Synopsis
A documentary film crew has decided to follow around a real life thief/killer named Ben as he goes about his business.
Who is the Audience for This Movie?
People who like their movies realistic and violent.
Review
*Please Note* This movie is foreign and has substitles.
Man Bites Dog follows the protagonist/antagonist of the film with a point of view that is fascinating. The documentary crew is not only observing they are directly referenced while Ben is talking and often are part of the movie itself. The transformation you see in the crew as the movie goes along is subtle yet builds to a level where you feel they have gone over the line of being subjective to the point of embracing the subject.
Man Bites Dog is the epitome of gritty; the movie pulls no punches in its depiction of violence. The violence is in no way stylized like big Hollywood movies it happens as you would expect it to happen in real life. The violence feels raw and is very unsettling, which is a compliment to the makers of the movie. Violence in movies over the years has de-sensitized viewers and even for a person like me to say this movie is shocking should say a lot about what this movie achieve.
My only gripe is that Ben’s character and motivations feel like they are over developed. There are plenty of scenes involving Ben talking about subjects that feel unnecessary. I feel that at times the actor who played Ben went a bit farther with the character then he needed to and it distracts just a tiny bit from the attempt to ground the film in reality.
I have only watched this movie a handful of times but it has always stuck in the back of mind as one of the most effective pieces of cinema.
