Sleeping Dogs Lie
Metascore
63 out of 100

Generally favorable reviews - based on 13 Critics

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 10 out of 13
  2. Mixed: 3 out of 13
  3. Negative: 0 out of 13
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  1. Entertainment Weekly
    Reviewed by: Owen Gleiberman
    83
    Hamilton, in her movie debut, is a find: the kinkstress next door.
  2. The Hollywood Reporter
    Reviewed by: Duane Byrge
    80
    Carnal, crazy and, most amazingly, heartwarming love story.
  3. Village Voice
    Reviewed by: Robert Wilonsky
    80
    [Goldthwait] handles it beautifully, crafting from such rough stuff something astoundingly sweet and sharply funny about forgiveness, unconditional love, tenderness, and the things we hide just to get ourselves from one day to the next.
  4. San Francisco Chronicle
    Reviewed by: Ruthe Stein
    75
    Lacks the marquee names and production values of big studio romantic comedies, but it connects on an emotional level most of them fail to do.
  5. Premiere
    Reviewed by: Sara Brady
    75
    In the end, it's not Amy's secret that's the most shocking thing about Sleeping Dogs, it's Hamilton's fearless commitment to making what could have been just a cheap punch line into something warmer, richer, and far better.
  6. Los Angeles Times
    Reviewed by: Mark Olsen
    70
    Rather than the escalating gross-out spectacular it could have been, Sleeping Dogs Lie is an unexpectedly thoughtful look at what it takes to make relationships work.
  7. The New York Times
    Reviewed by: Stephen Holden
    70
    Sleeping Dogs Lie doesn't pretend to be more than it is: a blunt, provocative comedy sketch whose visual look is almost as bare as that of an episode of the underappreciated Home Box Office series "Lucky Louie." The acting, especially by Ms. Hamilton, is better than serviceable.
  8. Rolling Stone
    Reviewed by: Peter Travers
    63
    Goldthwait's movie, shot on video that makes it look dragged through puppy poop, is an unholy mess. But it also possesses a quick wit and an endearing tenderness toward Amy as honesty wrecks her life. It's sweet, doggone it.
  9. New York Post
    Reviewed by: Lou Lumenick
    63
    It's not exactly going to be on PETA's 10-best list.
  10. TV Guide
    Reviewed by: Maitland McDonagh
    63
    There are no laughs to be had here, though, unless you count nervous titters and frat-boy sniggers at the very thought of, you know.
  11. New York Daily News
    Reviewed by: Elizabeth Weitzman
    50
    Goldthwait explores his themes more thoughtfully than you'd expect, but ultimately, we know just how things will end. And what's subversive about that?
  12. L.A. Weekly
    Reviewed by: Chuck Wilson
    50
    A movie with a premise and an ad campaign promising sexual outrageousness, Sleeping Dogs Lie turns out to be rather tame.
  13. Variety
    Reviewed by: Todd McCarthy
    50
    A game and winning performance by Melinda Page Hamilton is the only saving grace.

User Reviews

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User Score
6.8 out of 10

Generally favorable reviews- based on 5 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 1 out of 1
  2. Mixed: 0 out of 1
  3. Negative: 0 out of 1
  1. ChadS.
    6
    A true dog lover, had they written "Sleeping Dogs Lie", would emphasize Amy's other sin(which is arguably worse than bestiality): After sex, sex that she initiated, she dropped off her pooch...at the pound...to be euthanized. Talk about your love 'em and leave 'em stories. It recalls(well, not really) that passage in "Lolita" in which Nabokov describes the angst a canine experiences when its master puts an end to their game of "fetch the ball". Now consider Amy's dog, sitting in his cage like a furry Magdalene sister, probably wondering aloud to himself, "Ruff...Ruff...Ruff! Ruff!... Ruff..."(translation: I was just lying there minding my own business, and then...) It's not Amy who should feel humiliated, it's the dog. John(Bryce Johnson) breaks up with Amy(Melinda Page Hamilton) for the wrong reason. Her parents miss the bigger picture, too. Although "Sleeping Dogs Lie" does a mind-bending job of reconciling gross-out humor within a romantic comedy, the film is dishonest about who we should really feel sorry for.… Full Review »
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