters, the classic tropes, that appear in many films about social classes. As a fan of Rockwell I delved into this one head first as I thought I'd missed a gem of his.

The film presents some problematic moments from the start. I brushed them aside as "cute" because if this had been a story about a young boy I wouldn't have thought twice about it. I wanted to keep an open mind and enjoy an offbeat film about a strange and rebellious little girl as I had once been.

But, the film continues to hone in on moments that weren't necessary to plot development that involve our whimsical young girl doing things that would appeal to child predators. I have never been uneasy during a movie and I'm not a prude. This coming from someone who loved both versions of "Lolita" by Nabakov and Kubrick.

The film went nowhere but it certainly went "there"... only me? I'm okay to be the one to say it here. Not one performance justifies the writers or directors choices made here.