/pOctober 28, 2024
FILM: HANGDOG
DIRECTED BY: MATT CASCELLA
STARRING: DESMIN BORGES, KELLY O’SULLIVAN, STEVE COULTER
RATING: 3 ½ out of 4 stars
By Dan Pal
There are two types of films that get a lot of attention at this time of the year: horror films (of course, because of Halloween) and prestige films (because of the upcoming Oscars.) Reviewing a lot of the latter can be highly stimulating and exhausting given the heaviness of so many of those projects. (I’m not a big horror lover so sorry about not reviewing more of those!) It’s with great pleasure then to watch something like Hangdog. This is the kind of sweet, character driven, comedy that doesn’t come around much anymore. It has the feel of a 1990’s independent film that Sundance would have been all over during that era. It’s small scale but rich in characters, story development, and performances. I really enjoyed this one.
The story takes place in and around Portland, Maine in the late Winter/Early Spring. It’s dreary and chilly but it feels lived in and quite charming. Walt and Wendy have recently moved there with their rescue dog Tony. Wendy is in the midst of a potential big business deal for an app she has developed. Walt is a bit more downtrodden as he is an unemployed artist. When Wendy has to go to New York, Walt is left to take care of Tony – who he really considers to be her dog. Within the first day, Tony goes missing, forcing Walt to search everywhere throughout the area to try to find him before Wendy gets home.
This could sound like a bummer of a story but it is actually quite opposite that. With a whimsical score and a cast of colorful characters, the film is mostly light and quite witty. The tone is a bit like what one might find watching a film by Alexander Payne, such as Sideways or Nebraska. Writer/director Matt Cascella makes the setting one of the key characters. Portland is full of parks, open spaces, waterways, and boats. Cascella utilizes all of these in a way that makes one almost viscerally experience the atmosphere and texture of the small city. Everything feels beautifully natural from the modest exterior of the homes to the open land and shop-friendly main street. Walt’s neighbor Mary Ann sits on her back porch, smoking her cigarettes, drinking, and laughing at… whatever. She’s also a highly enthusiastic wet suit swimmer whose energy we can either laugh at or admire for the loving way she embraces life.
But the center of the story is on Walt, played by Desmin Borges, who might be familiar to audiences from the TV series You’re the Worst and Only Murderers in the Building. His general qualities as Walt remind me of Paul Giamatti or David Schwimmer. He’s got a sad, droopy-eyed face that anyone familiar with those actors would easily recognize. Yet he creates his own fully-fledged character that has a nervousness and anxiety-ridden energy that makes one want to give him a hug and help him on his journey. He would fit in quite well in an Alexander Payne movie. (There’s a scene in which Walt sneakily enters into a home that feels like a tribute to a similar scene in Payne’s Sideways.)
Another performance that deserves attention is that of Mr. Tibbs as the dog Tony. Perhaps he was exceedingly well-trained and directed but he tackles every scene with complete authenticity! The way he looks longingly after Wendy as she drives away and how he scratches at the door makes him feel like a genuine, devoted pet! He’s dog of the year in my book.
This story is very much the journey of a man on a desperate quest, in part also to find himself. Along the way he meets some interesting characters including a widower finding himself after his wife’s death and a problematic teen who lives with his larger than life mother. Each of these characters represent different parts of Walt and, of course, the various roadblocks to finding Tony. The film never get maudlin or unnecessarily full of slapstick or hijinks that we might expect from a Hollywood film. This one is heartwarming and relatable.
Hangdog is currently available to rent/purchase on Amazon Prime and Apple TV+.
FILM: HANGDOG
DIRECTED BY: MATT CASCELLA
STARRING: DESMIN BORGES, KELLY O’SULLIVAN, STEVE COULTER
RATING: 3 ½ out of 4 stars
By Dan Pal
There are two types of films that get a lot of attention at this time of the year: horror films (of course, because of Halloween) and prestige films (because of the upcoming Oscars.) Reviewing a lot of the latter can be highly stimulating and exhausting given the heaviness of so many of those projects. (I’m not a big horror lover so sorry about not reviewing more of those!) It’s with great pleasure then to watch something like Hangdog. This is the kind of sweet, character driven, comedy that doesn’t come around much anymore. It has the feel of a 1990’s independent film that Sundance would have been all over during that era. It’s small scale but rich in characters, story development, and performances. I really enjoyed this one.
The story takes place in and around Portland, Maine in the late Winter/Early Spring. It’s dreary and chilly but it feels lived in and quite charming. Walt and Wendy have recently moved there with their rescue dog Tony. Wendy is in the midst of a potential big business deal for an app she has developed. Walt is a bit more downtrodden as he is an unemployed artist. When Wendy has to go to New York, Walt is left to take care of Tony – who he really considers to be her dog. Within the first day, Tony goes missing, forcing Walt to search everywhere throughout the area to try to find him before Wendy gets home.
This could sound like a bummer of a story but it is actually quite opposite that. With a whimsical score and a cast of colorful characters, the film is mostly light and quite witty. The tone is a bit like what one might find watching a film by Alexander Payne, such as Sideways or Nebraska. Writer/director Matt Cascella makes the setting one of the key characters. Portland is full of parks, open spaces, waterways, and boats. Cascella utilizes all of these in a way that makes one almost viscerally experience the atmosphere and texture of the small city. Everything feels beautifully natural from the modest exterior of the homes to the open land and shop-friendly main street. Walt’s neighbor Mary Ann sits on her back porch, smoking her cigarettes, drinking, and laughing at… whatever. She’s also a highly enthusiastic wet suit swimmer whose energy we can either laugh at or admire for the loving way she embraces life.
But the center of the story is on Walt, played by Desmin Borges, who might be familiar to audiences from the TV series You’re the Worst and Only Murderers in the Building. His general qualities as Walt remind me of Paul Giamatti or David Schwimmer. He’s got a sad, droopy-eyed face that anyone familiar with those actors would easily recognize. Yet he creates his own fully-fledged character that has a nervousness and anxiety-ridden energy that makes one want to give him a hug and help him on his journey. He would fit in quite well in an Alexander Payne movie. (There’s a scene in which Walt sneakily enters into a home that feels like a tribute to a similar scene in Payne’s Sideways.)
Another performance that deserves attention is that of Mr. Tibbs as the dog Tony. Perhaps he was exceedingly well-trained and directed but he tackles every scene with complete authenticity! The way he looks longingly after Wendy as she drives away and how he scratches at the door makes him feel like a genuine, devoted pet! He’s dog of the year in my book.
This story is very much the journey of a man on a desperate quest, in part also to find himself. Along the way he meets some interesting characters including a widower finding himself after his wife’s death and a problematic teen who lives with his larger than life mother. Each of these characters represent different parts of Walt and, of course, the various roadblocks to finding Tony. The film never get maudlin or unnecessarily full of slapstick or hijinks that we might expect from a Hollywood film. This one is heartwarming and relatable.
Hangdog is currently available to rent/purchase on Amazon Prime and Apple TV+.