Moving Narrative 2: Dog Tooth

A dog can be aggressive, playful, loyal, viscous or cowardly, but in the right hands a dog can be moulded into anything that you like. This film tries to demonstrate that the same could be said of people.

(Sorry if this comes across as ramblings, I've been struggling to get my thoughts about this film sorted.)

To the three children of a factory manager, the house and the garden they live in is their whole reality. They believe in a world that would cause most people on the outside to scratch their head in confusion. They have been cut off from all reality beyond their garden wall, and have been spoon fed information that not only keeps them obedient, but fearful of whats outside, killing off any desire to explore.

Philosophers still argue over the concept of reality, whether the lives were living now are any truer than a dream, or have anymore validity than what we read in stories. How can we truly argue that the reality of someone who is "insane" is any less true than our perception of the world? How could you begin to explain to the children in this film that nearly everything they have been brought up to believe is in fact a lie? In a way, it is only a lie to the outside, but to them, it is the absolute truth.

“Reality is merely an illusion, albeit a very persistent one.” 
― Albert Einstein

Getting away from the philosophy aspect, the film felt very still. I cant really recall any tracking shots (though there may have been) and it plays well into small area the characters are confined in. You are constantly reminded that this place is abnormal, just before you can sucked into the seemingly loving family atmosphere. Up until the end, the film is shot in very bright environments, some rooms have a blinding white as the primary color, perhaps signifying the innocence of the children?

When we did reach the climax, we finally see the father character for a brief moment lose control. A child has left (perhaps not the first one, depending on whether the referenced Brother was real, and his actual fate.) What really stuck out to me though was the final shot and the lingering question. The girl has placed herself in the trunk the night, but we do not see her leave. Did she suffocate? Is she too scared to get out? Was she about too just before the camera cut?

Too me, this represents a very modern question of morality with the continued advancement of technology. Is reality truly better than the world we can create? Is it better to live out the rest of our lives in utter bliss, or should we face the world outside knowing that it could lead to utter misery? Are you accomplishing, or rather, truly living in anything other than reality? Perhaps I'm over thinking it, but that part really stuck out to me. It's a question I've debated with myself many times as I try to write stories of my own. Am I just dodging the real world by creating a new reality? Is that necessarily a bad thing?