Lawn Dogs (1997)

Newly arrived in an up-market housing development, quiet ten-year-old Devon doesn't quite fit in. Ignoring the urgings of her social-climbing father, Devon chooses the company of Trent, who... See full summary »

Director:

John Duigan

Writer:

Naomi Wallace

Stars:

Mischa Barton, Sam Rockwell, Christopher McDonald

7 wins & 3 nominations.

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Mischa Barton	...	Devon Stockard
Sam Rockwell	...	Trent
Christopher McDonald	...	Morton Stockard
Kathleen Quinlan	...	Clare Stockard
Miles Meehan	...	Billy
Bruce McGill	...	Nash
David Barry Gray	...	Brett
Eric Mabius	...	Sean Torrance
Angie Harmon	...	Pamela 'Pam' Gregory
José Orlando Araque	...	Salvador the Mailman
Beth Grant	...	Trent's Mother
Tom Aldredge	...	Jake - Trent's Father
Odin the Dog	...	Tracker
Tafeki the Dog	...	Tracker

Storyline

Newly arrived in an up-market housing development, quiet ten-year-old Devon doesn't quite fit in. Ignoring the urgings of her social-climbing father, Devon chooses the company of Trent, who mows the estate's lawns, rather than of the girls her own age. Their friendship grows during her visits to his trailer home, but although it is completely innocent it is obvious that it would be unacceptable to the residents if they found out.

---

Plot Keywords:

friendship | trailer home | girl | squirt gun | urinating on top of a car | 

---

Taglines:

Innocence is a dangerous friend

---

Genres:

Drama

---

Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for sexuality/nudity, violence and language

Details

Country:

UK

Language:

English

Release Date:

15 May 1998 (USA)

Also Known As:

Gyepkutyák

Filming Locations:

Jefferson County, Kentucky, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$8,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend:

$74,859 (USA) (15 May 1998)

Gross:

$106,292 (USA) (30 October 1998)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Rank Organisation, The, Toledo Pictures

Technical Specs

Runtime:

101 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color (Rankcolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Randy Peterson, the stuntman who doubled for Sam Rockwell in the dive off the bridge early in the film, performed the stunt a total of six times - five times completely naked, and once wearing briefs (in case an alternative shot would be needed for a US TV version). The bridge (in Louisville, Kentucky, USA) was 70 feet high and the water around nine feet deep.

---

Goofs

When Devon pours a glass of water for Trent it is less than half full. In the next scene outside it is seen to be more than half full even after splashing it about.

---

Quotes

[first lines]
Devon: Once upon a time, in a far off land, lived a girl and her mother and father. Their village was surrounded by a high wall. Outside the wall was the forest, home of Babay Aga, the witch. Babay Aga had iron teeth like three trees. His legs were like chicken legs, and he ate little girls for dinner. But inside the wall we were safe.

---

Connections

References Sudden Impact (1983)

---

Soundtracks

"Dancing In The Dark"
Performed by Bruce Springsteen

User Reviews

A little bit of magic.

This is the kind of movie that independent film fans search for and hope to find. It's well-written, acted and directed with a story that's off the beaten path a bit, to be sure. It concerns the odd relationship between two people who don't exactly fit in the world an upscale suburban housing community. One is a 10 -year old girl named Devon (Mischa Barton) whose parents want her to be the perfect little daughter. She'd rather live in her own world, one in which she entertains herself with her favorite fairy tale of the child-menacing witch, Baba Yaga. The other is a twentysomething yard worker named Trent (Sam Rockwell), who is treated in this paranoid community almost like a black South African under apartheid, i.e. get in, do you work and get out.

Both of them display their non-conformist behavior early on. She climbs out her bedroom window to her roof, takes off her nightgown and watches it magically float away into the night sky. He stops on his way home from work on a one-lane bridge, blocking the traffic, and proceeds to disrobe and take a leap into the river below. Devon gets interested in him, especially after she witnesses his blatant and subtle humiliation at a neighborhood cookout, where he's come to get paid for some work. She more or less stalks him at his mobile home, even spying on him making love to one of the community's young women, a girl who will barely acknowledge him otherwise. Trent tries to shoo Devon away at first, but he can't help but be flattered by the young girl's interest.

Of course the potential for misunderstanding in this kind of relationship is great and it inevitably happens. I feared that the movie was about to fly apart after Devon's father and some others confronted Trent, but the fantastic ending (fantastic in the sense of fantasy) made me smile. If you are looking for something different, this movie definitely qualifies.