HOUNDDOG

Tuesday May 12, 2009

HOUNDDOG (2007) A Southern Gothic tale set in 1961 Alabama about a troubled girl who finds solace and ultimate redemption in the words and music of Elvis. The film is written and directed by Deborah Kampmeier and stars Dakota Fanning along with Robin Wright Penn, and David Morse. From the opening scene of a fetid, steamy southern swamp slithering with snakes, to its stoic end credits, Hounddog is a movie that is burdened with inscrutable symbolism over wrought characters and a maudlin undeveloped story that is sabotaged by the director’s own self-incriminating retro-editing. This gives the film a hurdy-gurdy jerky unfinished appearance, as if the most salient bits of film lay in huge tatters on the cutting room floor. Hounddog is a movie that is at times difficult to watch, impossible to ignore and ultimately dissatisfying. They say too many cooks spoil the soup, and HD has more producers than you can shake a stick at. The real problem is, after the disastrous reception at Sundance, it’s painfully obvious that director Kampmeier panicked. Like a naughty schoolboy sent to the principal’s office, Kampmeier sought to dispose of the evidence went back in with her scissors and cut out all the offending parts. The result of this reactionary retro-editing is that Kampmeier largely squanders Dakota's last great performance as a child. Going from the fresh face pig-tailed Fern in the family, friendly Charlotte's Web (2006) to a movie featuring child rape is a whiplash-inducing change of pace. Dakota, with her lilting singsong southern voice is such a natural performer she often finds herself in the unenviable position of being better than the material in which she appears. Hounddog is only the most recent example; Dakota easily rises above the vapid script and overwrought performances of David Morse and Piper Laurie.

Llewellyn is a girl in possession of waif-like child innocents, yet she engages in playtime activities that would have caused our poor Fern to blush. Llewellyn spends a great deal of time cavorting about in her underwear. When she isn’t busy flashing her alabaster white legs and skivvy clad tush, Llewellyn plays naughty games like “doctor” with the neighbor boy plying a kiss for a quick look at his willie. Her god-fearing over bearing Granny does her best to keep her on the straight and narrow. "Turn down that devil music!" All to no avail, Llewellyn remains defiant, a white girl who likes black music, she gyrates her hips to the refrains of “Hounddog.” Llewellyn remains seemingly oblivious to her awakening sexuality; like some objectified Bratz doll, we watch her languish in bed, moaning “Hounddog” for the pleasure of the milkman. “What? Lil’ ole me?”
 

Llewellyn is a girl who loves the blues and is obsessed with Elvis. She will sing “Hounddog” into a living room lamp stand at a moment’s notice. While Charlotte Church can rest assured her status as a diva is in no danger of being usurped anytime soon. Dakota does a surprisingly credible job with her singing duties. Dakota is no singer, but at least she doesn’t embarrass herself. When Elvis comes to town, so desperate is Llewellyn to secure a ticket she agrees to dance naked for a much older boy. All this leads to her ultimate downfall. The underlying problem with Hounddog is that’s it’s not a very good movie. Deborah Kampmeier’s fateful decision to cast Dakota Fanning as Llewellyn as apposed to an unknown had far-reaching and unforeseen consequences. While Dakota’s considerable gravitas undoubtedly contributed greatly to getting the project “green-lit.” Her established public persona as cherubic Lucy Dawson proved to be the movies ultimate undoing. Anjelica Huston got away with it because in Bastard out of Carolina (1996) she cast an unknown and she managed to imbue her film with a quiet sense of dignity that HD seems to lack. Note to self: If one decides to make a movie depicting the rape of a child, one doggone well better make sure you are on firm critical, creative and moral ground. Because no one, absolutely no one, wants to watch a movie where sweet innocent pig-tailed Fern is raped.

Hounddog (2007) ** ½