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1 out of 3 people found the following comment useful :- Starts off so well - but the ending ruins the whole thing..., 23 February 2009 Author: GardenStateFan from New Zealand
Alpha Dog is two films:The first is a well-executed opening 90 minutes, establishing intriguing characters and interesting problems/situations. The second film is the final 20 minutes. It is an amateurish, awkward and unsatisfying 'finale' that looks as though it was handled by a bunch of 18-year-old film school students who couldn't wrap their heads around effects. This is tragic since the performances were so good.I'm not usually one to let effects drag down a film, but when you can still practically see halos around the actors caused by a green screen it's extremely difficult to take the finale of the film as anything but a joke. If this is the first review you have read on the film, I do encourage you to watch it and try to get around the finale. It seems like a lot of people manage to do so as the IMDb score is quite high. Personally I do not regret seeing this movie, in fact there are a lot of great moments and well executed beats that will satisfy you. Either way it was a huge step back for Nick Cassavetes who has made some truly beautiful films in the past. My two cents.
1 out of 3 people found the following comment useful :- An underseen gem, 28 June 2008 Author: straighttovideo from United States
Occasionally there is one of those movies that just completely slips through the cracks. Usually it's a low to medium budget movie that is either mis-marketed, under marketed or just dumped to die a quick death. A few years later you might discover a movie like this on cable at 3 AM and think, "whoa, that was actually pretty good." Films like Running Scared, Wrong Turn, Turistas, Josie and the Pussycats, Can't Hardly Wait, Teachers Pet, Rent, The Fountain, Breach and Win a Date with Tad Hamilton are some recent additions to this sad subgenre of film. And it looks as if Alpha Dog is in prime position to be the new guy.Nick Cassavetes, son of indie film pioneer John, was hot off of his mega hit The Notebook when he picked this true crime story to be his next film. Unfortunately, things were problematic for Alpha Dog from the beginning.The shoot was troubled, even shutting down at one point with no plans for the film to be finished. The film did manage complete principal photography but then sat on the shelf for 2 years getting several re-edits before finally seeing the light of day in the second week of January earlier this year to mediocre reviews and complete disinterest at the box office.As the film prepared for release, Jesse James Hollywood, the real life villain of the piece, played by soon to be Speed Racer, Emile Hirsh, was finally brought to justice. A new ending was filmed and the movie looked to have a new selling hook but after much legal wrangling from Hollywood's wrangling team it became obvious that the film could not be released in conjunction with the sure-to-be-a-media-circus-trail. Worse yet, Hollywood's lawyers tried to have an injunction placed on the release of the film for fear it might poison the jury pool.Of course, none of this behind the scenes drama would matter if what was on screen wasn't any good. Fortunately, it is.Though the film is occasionally over stylized with too many temporal shifts for its own good and a rather obtuse framing story featuring Bruce Willis, most of what's put on screen works. The story, revolving around the real life kidnapping and murder of 15 year old boy by a rich-kid-cum-drug-kingpin, is fairly intriguing and well executed. Even the obviously villainous characters are compelling and never feel like cartoons.All of the acting is top shelf, especially Ben Foster who just drips an oddly charismatic brand sleaze. The usually clean cut Hirsh is a revelation as the total scumbag, Johnny Truelove and Sharon Stone has an absolutely heartbreaking monologue that almost steals the movie at the beginning of the third act.Also of note is Justin Timberlake who is making a very interesting career for himself. Instead of picking the easy romantic leads or action heroes, Timberlake has cut a path of smaller, more complex character roles that imply higher aspirations as an actor than the cross promotion that most musicians get from film roles. At this rate, he's on tap to end of like Mark Walberg instead of Madonna.And there are complex ideas at play here too. More than just being a cautionary tale about too much, too young, the film uses its temporal shifts to extrapolate the human costs of these crimes. There are no less than 4 time periods at play in the movie, each with different make up, different character traits from the same actors. By the time Sharon Stone reaches her monologue we understand that she has been ravaged by years of grief. Her visage has been destroyed and she has been laid bare. The low-fi, documentary feel of her confessional only accentuates the palpable feelings of real pain.It's the same gimmick Cassavetes used in The Notebook, but it's a damn effective tool for showing just how catastrophic events can be. It's a good case for "the butterfly effect" (not the Ashton Kutcher film).It really says something about the strength of Cassavetes writing that at the end of the film, it felt tragic. Not just for the dead youth. Not just for his family who lost one son to drugs and another to a horrible murder. I somehow felt bad for the kidnappers. I felt bad for Timberlake, I even felt a little bad for Truelove, who never had a chance. His father, (Bruce Willis, underplaying quiet well) was such a manipulative scum bag, what else was Truelove to become? There are lots of questions, and no easy answers.For more reviews please visit www.collider.com
1 out of 3 people found the following comment useful :- Doggoned Good!, 7 June 2008 Author: meeza (themeezaman@hotmail.com) from Miami, Fl
Yo, Dog! I am going to create my film review of Director Nick Cassavetes' youth crime flick "Alpha Dog" in alphabetical order. A is for "Awesome" ensemble acting from Emile Hirsch, Justin Timberlake, Shawn Hatosy, Ben Foster, Harry Dean Stanton, Bruce Willis, and Sharon Stone. Hirsch plays the real-life juvenile delinquent Jesse James Hollywood (his character name here is Johnny Truelove) who mastered the kidnapping and ordered the fatal hit on a younger stepbrother of a drug addict customer who owed him money. Truelove was truly in love with the juvie negligent life of sex, drugs, guns, and chaos. He was in "America's Most Wanted" list for several years until his capture a couple of years ago in Brazil. Hirsch's captivating acting continues to increase his acting stock in "America's Most Wanted Actors" list from the film industry. Timberlake also brought his surprising strong acting back here as the contrived Truelove right-hand juvenile delinquent man Frankie. Timberlake's Frankie is portrayed as a warm-hearted but unrighteous youth who is a follower and not a leader or in his case this Frankie Always Goes To Hollywood, Hollywood Jesse James that is. Shawn Hatosy is king here as Elvis, the Truelove brownnoser who craves to prove his criminal self to Johnny The Leader, so much so that Elvis is the one that ends up committing the murder on the young stepbrother Zach Mazursky. Ben Foster plays older stepbrother Jake Mazursky, the aforementioned drug addict nemesis of Truelove. Foster fosters another powerful psychotic acting performance here as he did in "3:10 To Yuma". Bruce Willis was a bad daddy-o in a good acting way as Truelove's dad Sonny and Harry Dean Stanton was cosmic as the geriatric loudmouth Cosmo. I must state though that the most solid performance of "Alpha Dog" is barked out from Sharon Stone as Olivia Mazursky, the grieving mom of Zach. Stone reaches the apex of her acting career in two emotionally driven scenes which brought more from her than her usual basic acting instinct. Back to the Alphabet! B is for "Ballicious" (Ok, not a word). But I must state that it did take some major testicular action for Director Nick Cassavetes to orchestrate this gutsy real- life drama on screen with adequate precision. C is for "Cliché" because even though Cassavetes did get A's from me for his direction, his formulaic screenplay could have used more of a witty alphabetical dialogue. Of course, I am not going to go through the entire alphabet on my viewpoints of "Alpha Dog". However, I do think that through my aforementioned analysis of "Alpha Dog" it spells out a recommended viewing of this gripping film. **** Good
1 out of 3 people found the following comment useful :- Surprisingly not horrific., 8 January 2008 Author: dead47548 from United States
Better than I would have expected. It does, however, fall into the typical Hollywood aimed at teens and gangsters trait at being completely over the top and ridiculously unrealistic at times. Some of the decisions these character make are so pathetic and unbelievable, that it's simple impossible to believe they were based on true events. It goes out of it's way to appeal to the hip teen crowd and draw in more box office, that it comes to the point of annoyance very often. I can't help but commend the film, however, on it's ability to remain engaging and very interesting while staying true to the actual events that transpired. The performances range from good (Emile Hirsch, Justin Timberlake surprisingly) to mediocre (Bruce Willis, Shawn Hatosy) to one of the worst I've ever seen in the form of Sharon Stone. I wanted to vomit when she donned that fat suit and overacted her career out the window some more. The real surprise of the film is Ben Foster, though, who delivers one of the most eccentric and powerful performance of the year so far in a role that should have been expanded to it's own film. Foster proves once again that he is one of the most talented and underrated actors of his generation in a performance that is just way too good for the film that it's in. His dedication is astounding. He truly is the last remaining hope of a beautiful breed of performers known as 'method actors'. Once Crowe and Bale hang up their flags, Ben Foster will be the last one around and that is such a shame since I easily call them the greatest actors in existence
1 out of 3 people found the following comment useful :- Alpha Dog: THE movie with Justin Timberlake, 28 December 2007 Author: Nelson_Moens from Belgium
*** This comment may contain spoilers ***
Director: Nick Cassavetes Writer: Nick Cassavetes Actors: Emile Hirsch, Justin Timberlake, Ben Forster, Anton Yelchin and Bruce Willis Genre: Crime/Drama Story: Johnny Truelove (Hirsch) is a drugs dealer who's been betrayed Jake Mazursky (Forster). As revenge, Truelove kidnaps his brother Zack (Yelchin). Based on the life of Jesse James Hollywood, one of the youngest man who's been on the FBI's most wanted list. Sex, drugs and Justin Timberlake in one movie. Nick Cassavetes (The Notebook) has made another movie for teens. Cassavetes hits and misses. He has an interesting story in his hands but looses the grip on it by an unsure style of filming. We could have missed the unnecessary interviews (with a hilarious fat Sharon Stone), the split-screens and the long length of the movie. Cassavetes doesn't get the story. Truelove spends most of his time outside the action. Hirsch's performance is uninteresting The director chooses to focus on Timberlake, drugs, sex, faux-documentary and stupid interviews then to concentrate on the stronger storyline of Truelove. Timberlake is a little revelation but the real revelation is Ben Forster as a drug addict. This method actor should have gotten more screen time; he is one of the best things here. Yelchin carries the film on his hands as he plays drunken teenager who is enjoying the best weekend of his life. It is unbearable knowing that he is going to be killed. The film is based on real events but it's too much of a bore. Cassavetes ruins the film as he becomes now one of Hollywood's puppets. Who would have thought sex, drugs and Timberlake would be so forgettable?Conclusion: A film that is lead by the actors then by the director. Boring and forgettable. 5/10
1 out of 3 people found the following comment useful :- A Nutshell Review: Alpha Dog, 6 October 2007 Author: DICK STEEL from Singapore
There will come a time where actors and actresses will decide to take on a role that will break the mold of their idoldom, and shed those cute, goody two shoes image for something that could demonstrate and add some depth to their credibility. So taking on more edgy, angst characters might just be their quick solution. Anne Hathaway lost her clothes and borrowed a foul mouth for her turn in Havoc, and Justin Timberlake here lost his coolness but almost always brought sexy back in his scenes, despite having tattoos riddling his toned body, and adopting as foul a mouth as Hathaway's Allison Lang.Nick Cassavetes' Alpha Dog, the closing film of Sundance 2006, tells of a true story, with a little mockumentary spin put on. Alpha Dog is like a Beverly Hills 90210 episode gone all wrong, where rich kids spend all their time in vice activities, including smoking weed (they even grow their own in their backyard), guzzling tonnes of alcohol, humping anything that moves, and peppering their vocabulary with expletives. I swear almost every sentence has the F-word in its numerous permutations, showcasing that it is indeed a word for any occasion.And it makes you wonder how much trouble these perpetually high bored kids get into so easily, without using their brains much and constantly shooting from their hips. For every action, there is reaction, and without considering the circumstances and outcome, personal pride, ego, or just blind faith, can bring about a chain of events with outcomes that are inevitable. Johnny Truelove (up and coming actor Emile Hirsh, who had starred in Lords of Dogtown, and the upcoming Speed Racer as Speed) and Jake Mazursky (Angel in X3) can't settle their feud over 800 bucks, and bad blood start to spill when boisterous dares under the influence of alcohol become tit for tat revenge. In a mindless spur of the moment retaliation, Jake's brother Zack (Anton Yelchin, he one who will be Chekov in the new Star Trek movie) gets bundled into a van, leaving everyone perplexed just what to do next.Timberlake, being an idol, gets to portray his character with pretty much being the best of the worst of them all. Being easy going and the man with the plan, he strikes up a brotherly friendship with Zack, which is possibly the number one rule of kidnapping, never to do. Getting chummy with your prey is always bad karma, and hinders hard decisions made. But for the most parts of the movie, this friendship takes centerstage. But that's not to say the rest of the cast were strolling in the park, as Hirsh was excellent in his role as the crazed, dazed and confused de facto leader Johnny Truelove, with his impulses usually getting the best (worse?) out of him. Looking pretty much like a bearded Leonardo DiCaprio in Blood Diamond and The Departed, there's a little Catch Me If YOu Can spin in the latter half of the story, with unexpected help from Dad (Bruce Willis, in yet another supporting role).There are a number of recognizable faces playing supporting roles here, like Sharon Stone and Dominique Swain (she has disappeared for a long time), but the narrative calls for nothing much from them. Perhaps one of the best scenes was a reminisce of the car ride in Seven, with Brad Pitt and Morgan Freeman driving Kevin Spacey, ad he rattles off his motives and rationale behind what he's doing. In the equivalent here, there was a tinge of sadness, and how it played out to the end will no doubt bring about some very mixed emotions, all rolled into one. If there's any moment from the movie that can justify putting a bum in the seat, this will be my justification.Those who can't survive listening to obscenities being rattled off with aplomb, or can't bear to witness their idol mouthing off, should steer clear of Alpha Dog. Otherwise, it offers, like Voice of a Murderer, a Crimewatch like narrative that recounts real events, and of course with certain dramatic license taken.
1 out of 3 people found the following comment useful :- This movie is LAME.... Instead, watch http://imdb.com/title/tt0393109/, 27 August 2007 Author: johnproche from Ireland
The movie gives the impression it is a mystery to be solved. The cover of the DVD shows the characters, each is accompanied with text: Suspect #1, Suspect #2, Witness #1 through to #32... so you're (well I was) led to believe this was going to be some sort of mystery and then, the only plot twist is there is no twist... As the title says: this movie is unbelievably lame.... Thinking it over, I cannot believe it's as lame as it is.... If you haven't seen it: Don't bother...If you hated/ disliked this movie because:1.) The director tries to make every character look cool... because they have tattoos, smoke, drink and have sex!2.) Although, you like fight sequences, where one guy beats several guys and hits a woman..(Die Hard 4.0).... you don't like it when the director feels he can just throw it into a film as a sub-plot that never materializes....?3.) You don't want to wait till the end of the movie to see characters you don't care about do something mentally challenged... Kill a kid, to get off a kidnapping sentence......... ??..huh..?? go figure...!4.) You watched the whole movie expecting something to happen so that a group of guys would beat a kidnapping charge where witnesses were literally queuing...5.) You don't care about adolescents who are utterly, astoundingly stupid...THEN, WATCH "Brick - http://imdb.com/title/tt0393109/"
1 out of 3 people found the following comment useful :- Displays the ignorance of the inexperienced, 15 June 2007 Author: JesusTwinFish from United States
I know most people, by the end of watching this movie will see that it was just a bunch of kids that made a severe mistake because they thought they were a bunch of young bad asses that live the high life. I hate kids who are spoiled and treat themselves and others the way that was displayed in this movie - though this is a good movie, don't get me wrong. It's just that, if it wasn't a true story, it would have sucked. I mean, it is one of the stories that if: "It was true, I wouldn't believe it" This movie did however have a severe plot hole because the law states that if you hold someone for ransom then you can receive up to life in prison. However, they didn't even offer up the ransom to the family. Johnny Truelove didn't even offer what ransom he wanted from the guy, so how could this be a ransom case??? I don't know if this was a plot hole or if that is exactly what happened in real life...Here is where there inexperience came into account. NOBODY new it was a ransom case, hell, the parents didn't even know he was kidnapped. All they had to do, was spill the whole story out to the kid and then send him home...and tell him to keep a secret, it is that simple. They could have easily got him to come over to their side. But no, they thought they were going to be "bad ass adults" about the thing and handle it the "gangster" way....it was ridiculous; and it just showed how inexperienced they were afterward when they were arrested and how they were turned back into little kids all over again, which is what they were, they never grew up. I mean, they were only like four years older than the kid they kidnapped, that is not much. All they had to do was drop the kid off and go back to dealing with his brother again, simple.In any case, this is one of the movies that has great acting and displays the ignorance of the inexperienced in a very accurate way. However, like I said, if it wasn't a true story, it wouldn't have been that good. Worth watching, and worth learning from as well.
1 out of 3 people found the following comment useful :- First rate tragedy, based on a true crime, 1 June 2007 Author: Jay Harris (sirbossman6969@yahoo.com) from United States
Nick Cassavetes, Son of the late renowned & revered director John Cassavetes & renowned actress Gena Rowlands, both wrote & directed this tragic tale of drug-wasted young men & women leading to the unneeded death of one young handsome 15 year old lad. This is based on true events.Now since most of the characters have no moral values, there is much drug taking,drinking, sex, etc.involved. The language is very vulgar & coarse,I was tempted to shut off the DVD after about 30 minutes, Thankfully I did not, as I would have missed a darn good film.The story & characters are sleazy as all get out, but so well acted I stayed riveted. The cast is made of of primarily some of the new generation of fine actors among them being Emile Hirsch ( he gets better with each performance),Anton Yelchin, ( as the 15 year old lad. HE WILL BE A MAJOR PLAYER SOON, Shawn Hatosy (another fine role for this fine actor), Ben Foster,(he cant give a bad performance if he tried) & Justin Timberlake (forget what else you may have heard about him HE CAN ACT), In fact all the younger performers do fine jobs.The older members of the cast are headed by Bruce Willis as one of the fathers, & Sharon Stone as the mother of the dead lad,(she has a scene at the end of the movie that is remarkable--& yes that is her in the fat suit, Also in appearing is one of our best character actors, Harry Dean Stanton (he excels as usual)The production is first rate, There is a pulse pounding music score that fits the mood & tone of this tragedy.If there was not so much cursing I may have given this a higher rating, BUT with at least 300 uses of the F type words I cannot. so my rating is*** (out of 4) 88 points (out of 100) IMDb 8 (out of 10) .
1 out of 3 people found the following comment useful :- Almost entertaining, 22 May 2007 Author: dutchboyg from Netherlands
First of all, J.T is not a tough or intimidating guy, he's got a high voice, a pretty-boy face and the 'slang' does not suit him at all. The same goes for his partners, just really bad casting. The story itself is pretty unrealistic, there's no moral, sensation or humor the only thing it has is drama. Also the main characters are immensely brainless and that doesn't really help to sympathize or in any other way get into the movie. The movie is basically about a group of people that make really stupid decisions. It's built around the plot which I thought was comparable to a small 'poof' after lighting a big firecracker. It's just a lame and over-hyped movie without a backbone. Not even worth a lazy Sunday.
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