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Wiener-Dog (film)

Wiener-Dog is a 2016 American anthology comedy film directed and written by Todd Solondz. Starring an ensemble cast led by Ellen Burstyn, Kieran Culkin, Julie Delpy, Danny DeVito, Greta Gerwig, Tracy Letts, and Zosia Mamet, the film serves as a spin-off from Solondz's 1995 film Welcome to the Dollhouse, which also features the character of Dawn Wiener. The film is also inspired by the 1966 French drama Au hasard Balthazar, directed by Robert Bresson.

Wiener-Dog
Theatrical release poster
Directed byTodd Solondz
Written byTodd Solondz
Produced by
Starring
CinematographyEdward Lachman
Edited byKevin Messman
Music by
Production
companies
Distributed by
Release dates
  • January 22, 2016 (2016-01-22) (Sundance)
  • June 24, 2016 (2016-06-24) (United States)
Running time
88 minutes[1]
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
Box office$700,000[2]

The film had its world premiere at the 2016 Sundance Film Festival on January 22, 2016.[3] before receiving a limited release on June 24, 2016, by Amazon Studios and IFC Films.[4]

Plot

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Danny brings his cancer-surviving son Remi a wiener dog. His wife Dina does not want to deal with caring for the dog, but Danny informs her Remi is mature and old enough to help the two with the responsibilities. Dina brings Wiener-Dog to the vet to get spayed, and on their way, Remi becomes upset. Dina comforts Remi by telling him an embellished story about her childhood dog, which she claims died after giving birth to a litter of stillborn puppies. During Dina and Danny's yoga class, Remi and Wiener-Dog tear up the couch cushions and cover the living room in feathers. Wiener-Dog wanders off into the kitchen, and Remi feeds her a chocolate chip granola bar. Wiener-Dog becomes very ill and spreads diarrhoea around the house. The next day, Danny brings Wiener-Dog to the vet to be euthanized.

At the vet, veterinary nurse Dawn Wiener takes Wiener-Dog from the consultation room before the vet can euthanise her. She brings Wiener-Dog home with her, where she nurses the dog back to health. It is loosely implied that she is estranged from her family. One day while shopping for pet food, she runs into her ex-boyfriend (from junior high) Brandon, who invites her to visit his brother Tommy and his wife April, both with Down syndrome, in Ohio. Dawn agrees, and the two head off to Ohio, where they come across homesick Mexican hitchhikers. Once they arrive in Ohio, Brandon informs his brother that their father had died due to alcoholism. Tommy asks Brandon to stop doing drugs, and Brandon promises he has stopped, even though he was shown injecting drugs earlier in the trip. Dawn offers to leave Wiener-Dog with Tommy and April, who happily accept. On their way home, Dawn and Brandon talk about their future together and happily hold hands.

During an intermission, Wiener-Dog is seen wandering across America, via strip clubs, motels and crime scenes.

Wiener-Dog then arrives with Dave Schmerz, a screenwriting professor who is attempting to get his second screenplay off the ground. One day at work, Schmerz is informed that various students and administration members are complaining about his constant negativity. In the meeting, he tearfully explains that he had tried to put real emotion into his script, but he compromised and added funny elements to make it more commercial, thus ruining it. Schmerz is asked to attend a discussion with a previous student who became a famous film director, who mocks Schmerz's teaching and encourages the students to drop out. Schmerz creates a bomb and attaches it to Wiener-Dog. Students notice and contact authorities. Schmerz is stopped by authorities investigating the incident on the way home and willingly identifies himself.

Elderly Nana, who lives with her caregiver Yvette, is Wiener-Dog's final owner. She names her "Cancer." Nana receives a call from her granddaughter Zoe, who is on her way to visit for the first time in several years, along with her boyfriend Fantasy, a conceptual artist. Once Zoe arrives, she asks for money in order to pay for Fantasy's new art project. Nana agrees to give her the money. While filling out the check, Zoe confides in her Nana, wondering if Fantasy is cheating on her. Once Zoe leaves, Nana goes outside and sits with Wiener-Dog, where she dreams about a younger version of herself coming back to show her what her life could have been if she had been more positive. She wakes up to discover Wiener-Dog has run away. She then spots Wiener-Dog being run over and killed by a truck.

Six months later, a stuffed animatronic Wiener-Dog is displayed in Fantasy's art exhibit.

Cast

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First story

Second story

  • Greta Gerwig as Dawn Wiener
  • Kieran Culkin as Brandon McCarthy
  • Haraldo Alvarez as Luis
  • Rigoberto Garcia as Jose
  • Dain Eulogio-Victoriano as Jose Luis
  • Connor Long as Tommy
  • Bridget Brown as April

Intermission

Third story

Fourth story

Production

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On October 23, 2014, The Hollywood Reporter reported that Todd Solondz would next write and direct the comedy Wiener-Dog with Julie Delpy and Greta Gerwig attached as stars, Gerwig playing Dawn Wiener.[5] Megan Ellison would produce and finance through Annapurna Pictures, with Christine Vachon also producing through Killer Films.[5] On June 24, 2015, the complete cast of the film was announced, which included Brie Larson, Kieran Culkin, Zosia Mamet, Danny DeVito, Ellen Burstyn, and Tracy Letts.[6][7] Ed Lachman served as the film's cinematographer.[8] Solondz initially wrote the script several years prior to making the film, but was unable to find financing.[9]

Filming

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Principal photography on the film began on June 24, 2015.[7] Filming lasted a total of 30 days, with shooting taking place in and around New York City and Nyack, New York.[10]

Post-production

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During post-production, Brie Larson was cut out of the film.[11]

Music

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James Lavino and Nathan Larson composed the film's score.[12] "The Ballad of Wiener-Dog", a song from the film, was short listed for Best Original Song at the 89th Academy Awards.[13][14]

Release

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In December 2015, two images from the film were released, including one of Gerwig.[15] The film had its world premiere at the Sundance Film Festival on January 22, 2016.[3] It went onto screen at the Seattle International Film Festival on May 29, 2016.[16] Shortly after, it was announced that Amazon Studios had acquired distribution rights to the film.[17] In April 2016, it was announced IFC Films would be partnering with Amazon on releasing the film.[18] The film was released on June 24, 2016.[19] The film was released in the United Kingdom on August 12, 2016, by Picturehouse Entertainment.[20]

Reception

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Wiener-Dog received positive reviews from film critics. It holds a 74% approval rating on review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, based on 108 reviews, with an average rating of 6.6/10. The website's critical consensus reads, "For filmgoers predisposed to enjoy Todd Solondz' brand of black comedy, Wiener-Dog won't disappoint — but those put off by previous works need not apply."[21] On Metacritic, the film holds a rating of 66 out of 100, based on 34 critics, indicating "Generally favorable reviews".[22]

Guy Lodge of Variety gave the film a positive review, writing: "Each of their mini-narratives plays out in the pause-heavy mode of highly mannered mundanity that will feel entirely natural to Solondz acolytes — and, it seems, to the actors, most of whom tackle the director’s customarily arch dialogue with brusque aplomb. Delpy, in particular, was born to deliver his harshest words, though it’s Burstyn — using very few at all, her set face shifting and falling as the script lends reasoning to her froideur — whom viewers might find themselves unable to shake."[23] Todd McCarthy of The Hollywood Reporter gave the film a positive review writing: "These last minutes are the best in the film and by far the most visually dazzling, even though Ed Lachman’s cinematography throughout stands as a model of subtle and elegant compositional skill tested by what are, for the most part, deliberately banal settings."[24] World Socialist Web Site reviewer David Walsh gave the film a positive review, commenting that "the hostility directed toward the contemporary art and film scene is perhaps the strongest feature of Wiener-Dog."[25]

References

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  1. ^ "WIENER-DOG (15)". British Board of Film Classification. July 25, 2016. Retrieved July 25, 2016.
  2. ^ "Wiener-Dog". Box Office Mojo. IMDb. Retrieved April 22, 2018.
  3. ^ a b Latenser, Elizabeth (December 7, 2015). "Sundance Institute Completes Feature Film Lineup For 2016 Sundance Film Festival". Sundance Film Festival. The Sundance Institute. Retrieved December 19, 2015.
  4. ^ Pahle, Rebecca (April 8, 2016). "Summer Heat: FJI previews what's in store for warm-weather moviegoing". Film Journal International. Retrieved April 15, 2016.
  5. ^ a b Kit, Borys (October 23, 2014). "Todd Solondz Plots Sort of Sequel to 'Welcome to the Dollhouse' With Greta Gerwig (Exclusive)". The Hollywood Reporter. Prometheus Global Media. Retrieved June 28, 2015.
  6. ^ McNary, Dave (June 24, 2015). "Todd Solondz's 'Weiner-Dog' Draws Julie Delpy, Greta Gerwig, Brie Larson, Zosia Mamet". Variety. Penske Business Media. Retrieved June 28, 2015.
  7. ^ a b Hipes, Patrick (June 24, 2015). "Todd Solondz's 'Wiener-Dog': More Cast Welcomed To The Doghouse". Deadline Hollywood. Penske Business Media. Archived from the original on June 26, 2015. Retrieved June 28, 2015.
  8. ^ Erbland, Kate (January 25, 2016). "How I Shot That: Ed Lachman Overcomes the Usual Challenges to Lens the Audacious 'Wiener-Dog'". IndieWire. Penske Business Media. Retrieved February 23, 2016.
  9. ^ Radish, Christina (June 25, 2016). "Wiener-Dog': Director Todd Solondz Explains Why It Took a Few Years to Make This Movie". Collider. Complex Media. Retrieved June 26, 2016.
  10. ^ Brooks, Brian (June 24, 2016). "'Wiener-Dog' Bows Along With 'Wilderpeople,' 'Swiss Army Man' & Frank Zappa: Specialty Preview". Deadline Hollywood. Penske Business Media. Retrieved June 24, 2016.
  11. ^ Mottram, James (August 11, 2016). "Wiener-Dog cast and director: 'Cute pets are often seen as more precious than human lives'". The Independent. Retrieved April 22, 2018.
  12. ^ filmmusicreporter (December 9, 2015). "James Lavino Scoring Todd Solondz's 'Wiener-Dog'". Film Music Reporter. Retrieved May 26, 2016.
  13. ^ Nordine, Michael (December 13, 2016). "Oscars 2017: 91 Eligible Original Songs Include Three 'La La Land' Tunes". IndieWire. Penske Business Media. Retrieved December 18, 2016.
  14. ^ filmmusicreporter (December 13, 2016). "Academy Announces 91 Original Songs in Oscar Race". Film Music Reporter. Retrieved December 18, 2016.
  15. ^ Jagernauth, Kevin (December 8, 2015). "Sundance First Look: Greta Gerwig In Todd Solondz's 'Wiener-Dog'". IndieWire. Penske Business Media. Retrieved December 19, 2015.
  16. ^ "Wiener-Dog". Seattle International Film Festival. Retrieved May 5, 2016.
  17. ^ Seetoodeh, Ramin (January 26, 2016). "Sundance: Amazon Lands Todd Solondz Comedy 'Wiener-Dog". Variety. Penske Business Media. Retrieved January 26, 2016.
  18. ^ Kay, Jermey (April 14, 2016). "Amazon Studios woos CinemaCon". Screen Daily. Screen International. Retrieved April 15, 2016.
  19. ^ Robinson, Will (May 26, 2016). "Todd Solondz's Wiener-Dog cycles through owners in dark comedy's trailer". Entertainment Weekly. Time. Retrieved May 27, 2016.
  20. ^ Pierrott, John-Paul (June 20, 2016). "Trailer Exclusive: Todd Solondz' Wiener-Dog". Picturehouse Entertainment. Archived from the original on August 18, 2016. Retrieved August 12, 2016.
  21. ^ "Wiener-Dog". Rotten Tomatoes. Fandango Media. Retrieved August 27, 2018.
  22. ^ "Wiener-Dog Reviews". Metacritic. CBS Interactive. Retrieved February 22, 2016.
  23. ^ Lodge, Guy (January 23, 2016). "Sundance Film Review: 'Wiener-Dog'". Variety. Penske Business Media. Retrieved June 22, 2016.
  24. ^ McCarthy, Todd (January 22, 2016). "'Wiener-Dog': Sundance Review". The Hollywood Reporter. Prometheus Global Media. Retrieved June 22, 2016.
  25. ^ Walsh, David (July 20, 2016). "Wiener-Dog: Todd Solondz continues to look critically at American life". World Socialist Web Site. International Committee of the Fourth International. Retrieved September 3, 2016.
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