{"id":4061,"date":"2011-03-11T15:17:38","date_gmt":"2011-03-11T15:17:38","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/etbscreenwriting.com\/\/?p=4061"},"modified":"2011-03-11T15:17:38","modified_gmt":"2011-03-11T15:17:38","slug":"dogtooth-day-two-40movies40days","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/etbscreenwriting.com\/dogtooth-day-two-40movies40days\/","title":{"rendered":"Dogtooth – Day Two – #40movies40days"},"content":{"rendered":"

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Last night, my random choice was Dogtooth<\/em>, mostly because I could stream it instantly on NetFlix, but also because I had heard good things about it as an overlooked Oscar nomination (mostly from my alt film friends).<\/p>\n

WARNING: this film is not for everyone. \u00a0It is strange, perverse and quite disturbing– but fascinating after some slow-going. \u00a0My opinion reflects the common consensus and the film has a 93% fresh critical rating on Rotten Tomatoes<\/a>, with the “strange perverse” caveat.<\/p>\n

The film enters, without explanation or set up, into the insular world of a reasonablely wealthy family in Greece. \u00a0Three adult children (without names) live with their parents, completely isolated from the outside world.<\/p>\n

The first scene opens on \u00a0a vocabulary lesson, via cassette recorder, providing the definitions of a number of words whose meanings are arbitrarily switched– the word “sea” the adult children are taught means “armchair.” When asking to pass the “salt” the word they are taught to use is “phone.”<\/p>\n

They are also taught the outside world is extremely dangerous and even fatal. \u00a0(A non-existant fictional “older brother” they are told ventured outside and was devoured by a housecat– one of the most dangerous and ferocious animals on the planet who feeds on human flesh). \u00a0The father returns with ripped clothes and smeared head to toe with blood to report the grim news.<\/p>\n

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The mother is an obsessive Power of Love <\/a>character. \u00a0She willingly goes along with the father to protect the children from outside “bad influences” and to keep them safe, secure, always in her orbit and completely dependent on her.<\/p>\n

The family television only plays video cassettes made by the father which depict family scenes and family events. \u00a0When the father buys groceries all the product labels are carefully removed and discarded before any item is brought into the house. \u00a0The father “translates” an English language Dean Martin record, which the children are told was made by their “grandfather,” as an ode to family loyalty, fidelity and trying hard to please your parents.<\/p>\n

The mother never leaves the compound but does have access to a rotary telephone, which is hidden and locked away in the parent’s bedroom. \u00a0The adult children believe she occasionally retreats to her room to talk to herself. \u00a0When one of the girls sneaks into the bedroom she has no idea how the phone works or what it is. \u00a0When she accidentally dials a number and hears a voice, the girl is terrified and immediately hides the phone again.<\/p>\n

The adult children live a strange bizarre life and have no real context for anything. \u00a0They are at the edge of rebellion but when they question the parents the adult children accept the warped answers they receive. \u00a0The parents aren’t depicted as evil or horribly abusive (well maybe a couple of times). \u00a0They are strange, inappropriate and consumed with constructing a completely insular world of rather twisted innocence. \u00a0They enthusiastically celebrate all sorts of family events. \u00a0They laude their children’s achievement goals (all sorts of little contests are devised).\u00a0They are mostly benevolent despots.<\/p>\n

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So where exactly did this lead me? \u00a0Lots of metaphors have been offered about the film– but as I thought about the film I wondered my own unquestioned assumptions, definitions and fears. \u00a0 How much of what I believe did I inherit or do I accept without examination? \u00a0How many of my beliefs are warped or distorted by someone else’s experience that is presented as fact or “truth”?<\/p>\n

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Her small daughter asks her why she cuts the ham like that. \u00a0The mother answers that it is the way it’s always been done. \u00a0But then the mother wonders about this. \u00a0She asks her own mother about the reasons for cutting off the ends of the ham.<\/p>\n

Her mother replies that it was how she was taught to prepare a ham. \u00a0They finally ask the family matriarch and she says that the oven in her home was too small to accommodate a large ham so she had to trim either end to make it fit in the pan and in the oven.<\/p>\n

How long after the reason is obscured, has changed or become irrelevant do our assumptions and behavior patterns remain the same? \u00a0Sometimes what we are told is false, like in Dogtooth<\/em>, and the warnings, information or attitudes passed on simply represent someone else’s fears, good intentions or experience, without any true contextual basis in reality or in our own experience.<\/p>\n

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How should my energy flow be focused in pursuing my projects? \u00a0How do I not squander or dissipate my energy by frantic activity. \u00a0How do I assess just what I want in evaluating and pursuing each project? \u00a0How do I do that intentionally and in reflection of who I want to be?<\/p>\n

I am incredibly lucky and very blessed. \u00a0My father was extemely proud of me. \u00a0As a creative person I was never told that I should have a “back up plan” or I should study something “practical.” \u00a0He and my mother always believed I could do whatever I set out to do– no matter that I was a girl. \u00a0All good!<\/p>\n

One of the last things my father said to me before he died was that he was only sorry he wouldn’t live to see my “great” success. \u00a0By that time I had been in a long-term mostly happy marriage (I still am), I helped raised one of my siblings (in my home) who was going through a rough patch in young adulthood, my husband and I owned a house, I had a law degree and a Masters Degree, I enjoyed a flourishing teaching, writing and consulting career and I had written several books– wasn’t that great success?<\/p>\n

I know my dad meant that remark in a kindly way. \u00a0But maybe I have been chasing something that is always just beyond my reach and not defined by me. \u00a0I am not done by any means. \u00a0There are always further mountains to climb, bridges to build and to cross and obstacles to overcome– In this next 40 days I want to make sure those mountains, bridges and obstacles are mine– and not the unexamined reflections or desires of someone else. \u00a0I want to pursue only those projects that represent the best of what I can offer and which reflect the best of who I want to be. \u00a0I want to live more intentionally– at least during this 40 days of time.<\/p>\n

How do you go about being intentional in your work? \u00a0Who defines you and your beliefs? \u00a0Do you ever wonder about that? \u00a0What fears or false assumptions might be standing in your way? \u00a0Comment here or on my ETB FaceBook<\/a> page.<\/p>\n

DAY ONE \u00a0POST- RANGO- IS HERE<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Last night I saw Dogtooth, the 2011 Academy Award nominated Best Foreign Language Film from Greece. There’s going to be no rhyme or reason in selecting the films for my 40 movies in 40 days project. I’ve decided to go wherever the spirit leads me. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":11959,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"nf_dc_page":"","_uag_custom_page_level_css":"","_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[48,47,57,58],"tags":[109,110,25,26,1056,27,28,30,31,32,33,34,113,35,36,37,38,39,40,41,42,1057],"class_list":["post-4061","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-movies-character-development-screenwriting-screenplay-script-blog","category-random-thoughts-pop-culture-political-movie-television-blog","category-power-of-love","category-power-of-reason","tag-academy-award","tag-academy-awards","tag-character","tag-characters","tag-dogtooth","tag-emotional-toolbox","tag-etb","tag-film","tag-films","tag-laurie-hutzler","tag-movies","tag-nine-character-types","tag-oscars","tag-screenplay","tag-screenplays","tag-screenwriting","tag-script","tag-scripts","tag-scriptwriting","tag-tv","tag-writing","tag-yorgos-lanthimos"],"acf":[],"uagb_featured_image_src":{"full":["https:\/\/etbscreenwriting.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/04\/30710870_10211699141895539_4496568718662303744_n.jpg",960,720,false],"thumbnail":["https:\/\/etbscreenwriting.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/04\/30710870_10211699141895539_4496568718662303744_n-150x150.jpg",150,150,true],"medium":["https:\/\/etbscreenwriting.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/04\/30710870_10211699141895539_4496568718662303744_n-300x225.jpg",300,225,true],"medium_large":["https:\/\/etbscreenwriting.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/04\/30710870_10211699141895539_4496568718662303744_n-768x576.jpg",768,576,true],"large":["https:\/\/etbscreenwriting.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/04\/30710870_10211699141895539_4496568718662303744_n.jpg",960,720,false],"ttshowcase_normal":["https:\/\/etbscreenwriting.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/04\/30710870_10211699141895539_4496568718662303744_n.jpg",125,94,false],"ttshowcase_small":["https:\/\/etbscreenwriting.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/04\/30710870_10211699141895539_4496568718662303744_n.jpg",75,56,false],"1536x1536":["https:\/\/etbscreenwriting.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/04\/30710870_10211699141895539_4496568718662303744_n.jpg",960,720,false],"2048x2048":["https:\/\/etbscreenwriting.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/04\/30710870_10211699141895539_4496568718662303744_n.jpg",960,720,false],"Image Size 500x500":["https:\/\/etbscreenwriting.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/04\/30710870_10211699141895539_4496568718662303744_n.jpg",500,375,false],"woocommerce_thumbnail":["https:\/\/etbscreenwriting.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/04\/30710870_10211699141895539_4496568718662303744_n-300x400.jpg",300,400,true],"woocommerce_single":["https:\/\/etbscreenwriting.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/04\/30710870_10211699141895539_4496568718662303744_n-600x450.jpg",600,450,true],"woocommerce_gallery_thumbnail":["https:\/\/etbscreenwriting.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/04\/30710870_10211699141895539_4496568718662303744_n-100x100.jpg",100,100,true]},"uagb_author_info":{"display_name":"Laurie Hutzler","author_link":"https:\/\/etbscreenwriting.com\/author\/admin\/"},"uagb_comment_info":0,"uagb_excerpt":"Last night I saw Dogtooth, the 2011 Academy Award nominated Best Foreign Language Film from Greece. There's going to be no rhyme or reason in selecting the films for my 40 movies in 40 days project. I've decided to go wherever the spirit leads me.","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/etbscreenwriting.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4061"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/etbscreenwriting.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/etbscreenwriting.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/etbscreenwriting.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/etbscreenwriting.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=4061"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/etbscreenwriting.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4061\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/etbscreenwriting.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/11959"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/etbscreenwriting.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4061"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/etbscreenwriting.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=4061"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/etbscreenwriting.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=4061"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}