WIENER DOG, a four-story anthology from writer/director Tod Solondz, follows a little dachshund from one home to the next, finding masters who represent four stages of life – childhood, young adulthood, middle age, and elderly. The pooch is but a linking device to introduce Solondz’s real subjects; the dark and despairing characters that we associate with the oddball director. With his output of deadpan black comedies like WELCOME TO THE DOLLHOUSE and HAPPINESS, Solondz has specialized in human weakness and cruelty, awkward exchanges, and embarrassing confrontations. He continues this tradition with WIENER DOG, easily his finest film since HAPPINESS and one which features a trio of human performances from Julie Delpy, Danny DeVito, and Ellen Burstyn that are among the year’s best.
In the first story, the pooch is adopted by a high-strung couple (Julie Delpy and Pulitzer-winning playwright Tracy Letts) for their son Remi (Keaton Nigel Cooke – introduced in a hilarious reference to BOYHOOD), a young cancer survivor. When Remi questions Mom on the necessity of neutering, Delpy launches into a jaw-dropping account of her own childhood pup who was “raped” by the AIDS-infected neighborhood stray “Mohammed” (who also raped squirrels!), then died in puppybirth. It’s one of several startling, inappropriate monologues Delpy delivers in deadpan style. After Remi indulges his Wiener Dog with granola bars until it craps all over the house (and in its cage, and all the way down the driveway in one long, nauseating tracking shot), it’s straight to the vet for euthanasia and another clueless speech from Delpy on the upside of their pet’s death (“It feels good. Like forgetting everything”). There are a few moments between boy and dog that provide a bit of warmth, but this is a queasy look at dysfunctional parenting with Lett’s hothead Dad no better than Mom with both child and pet discipline (“Heel Motherf***er!”).
But Wiener Dog lives on as the second chapter re-introduces us to Solondz’s most famous character – bullied middle-schooler Dawn Wiener from his breakthrough WELCOME TO THE DOLLHOUSE (1995). Dawn is now played by Greta Gerwig (an actress who looks and behaves nothing like Heather Matarazzo from DOLLHOUSE – a gimmick Solondz has delivered before) and is working at the veterinary clinic where Remi and mom have dumped their pet. Dawn takes pity on the dog, renames her Doody, and takes her on a road trip with Brandon, her chief tormentor from the earlier film who is now an aimless drug addict (now played by Keiran Culkin). The pair travel to Ohio, picking up a trio of comically sad Mexican mariachis along the way. They visit Brandon’s brother and his wife, who both have Down’s Syndrome but are still better adjusted to adulthood than Brandon. While I’m glad to see that Dawn Weiner has grown into a reasonably sane adult, this is the weakest, if sweetest, of the four stories in WEINER DOG.
After a kooky “intermission” with the dachshund marching past green screen backdrops (a cattle ranch, a strip club stage) accompanied by a twangy title tune, WIENER DOG delivers its third and richest story. Wiener Dog’s owner is now Dave Schmerz (Danny DeVito) a lonely film professor and screenwriter. His former fame (he wrote a hit script 19 years earlier) keeps him employed at a NYC University where his negativity irritates his students and fellow teachers. Schmerz spends half his time on the phone with his agent trying to get someone to read his latest script and the other half dealing with students he can’t stand. Listening to the asininity of some of these budding filmmakers, it’s not hard to see why. One goes on about “Sticky Fingers”, the movie super-villain he’s created while another wants to make films because he loves movies – yet can’t name a single one that’s influenced him or that he has even seen (“there’s just so many”). My favorite is the special snowflake who wants to write a script about “90s queer theory from a racial perspective” only to be deeply offended when Schmerz asks “What if? Then what?”. DeVito is so good and so touching in WIENER DOG, especially when giving a poignant speech where he reflects on writing a meaningful script only to have to juice it up with mistaken identities and mafia hijinks to sell it.
The final story finds Wiener Dog in the home of Ellen Burstyn’s’ miserable Nana who’s named her pet ‘Cancer’ (“it fits”). She gets a visit from her desperate granddaughter Zoe (Zosia Mamet – superb) who drags along her arrogant artist boyfriend Fantasy (“His actual name. He’s got a sister named Dream” – played Michael James Shaw) to hit up Gramma for money. Burstyn, her eyes covered with dark shades, says little and smiles even less, but she gives a powerhouse performance that deserves to be noticed and talked about. She’s especially devastating in a heartbreaking dream scene when she finally shows us her expressive eyes to confront a gaggle of identical little girls who represent the more satisfying directions her life may have taken had she made different choices.
Solondz is not known for happy endings, and certainly doesn’t provide one for poor Wiener Dog, yet despite his gloomy view of mankind, he is a sharp observer and a bold writer. His WIENER DOG is one of the best movies so far this year.
5 of 5 Stars
WIENER DOG opens in St. Louis July 8th Exclusively at Landmark’s The Tivoli Theater
