Alpha Dog

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Alpha Dog is one of those movies where, at first, you laugh and ask yourself, “What the..?” and watch wondering where it will lead you. Then you're drawn in and kicked in the head with the seriousness of a bunch of kids who think they can live the life of wannabe gangstas.



The film is about three days in the life of an ordinary group of teenagers wanting to be thugs and drug dealers. Led by Johnny Trulove (Emile Hirsch), they are a band of bored white kids who make fun of the gangsta rappers on television because “the only thing they shoot are music videos”. The irony is that it's these rappers that influence them and their lives.

When his friend Jake (Ben Foster) comes back from a deal without the money he owes, Johnny is forced to command the situation which leads to a confrontation between the two dominant men. This starts a chain of events that eventually lead to the kidnapping of Jake's younger brother Zack (Anton Yelchin). Eventually, Zack is used as a marker until Jake can pay back what he owes. In the meantime, Johnny has Frankie (Justin Timberlake) keep an eye on him until then.

In the two days that Zack is in custody, he begins to grow on Frankie and his crew. They party, drink, smoke pot and Zack experiences the fantasy life filled with partying, girls and adult experiences. In the meantime, Jake is looking for him, his mother (Sharon Stone) is going frantic, Johnny's father Sonny (Bruce Willis) wants him returned and Johnny doesn't know what to do. What happens at the end of those 72 hours will ultimately affect everyone's lives.

Shot as both a documentary and story, writer/director Nick Cassavetes does a wonderful job intertwining a journalist's attempt to piece together what happened with “actual” events. We see the story as it happened and through eyewitness testimony some undesclosed time later. His direction of the young cast is on the mark. The emotions he pulls from Foster, Yelchin and even Timberlake draw you in and makes you feel sorry for them and angry at the same time. You feel the friendship between Frankie and Zack build. You sense the desperation of Johnny. Ben Foster's portrayal of a hot-headed, ill-tempered Jake is emmense. It's too bad we didn't see his character more in the final acts of the film. And Anton Yelchin's portrayal of the “Stolen Boy” is extremely strong and engaging. Alpha Dog may start off slow and ordinary, but the film will reel you in quickly. Performances by the cast, most notably Yelchin and Foster, are excellent. Even Sharon Stone, in her small part as Zack's mother, gives a powerful performance. Justin Timberlake, at first, seems to stumble. His performance as Freddie is, at the beginning, almost unbearable as he seems to be trying too hard. As the film progresses, he begins to “get it” and ends up selling it, and he sells it well. The film is gritty and harsh with an edge that will surprise you. Apparently, it is based on true events. And, what's gripping is — I believe it.
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billdozer's Avatar
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Im quite looking forward to seeing this movie. Not a JT fan whatsoever, but it looks intriguing
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WARNING: "Alpha Dog" spoilers below
I think that the most clever guy in the movie was the guy caught by the Interpol in a Southern American country already. Justin Timberlake played a passive role in the movie. I guess he was the biggest disappointment. The ******* was the one who shot the kid!



Movie Forums Stage-Hand
thanks for the review Steve1071



very comprehensive review, haha but with that, i dont think il be watching it. =D
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I'm not gonna watch this movie a second time around.
But I sure liked the techniques of evasion by the main character.



Didn't have high expectations for this film as i'm not a fan of this any of the cast members or thi Nick Cassavettes geezer. However, I was quite entertained - at some parts.

The moments that stood out for me were the ones with Ben Foster. His moments gave me PROPER belly laughs!






Some spoiler warnings

I've come to the conclusion that Ben Foster being this martial arts expert on crack was supposed to be intentionally funny. Seemed pretty out of place in a film that recalls tragic events, but was very funny nevertheless. With all that said, Ben Fosters stand out scene has to be the bit with his boss. Lol, I don't know if it was just this film, but this Ben Foster bloke seems to have a talent for dark humour.

Now onto the negative. Alpha Dog is a film that's very confused in how it wants to approach its subject matter. It doesn't seem to know if it wants to be a teen flick, buddy comedy, coming of age drama, documentary or thriller. There is something wrong with a film that depicts a real life murder if the only good scenes I can point out are funny bits. Or maybe theres just something wrong with me? Ah, who knows?

The miscasting of Emile Hirch as the infamous Johnny Truelove doesn't exactly warrant repeat viewings either. Wasn't this Truelove guy supposed to be a cerebral bastard? Wait a second, isn't the film supposed to be about HIM?

Anyways, worth a look but it doesn't get any higher than **1/2 from me. And that's MAINLY because of Ben Foster's comic timing.

Nice review though. Good job.



I think the most annoying part of this movie was that Elvis Schmidt clown who was constantly abused by the lot, all of the sudden got 'tough' at the wrong time with the wrong person. I pitied him at first but wanted to see him get messed up after the change.

Same with that N-Sync dude. He did a 180 degree character turn himself when the movie came to an end.



ALPHA DOG is a raw and uncompromising documdrama, shockingly based on a true incident, which showcases a group of rich, bored youth with too much time and money on their hands, their outrageous behavior, poor choices, and their shock at coming face to face with the obvious consequences of what they do, even though that's not what this film is about.

Written and directed by Nick Cassavettes, the film chronicles what happens when a rich drug dealing punk, surrounded by his ass-kissing posse of yes-men, impulsively abducts the baby brother of a whacked-out addict who owes him money and the downward spiral this spontaneous and stupid move takes. But that's not what this film is about either...this film is not about kidnapping, or the evil of drugs, or the danger of having too much time or money.

As explained in the opening scene, this story is about bad parenting. This story is about what parental neglect can lead to. This story is about what happens when your kids leave the house and you don't ask them where they're going, what they will be doing, who they'll be doing it with, and what time they'll be back. This story is about parents who put their own selfish needs above their children, despite the fact that the number of parents who are part of this story is limited, which is exactly the point.

Cassavettes, who has clearly inherited some of his dad's cinematic eye, treats us to some inventive camera-work and an improvisational directorial style. As a screenwriter, he has mounted a compelling story though dialogue sometimes borders on the cliché. Emile Hirsh is miscast as Johnny Truelove, the drug dealer at the center of the story. Hirsh works hard at trying to make his character menacing, but never really is convincing in the role. The rest of the cast, however, is excellent, including Hip Hop icon Justin Timberlake in his film debut. Special mention should also be made of Ben Foster, as the psycho addict who puts his baby brother in danger, Anton Yelchin as the baby-faced hostage, and Sharon Stone as Yelchin's mother, who has one extraordinary scene near the end of the film. This film is shocking, raw, ugly, mean-spirited, unpleasant...and riveting from start to finish.



\m/ Fade To Black \m/
I really enjoyed Alpha Dog and I have seen it a few times now. Justin Timberlakes performance in it was actually surprisingly really good.
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