Todd Solondz makes a triumphant return with WIENER-DOG, a strange, yet charming character study that is entirely his, complete with dark humor, beyond uncomfortable moments, a healthy amount of cynicism and somehow, a bit of heart.
The film is comprised around a series of vignettes all centering around the travels of a dachshund and the lives of the various people she finds herself surrounded by. Peppered with themes of loss, transition, choice and mortality, the vignettes mirror the path and trajectory of life, with each of the characters hosting and personifying a different period. We see a child cancer survivor (Charlie Tahan) who has had to come closer to death than anyone would want for someone of his age, a woman (Greta Gerwig) reconnecting with childhood friends, a man (Danny DeVito) near the end of his career, struggling to understand his relevance and what he ever offered his profession, and a woman (Ellen Burstyn) at the end of her life, alone and pestered by her clueless and money-obsessed granddaughter (Zosia Mamet).
The incredible cast of actors really brings this film to life. Really, any time you throw Julie Delpy, Ellen Burstyn and Greta Gerwig into the same script, you’re bound to get something amazing. This group masterfully takes on Solondz's often uncomfortable, intentionally stilted dialogue and inhabits it in a space that is both brutally honest and touching. It’s perfectly deadpan, yet often hilarious and always a bit gut-punching. Solondz has never trafficked in the uplifting, and WIENER-DOG gives us a glimpse into the lives of its characters that, though bitingly funny, offers a darker look at what life has to offer.
Julie Delpy is amazing (and perfectly horrible) in the role of a mother who must teach her son a number of undesired life lessons as the result of the dog coming into their lives. She delivers a string of horrific dialogue that, though true, somehow winds up being the worst possible thing you could stay to a child about their newfound pet. And she does so in in a straightforward approach that makes the content of her statements even more horrifying. Danny DeVito is one of the greatest, most pathetic sad sacks you have ever seen, and Ellen Burstyn owns her role with a series of simple grunts and grumbles.
One of the high points is checking in with a grown-up Dawn Wiener, of Solondz’s WELCOME TO THE DOLLHOUSE. Greta Gerwig takes on the role of Dawn wonderfully. Still awkward and unsure, Dawn is making her way through life pretty much as you’d expect. After she saves the dachshund from certain annihilation at the veterinarian’s office where she works, she bumps into Brandon McCarthy (Kieran Culkin) in a convenience store as he is passing through town. The two stumble through an awkward reconnection and then jump into Brandon’s shitty van for a road trip together, their story offering a thoughtful and sad view of early adulthood. Though it would have been interesting to have seen Heather Matarazzo step into the role again, recasting the character offers some separation between WELCOME TO THE DOLLHOUSE and this piece, which is not strictly a sequel, and more like an exercise that simply revisits the character rather than relaunching her.
Solondz has never been one to shy away from the uncomfortable, and he brings that same energy and unwavering, cynical gaze with him here. Who would have ever thought that a long, almost wistful tracking shot of dog diarhhea could tell us so much about life, but that's exactly what we get. Expect the unexpected and prepare to feel unbearably awkward. WIENER-DOG really is a thoughtful, heartfelt look at some of the darker moments we find ourselves experiencing as we move through the world.
