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Hounddog
Empire Film Group


5.0

based on 18 reviews
Read critic reviews
How did we calculate this?

based on 7 votes
Read user comments
Rate this movie

MPAA RATING: R for a disturbing sexual assault of a young girl, and brief sexuality

Starring Dakota Fanning, Robin Wright-Penn, Piper Laurie, and David Morse

Hounddog is a Southern tale set in rural Alabama in the late 1950s. It follows a spirited young girl, Lewellen, and her struggle to rise above the repression that surrounds her. (Empire Film Group)

GENRE(S):	Drama
WRITTEN BY:	Deborah Kampmeier
DIRECTED BY:	Deborah Kampmeier
RELEASE DATE:	DVD: February 17, 2009 Theatrical: September 19, 2008
RUNNING TIME:	93 minutes, Color
ORIGIN:	USA

All critic scores are converted to a 100-point scale. If a critic does not indicate a score, we assign a score based on the general impression given by the text of the review. Learn more...

New York Magazine David Edelstein

Fanning is a child actor with a grown-up soul, and every move, every breath, seems mysteriously right.

The Hollywood Reporter James Greenberg

In spite of a few missteps, the cumulative impact of the film is undeniable.

Village Voice Michelle Orange

In the wake of the inadvertent betrayal that leads to her now-notorious rape (a sequence that, ironically, seems to have lost the horrific impact it needs), the film turns listless.

Chicago Tribune Michael Phillips

The film is responsible, earnest, well-intentioned and, as it was in Sundance, maddeningly inconsistent.

The Onion (A.V. Club) Nathan Rabin

Pretty but overwrought, Hounddog doesn't deserve its infamy, nor does it merit being seen or remembered.

Chicago Sun-Times Roger Ebert

Assembled from the debris of countless worn-out images of the Deep South and is indeed beautifully photographed. But the writer-director, Deborah Kampmeier, has become inflamed by the imagery and trusts it as the material for a story, which seems grotesque and lurid.

TV Guide Ken Fox

A handsomely produced but unintentionally risible film that mistakes high grotesquerie for high gothic.

The New York Times Jeannette Catsoulis

Hounddog is never more than a sluggish dawdle from shack to swimmin' hole and back again.

ReelViews James Berardinelli

A failure on pretty much every level, Hounddog would never have been known beyond Park City had it not been for the notoriety surrounding the rape scene.

Premiere Jenni Miller

It was received at Sundance 2007 with a resounding thud. Not because of this controversial rape scene, but because, well, it just wasn't good. Unfortunately, even with over a year of rejiggering, it's still not good.

Variety Todd McCarthy

An indigestible gumbo of Southern Gothic ingredients seasoned with snake oil, biblical hash and thoroughly unpalatable spice.

Film Threat Jamie Tipps

Overall, director Deborah Kempmeir mistakes ominous and depressing for deep and meaningful, a misfire that undermines the effect it tries to achieve.

Chicago Reader Joshua Katzman

A bewildering slice of southern gothic hokum, it suffers from a weak script.

New York Post Lou Lumenick

Fanning gives a sensitive and fairly impressive performance. But like her over-the-top movie family, Hounddog is still trailer trash of the worst kind.

New York Daily News Elizabeth Weitzman

Rarely has there been a movie as misguided as Hounddog, which self-righteously indulges in exploitation while loudly decrying it.

Rolling Stone Peter Travers

What I can't figure is why anyone would want to release this tripe in theaters just when Fanning has nearly lived it down. They ain't no friends of mine, or any other moviegoer.

Los Angeles Times Mark Olsen

The problems that plague the movie land squarely with the writer, director and producer, Deborah Kampmeier, who has crafted a howler of a bad script, shows little affinity for working with actors and displays no visual sense behind the camera.

Entertainment Weekly Lisa Schwarzbaum

Fanning is remarkably collected and even dignified. As for the rest of the gang, they ought to be returned to sender.

The average user rating for this movie is 5.0 (out of 10) based on 7 User Votes
Note: User votes are NOT included in the Metascore calculation.

Jay H gave it a4:
Dakota Fanning s one of the most irritating actresses that I have ever seen. She is a poor actress and always tries to tackle roles way beyond her acting range. The movie is too slow, already been done - therefore predictable. And if she sang the title song one more time.

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Hounddog Empire Film Group

Hounddog
Empire Film Group