LIE DOWN WITH DOGS
A film review by Christopher Null
Copyright 1995 Christopher Null
"When you lie down with dogs, you get up with fleas." This chorus is the unifying theme of Wally White's new feature, LIE DOWN WITH DOGS, a disappointing film about the letting go of guilt and, basically, the embracing of promiscuity and shallowness.
The film starts out as an odd "get inside my mind" piece about a gay man named Tommie (played by White himself), who decides to head off for one last summer of frolicking in Provincetown, Massachusetts ("the ultimate gay resort"). Leaving the big city of New York behind, Tommie casts his worries aside, whips out a few credit cards, and, badda-bing, it's party time.
Tommie embarks on what starts out as a promising voyage of self- discovery, but after about five minutes, the film sadly degenerates into an over-the-top quest for nonstop, meaningless sex. And Tommie is only one of a large ensemble cast of totally unlikable characters, all of whom are carbon copies of one another: shallow, stupid, and unbearable. The ostensible point of the film, ultimately, is that you should live your life to the fullest and without any shame or guilt, but I have to believe that no self-respecting person would take things to the extremes promoted here.
The production values are, well, strange. White breaks down the "fourth wall" and spouts a number of droll monologues about how crummy his life is, directly to the camera. And when he's not talking, the director of photography is generally experimenting with new camera tricks like a kid with a new toy. I can't begin to count how many times the "spinning camera shot" was used, but after the first 15 times, you'll be too dizzy to care. In the end, the only saving graces are a couple of good jokes and a few of these camera tricks that are actually clever.
Unfortunately, there's no big payoff at the finale; Tommie has no sudden realization that he's a nimrod. The end result is 80 minutes of film that seem like 160--with no socially redeeming value whatsoever. White was correct on one count, though: When you lie down with dogs like this movie, you do get up with fleas.
RATING: *1/2
* Unquestionably awful ** Sub-par on many levels *** Average, hits and misses **** Good, memorable film ***** Perfection
-Christopher Null / null@utxvms.cc.utexas.edu -Film Critic, Screenwriter, Novelist (Mailing list available)
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