Dogtooth Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		4.5
Video		3.5
Audio		4.0
Extras		1.0
Overall		3.5

Dogtooth Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Dr. Svet Atanasov November 2, 2010

Yorgos Lanthimos’ "Kynodontas" a.k.a. "Dogtooth" (2009) arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of British distributors Verve Pictures. The only supplemental feature included on the disc is the film's original theatrical trailer. In Greek, with imposed English subtitles for the main feature. Region-B "locked". Please be advised that the film contains explicit footage that is not appropriate for minors!

The perfect father

Dogtooth is a controversial Greek film that was screened at last year’s Cannes Film Festival, where it won the prestigious Un Certain Regard Prize, and more recently selected to represent Greece at the 83rd Annual Academy Awards. In the United States, Kino International are set to release it on DVD in 2011.

What takes place in it is impossible to describe accurately with simple words. At best, a writer would likely point out how shocking parts of it are. Also, more than two-thirds of it can be easily rearranged without impacting the precision and efficacy of its message.

Dogtooth follows closely several members of a wealthy family living in a large suburban house somewhere in Greece. The head of the family is a slightly overweight man (Christos Stergioglou, Chariton's Choir) in his late forties, possibly early fifties, who has a well-paying job in a nearby factory. His wife (Michele Valley, Birthday Town), son (Hristos Passalis), and two daughters (Mary Tsoni, Angeliki Papoulia) spend all of their time in the house, without ever leaving. No names are given for any of them.

Recognized as the undisputed provider, the man takes care of everything the family needs -- food, clothes, porn. When he is in a good mood, the family knows it. When he is in a bad mood, the family feels it. Because things are the way they should be, no one ever attempts to question his authority.

The man’s son is in his early twenties, which is why he occasionally pays Christina (Anna Kalaitzidou), a security guard from the factory, to visit the house and have sex with him. The man is convinced that it is good for the boy. Christina does not mind either. She is single and needs the extra money the man pays her.

During a regular visit, Christina asks one of the girls to lick her. If she does, Christina will give her a present. The girl agrees, and later tells her sister about Christina’s unusual request. Then she tells her father. Soon after, the two girls begin licking everyone’s fingers, elbows, and arms.

Meanwhile, the man announces that there will be a new addition to the family because Mom is pregnant. Everyone is happy, even Christina. They take a picture together. Then they laugh and have a good time.

But an odd accident changes everything -- one of the girls decides to explore the world outside the house and makes a bold move. The man fails to react accordingly and, much to his annoyance, all hell breaks loose.

Directed by Yorgos Lanthimos, Dogtooth is a minimalistic, extremely polarizing film, which Michael Haneke would have loved to direct. It hits hard where it hurts the most. One cannot possibly like it, but one should certainly be able to appreciate it. It is bold and brutally uncompromising, to the point of being offensive, but also illuminating.

The message of Dogtooth is simple -- parents could be as dangerous as those that they are supposedly trying to protect their children from. This message is impossible to reject. In the United States, Jerry Springer made a fortune welcoming some of the worst of these parents to his popular show, producing thousands of hours of shocking content that proves its validity.

*In 1990, Michele Valley, who plays the mother in Dogtooth, also appeared in another very controversial Greek film, Singapore Sling, which won multiple awards at the Thessaloniki Film Festival.

Dogtooth Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Presented in an aspect ratio of 2.35:1, encoded with MPEG-4 AVC and granted a 1080/50i transfer, Yorgos Lanthimos' Dogtooth arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of British distributors Verve Pictures.

This is a relatively good high-definition transfer, which was apparently licensed from French distributors MK2. Fine object is mostly pleasing, clarity satisfactory, and contrast levels consistent throughout the entire film. The color scheme is decent -- the variety of greens, blues, yellows, browns, and blacks look natural, but occasionally also somewhat soft. Edge-enhancement is not a serious issue of concern; neither is macroblocking. There are, however, minor compression artifacts that pop up here and there. Additionally, I noticed quite a few tiny flecks, and even a few small scratches, which is a bit surprising considering that Dogtooth is a very recent film. Lastly, even though this is a 1080/50i high-definition transfer, motion judder is never an issue of concern. To sum it all up, despite the minor issues that are highlighted above, this is still a good presentation of a very unusual film. (Note: This is a Region-B "locked" Blu-ray disc. Therefore, you must have a native Region-B or Region-Free player in order to access its content).

Dogtooth Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

There are two audio tracks on this Blu-ray disc: Greek DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 and Greek LPCM 2.0. For the record, Verve Pictures have provided imposed English subtitles for the main feature. They appear inside the image frame.

The Greek DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 track is solid. The dialog is crisp, clean, stable and very easy to follow. Because Dogtooth is a dialog driven feature, without a music score, I could not hear much of a difference between the Greek DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 track and the Greek LPCM 2.0 track. I also did not detect any disturbing pops, cracks, hissings, or audio dropouts to report in this review.

Dogtooth Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

Trailer - the original theatrical trailer for the film. In Greek, with English intertitles. (2 min, 1080/50i).

Booklet - the illustrated booklet contains Ruby Beesley's article "Subverted Dark Narratives" and an interview with director Yorgos Lanthimos conducted by Pamela Jahn.

Dogtooth Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Greek director Yorgos Lanthimos' Dogtooth is a bizarre, thought-provoking, fascinating film. It is definitely not for everyone, but I am absolutely certain it was never meant to be. If you are in a mood for something different, something very original, do not miss it. Kudos to British distributors Verve Pictures for bringing Dogtooth to Blu-ray. As far as I know, this is the only Blu-ray release the film has received worldwide. RECOMMENDED.