| Welcome to the Dollhouse | |
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Theatrical release poster |
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| Directed by | Todd Solondz |
| Produced by | Todd Solondz |
| Written by | Todd Solondz |
| Starring | Heather Matarazzo Matthew Faber Daria Kalinina Brendon Sexton Jr. Eric Mabius |
| Music by | Jill Wisoff |
| Cinematography | Randy Drummond |
| Editing by | Alan Oxman |
| Studio | Suburban Pictures |
| Distributed by | Sony Pictures Classics |
| Release date(s) | September 10, 1995 (TIFF) May 24, 1996 |
| Running time | 87 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Budget | $800,000 |
| Box office | $4,569,019 |
Welcome to the Dollhouse is a 1995 American independent coming of age dark comedy. An independent film, it launched the careers of Todd Solondz and Heather Matarazzo.[1]
Contents |
Dawn Wiener (Heather Matarazzo) is a shy, unattractive, unpopular 7th grader in a middle-class suburban community in New Jersey. Her older brother, Mark (Matthew Faber), is a nerdy high school student who plays clarinet in a garage band and shuns girls in order to prepare for college. Dawn's younger sister, Missy (Daria Kalinina), is a pretty little girl who pesters her and dances happily in a tutu. Their mother (Angela Pietropinto) is a shrewish woman who dotes on Missy and always sides with her in disputes with Dawn. Dawn's only friend is an effeminate fifth-grade boy named Ralphy (Dimitri Iervolino), with whom she shares a dilapidated clubhouse in her backyard.
Dawn's life in junior high is miserable: Her classmates call her names and cover her locker with derisive graffiti, the cheerleaders call her a lesbian, a teacher unfairly keeps her after school, another girl forces her to use the toilet while the girl watches, and she is threatened with rape by a bully named Brandon McCarthy (Brendan Sexton, Jr.), who has almost as much trouble socializing as she does. Her attempts to take out her frustrations only get her into trouble: At home, her mother punishes her for calling Missy a lesbian and refusing to be nice to her; at school, she accidentally hits a teacher in the eye with a spitball. Brandon's first attempt to rape Dawn fails, but he orders her to meet him again. After she presents herself to him and he takes her to an abandoned field, he starts an earnest conversation and only kisses her, even though she is obviously willing. Meanwhile, Mark's band is joined by Steve Rodgers (Eric Mabius), a cool, handsome boy who intends to become a rock star. Dawn immediately falls for him, and she decides to pursue him romantically after he spends some time with her, even though one of his former girlfriends explained to her that she has no chance.
As the film continues, Dawn and Brandon treat each other ambivalently: He bonds with her in her clubhouse only after another girl rejects him, and Dawn pursues him only after Steve rejects her. Toward the end of the film, Brandon is expelled from school for suspected drug dealing and, after kissing Dawn, runs away to avoid being sent to military school. After angrily rejecting Ralphy, Dawn is left with no friends at all. Meanwhile, the next occasion of Dawn's embarrassment is a lawn party to celebrate her parents' anniversary. When she refuses to tear down her clubhouse to make room for the party, her mother has Mark and Missy destroy it and gives them her share of a chocolate cake. At the party, Steve plays with Missy and Missy pushes Dawn into a kiddie pool. That evening, the family watches a videotape of the party, laughing when Dawn falls into the water; later that night, Dawn smashes the tape to pieces and briefly brandishes her hammer over Missy as she sleeps.
Dawn's ultimate disaster occurs when her father's car breaks down and her mother has to pick him up. Dawn is to tell Missy to find a ride home from ballet class while their mother is away. However, Missy argues with Dawn, who retaliates by not telling her, with the result that Missy is kidnapped. When Missy's tutu is found in Times Square, Dawn goes there to find her, and when she phones home, Missy has been found and their mother is too preoccupied to even notice Dawn's absence. After this, Dawn's classmates make fun of her as she gives a thank you speech in the assembly hall, and Mark offers her no hope of a better life until high school. The film ends as Dawn obediently joins other students singing the school anthem during a field trip.
The film was a surprise success, considering it was a relatively low budget, independently produced film. It garnered critical praise for its nail biting view of a preteen outcast, and won the Grand Jury Prize for best dramatic feature at the 1996 Sundance Film Festival. Critic Roger Ebert has been vocal about his love for the film, giving it four stars out of four and placing it at number five on his "Best of 1996" list.[2]
The film currently holds an 90% 'Fresh' rating on Rotten Tomatoes.[3]
The band Lagwagon uses audio from a scene in the movie in their song "Change Despair."
| Awards | ||
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| Preceded by The Brothers McMullen |
Sundance Grand Jury Prize: Dramatic 1996 |
Succeeded by Sunday |
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