The Dentist (1996)

An extremely successful dentist goes off the deep end after he catches his wife cheating on him.

Director:

Brian Yuzna

Writers:

Dennis Paoli, Stuart Gordon

Stars:

Corbin Bernsen, Linda Hoffman, Michael Stadvec

3 wins & 2 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Corbin Bernsen	...	Dr. Alan Feinstone
Linda Hoffman	...	Brooke Feinstone
Michael Stadvec	...	Matt
Ken Foree	...	Detective Gibbs
Tony Noakes	...	Detective Sunshine
Molly Hagan	...	Jessica
Patty Toy	...	Karen
Jan Hoag	...	Candy
Virginya Keehne	...	Sarah
Earl Boen	...	Marvin Goldblum
Christa Sauls	...	April Reign
Mark Ruffalo	...	Steve Landers
Lise Simms	...	Paula Roberts
Joanne Baron	...	Mrs. Saunders
Brian McLaughlin	...	Jody

Storyline

Dr. Feinstone has everything, a beautiful wife and a successful career in dentistry, but, when he discovers his wife in an affair, he realizes that behind every clean, white surface lies the stench of decay. Having gone insane, he enacts cruel dental torture on his patients.

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Plot Keywords:

married man | blond hair | sadistic psychopath | dentist | graphic violence | 

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Taglines:

From the Creators of Re-Animator...

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Genres:

Horror

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for graphic violence including scenes of dental torture, sexuality and some language

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

18 October 1996 (USA)

Also Known As:

El dentista

Filming Locations:

115 North 1St Street, Burbank, California, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$700,000 (estimated)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Image Organization, Trimark Pictures

Technical Specs

Runtime:

92 min

Sound Mix:

Ultra Stereo

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The real-life serial killer dentist, Glennon Engleman (1928-1999), was not the inspiration for the story of the film, the idea for this movie came from Mark Amin and was written by Charles Finch, Stuart Gordon and Dennis Paoli. However, Corbin Bernsen had played Engleman in Beyond Suspicion (1993), but has nothing to do with this movie.

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Goofs

(at around 29 mins) While starting to do a filling on April, Dr. Feinstone started up the handpiece (drill). The sound it made was that of a high speed handpiece, yet what he had in his hand was a slow speed handpiece.

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Quotes

Candy: [to Sarah] Just go on back and let him know you're next.
Sarah: Okay!
Marvin Goldblum: Hi, remember me?
[puts money into Sarah's hand]
Marvin Goldblum: I'm next.
Candy: She's been waiting an awfully long time already.
Sarah: Yeah, two years and one day!
Marvin Goldblum: Kid, you'll understand. See, Dr. Feinstone can't keep me waiting. It's in his own interest. Or... do we start the audit now?
Candy: Look Mr. Goldblum... I...
[to Sarah]
[...]

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Crazy Credits

Lead Assistant ... Shea "Blood Guy" Clayton.

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Connections

References Bloodsucking Freaks (1976)

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Soundtracks

Tristan und Isolde
(uncredited)
Music by Richard Wagner

User Reviews

Weird? Strange? Different!

I don't know how to describe this movie. It's definitely one of the weirdest movies I've seen in a long time. It is very unsettling at times but also boring in other places. The scenes of dental torture are very elaborate and may attract anyone who's into gore & splatter. I found myself holding my teeth during some of the aforementioned scenes. The clever thing about the movie is that it plays with our fears and The Dentist is therefore quite unsettling.

The humor of the film is somehow hidden and may not be recognized by everyone. But if you're a fan of weird and strange entertainment and teeth getting drilled to dust this is just the film you were looking for.

If you read the comment and feel somehow attracted by this kind of entertainment, give it a try!

My rating: 4/10 (maybe a little too weird for my taste)