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Dakota Fanning, Cody Hanford, Piper Laurie, David Morse, Afemo Omilami ... see more see more... , Robin Wright , Isabelle Fuhrman , Ron Prather , Jill Scott

A precocious but troubled young girl living in 1950s-era Alabama seeks solace in the music of Elvis Presley in director Deborah Kampmeier's controversial tale of childhood trauma and musical healing. ... read more read more...An air of repression lingers over the home of spirited youngster Lewellen (Dakota Fanning), who finds both comfort in the music of pop sensation Presley, as well as a place to store her pain and anger. In time Lewellen begins to find her own voice, a voice that will instill her with the strength to move beyond the pain of her past and into a more hopeful future. Piper Laurie, David Morse, and Robin Wright Penn star in a period drama that made its debut at the 2007 Sundance Film Festival. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi

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R, 1 hr. 42 min.

Directed by: Deborah Kampmeier

Release Date: September 19, 2008

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DVD Release Date: March 10, 2009

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Hound dog premiere hounddog poster Hounddog - Dakota Fanning Hounddog Hounddog Hounddog - Dakota Fanning Hounddog - Dakota Fanning Hounddog - Dakota Fanning David Morse in HOUNDDOG. A film by Deborah Kampmeier. An Empire Film Group release. Robin Wright Penn and David Morse in HOUNDDOG. A film by Deborah Kampmeier. An Empire Film Group release. Robin Wright Penn in HOUNDDOG. A film by Deborah Kampmeier. An Empire Film Group release. Three-time Grammy Award Winner Jill Scott in HOUNDDOG. A film by Deborah Kampmeier. An Empire Film Group release. Academy Award Nominee Piper Laurie in HOUNDDOG. A film by Deborah Kampmeier. An Empire Film Group release. Hounddog Hounddog
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Flixster Reviews (553)

  • moonrivers
    April 5, 2012
    moonrivers
    Dakota Fanning's luminescent performance grounds this lonely, sordid trip to the rural 1950s South enough to overcome the numerous and cliched stereotypes in this dark tale of a poor country girl innocently obsessed with Elvis.
  • hunterjt13
    October 8, 2011
    hunterjt13
    A young girl grows up in the South with her damaged father, dysfunctional grandmother, and a looming sexuality.
    I think this film gets a star knocked off as a penalty for its disappointment. I like Dakota Fanning in her dramatic roles more than her saccharine family comedies, an... read mored David Morse is always extraordinary. But there are so many flaws in this film that I almost can't get my head around all of them. First - the snakes. The opening credits, the connective tissue, and a supporting character are all obsessed with these menacing, phallic creatures slithering this way and that, and the image gets to be a tired, worn cliche by the end of the film if it wasn't already a cliche before the first frame.
    Second, David Morse's character begins the film as a force, a menace, an ever-present threat, and if you've seen or heard any press for this film, then you know why it's "controversial," and you're probably expecting Morse to be the source of the controversy, which would a scene of such brutality, such a mismatched mesh of horror - Fanning with her slight demeanor and Morse the towering giant. But midway through the first act, Daddy is struck by lightning. Yes, you read that right: he's struck by lightning. And the source of the film's dooming, gothic ambiance is turned into a simple, bowl-cutted idiot.
    Finally, Robin Wright Penn's character begins the film as a passing stranger, but I can almost hear the writers, midway through the third act, thinking, "Hmm: maybe we should take her character seriously."
    Yes, Fanning is wonderful, adapting to the damaged Lewellen like the fantastic actress she already is (I can't imagine what a force she might become), and Morse does his best with what he's been given, but overall, this is truly bad storytelling and even worse filmmaking.
  • romy861
    June 14, 2010
    romy861
    Have been wanting to see this for ages, but doesn't seem to be getting released over here (anytime soon, anyhow), so ended up ordering the DVD from the US. I was surprised to see it was deleted already and had to buy it from a private seller. It is almost like this film is too ... read moreshocking for some people and is being made to disappear.
    Well, obviously it is not a nice topic, a coming of age story about a young girl, played by Dakota Fanning, who's lives with her alcoholic father, who may or may not be abusive, and her extremely religious Grandmother who is just oblivious to a lot of things. Music is her outlet and when she hears Elvis is coming to town, her and a friend come up with a questionable plan to score tickets, which leads to a tragedy.
    Dakota, as always is fantastic. I have a whole new respect for her as an actress after watching this, although I have always liked her. She plays plucky Lewellen with such strength and truth that this almost ends up being an inspiring story. (Almost).
  • dreamfaeries
    October 17, 2009
    dreamfaeries
    Very slow, but it was worth a watch. Very odd storyline but brought to life as best as could be. The last 25 minutes or so is the best part of the film.
  • kiriyamakazou
    April 19, 2009
    kiriyamakazou
    Dakota Fanning gives her best performance to date. She perfectly captures both her youthful innocence, and her natural maturity that puts her above most child actors. Though the film may be "controversial" and "hard hitting" it is also painfully simplistic and clichéd. Fanning p... read morelays a very obvious Southern girl in a far too familiar cinematic Southern world. She's the poor little white girl with a hard drinking father that is sometimes violent and a strict religious grandmother. Fanning has her escape, in the form of Elvis' music, but she is really enlightened by the black community. The weather and snakes are all used as your everyday Southern metaphors and are lacking in visual impact. We've seen all these characters before, especially Morse's at first cruel but caring father and then simple minded and childlike. This plot strand could have been used to show the role reversal between child and parent, but instead Fanning is off doing her own thing. It's beautifully shot though, capturing all the harsh weather conditions and bright yet gothic scenery.
  • dunmyer
    September 20, 2008
    dunmyer
    [size=3]With better direction, "Hounddog" could have been a major film. It had many core elements that were so right, including a stellar cast led by [b]Dakota Fanning[/b], who was about 12 years old when the film was made. Supporting actors include [b]Piper Laurie[/b], [b]David ... read moreMorse[/b], and [b]Robin Wright Penn[/b].[/size]

    [img]http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/b/be/Hounddog_poster.jpg[/img]

    [size=3]A girl in a remote corner of the deep South (the environs resemble a jungle) struggles in the 1950s to survive in a dirt-poor, highly dysfunctional family. Her whole life is a trial. But when she is raped, she suffers her worst ordeal and drifts into what is almost a coma. [/size]

    [size=3]The title comes from the Elvis Presley song, which was beloved by teenagers at the time and derided by many adults as "devil music." (This debate figures into the story.) The girl sings the song frequently in part to keep her soul alive. Music indeed becomes her salvation, both Elvis Presley's pop and the authentic Blues upon which it was based. But the title can also be seen as a reference to the girl herself, who is so filthy and mangy as to resemble a hounddog.[/size]

    [img]http://content8.flixster.com/photo/10/99/71/10997126_ori.jpg[/img]

    [size=3]When the film first surfaced in late 2006 and was accepted at the Sundance Film Festival, a brouhaha erupted over its subject matter. Some suggested it was a form of child pornography, which strikes me as completely ridiculous. The rape scene is brief and discreet and could not be perceived by anyone with a normally functioning brain as titillating or lurid.[/size]

    [size=3]Rape of children is a fact. Should we stick our heads in the sand to ignore it, or confront it openly as the tragedy it is? I'm not a head-in-the-sand type, whether the issue is global warming, failed foreign policies, or child abuse. I want a national cinema that confronts reality head on. [/size]

    [size=3]I applaud Ms. Fanning for choosing to participate in a film that dares to look at girls' issues fearlessly, and I applaud her parents for supporting her. I also resoundingly commend the screenwriter and director, [b]Deborah Kampmeier[/b], for having the guts to make a film that looks unflinchingly at a reality millions of girls (and many boys) face.[/size]

    [size=3]There is of course the fear that parents might mistakenly believe "Hounddog" is a children's film because Ms. Fanning is the star. But that is a risk that has to be taken. We certainly cannot shut down cinema because we're afraid a child might see the wrong film. It is the responsibility of the distributor to make it completely obvious in the marketing material that this is an adults-only film, and it's up to parents to take it from there.[/size]

    [size=3]When the film finally was screened at Sundance, it was met with an avalanche of derision from critics, which also strikes me as ridiculous. It's clearly not a masterpiece, and some aspects of the direction are terrible. But the entire film a piece of junk? I don't understand that view. I can't help but wonder if critics turned away from the film because of its subject matter. They can't call for censorship, but they can destroy a film by overstating its flaws. No one, it seems, wants to see a film that examines rape of children. I still maintain that this was why critics savaged "Fierce People" last year. (That film was on my Top 10 List of 2007.) But the version of "Hounddog" that was screened at Sundance was rough, and Kampmeier has done some cutting since then. Perhaps the version in theaters now is much improved.[/size]

    [size=3]After the tidal wave of negative press at Sundance, "Hounddog" disappeared, never finding a distributor. That angered me to no end. Then suddenly, more than a year later, I see it advertised in the New York Times. I don't know who finally stepped up to the plate to arrange screenings, but we owe that person many thanks.[/size]

    [size=3]Now for a discussion of the film's flaws. Kampmeier is very heavy on style and tends to overdo things. Her locations are striking -- at times too striking. There is moss dripping from every tree and florid jungle-like growth everywhere. The interiors are also thick with symbolism. When the girl visits a bluesman who lives nearby, his place has snakeskins hanging from the walls. [/size]

    [size=3]When Kampmeier directs the actors, she often overdoes something as well. One scene toward the end of the film involves the girl's father wandering around the town in a stupor. To emphasize his disorientation, Kampmeier has the actor do the scene completely naked, which struck me as completely unnecessary and over the top. Another example: when the girl first hears a Blues performance, the musicians are so overly animated that they seem to be doing a parody of the Blues. [/size]

    [size=3]Kampmeier also has an approach to sound that is irritating. There is too much music and too many sound effects. Presumably to add a mystical tone, she occasionally uses sound effects such as a few strikes of a percussion instrument. Every time I heard these effects, I almost burst out laughing. For reasons such as this, I had to bring down the film's ranking to 6. It otherwise would have been at least a 7, maybe even an 8. (Incidentally, I haven't given out a 9 or 10 rating yet this year. I save those for near-masterpieces and full-on masterpieces. I actually haven't given a 10 rating since 2006, for Darren Aronofsky's "The Fountain." The last 9 I gave out was for Todd Haynes's "I'm Not There" in 2007.)[/size]

    [size=3]One critic described "Hounddog" as over-ripe, and that is apt. I think Kampmeier might do well to study a film like "The Hours" by Stephen Daldry to learn how to use avant-garde techniques to enrich a film without drowning it. The famous scene in "The Hours" where Julianne Moore's character is contemplating suicide in a hotel room is an example. Daldry has a river explode from under the woman's bed, consuming the character. [/size]

    [size=3]Obviously this was symbolism. Rivers don't appear in hotels. Daldry was taking a big risk using a non-realistic technique like this, and it worked beautifully. He knew how to use such a device and keep it under control. He had Moore lie on the bed placidly, for example, to keep the scene from going overboard. Kampmeier probably would have had Moore flailing about screaming. The art of understatement is something Kampmeier urgently needs to learn. If she does, I think she could turn into one of America's finest directors, on a par with masters such as Karen Moncrieff ("The Dead Girl") and Laurie Collyer ("Sherrybaby").[/size]

    [size=3]Kampmeier's excesses are not constant, however. Every now and again they become a problem. There are many scenes that are done superbly, and "Hounddog" is worth seeing for any fan of serious film.[/size]
  • gator681
    September 22, 2008
    gator681
    [font=Century Gothic]People can read too much into some things.[/font]
    [font=Century Gothic][/font]
    [font=Century Gothic]Take "Hounddog" for instance. Would I be wrong to say that this is a picturesque allegory which brings to mind the Garden of Eden? It is 1960 in Alabama whe... read morere Lewellen(Dakota Fanning) is in a blissful state of childhood where she worships Elvis Presley while spending most days playing with her best friend Buddy(Cody Hanford). She also hangs out at the house of her father(David Morse) who has just gotten a new girlfriend(Robin Wright Penn). So, it comes as no surprise that she is excited when she hears that Elvis is coming to town...[/font]

    [font=Century Gothic]But there are snakes, both literal and figurative. Her friend Charles(Afemo Omilami) looks out for the literal kind, milking the poisonous ones for antivenin. And there are the figurative ones like Lewellen's strict grandmother(Piper Laurie) who rails against rock and roll music as the devil's work.(Hopefully, we have come far enough in the past fifty years for dancing to be considered an outlet for expression, and nothing sexual.) What is truly evil is the cycle of abuse happening in front of everybody and is just accepted as a natural fact. This includes racism of course and this is where the blues come in as a reaction against that. [/font]
  • SC007
    December 16, 2009
    SC007
    Dakota Fanning's performance is the only reason to watch this film. The film reminded me a little of Stand By Me and My Girl, but those were much better films. I thought some of the supporting cast members, were miscast in this film.
  • crazydannielle16
    September 16, 2009
    crazydannielle16
    I heard about this movie through a chain e-mail written by a person who was trying to ban this film delcaring it "awful" with a "terrible rape scene of a child." I think this was the first film I've ever seen of a rape with a young child in it. I think the rape scene isn't as dis... read moretasteful as everyone said it was going to be though it was still provacative and horrifying.

    I feel like this movie doesn't really have a point except to say that this world has a lot of crap in it and you just have to shake it off and move on. Your dad is a drunk and beats you, your mom isn't in the picture, you're dirt poor and live in an area where snakes are rampant and one bite will kill you, and to top it all off, your boyfriend likes another girl and he watches you get raped.

    This movie had such potential to be GREAT. But it just failed. It's too bad too because Dakota Fanning is such a talented actress and her costars were also talented.

    Even though this movie was a tad bit heavy-handed, there are incredible visuals of the rural south in the 1950s. I love the costumes and sets and the music and the sounds of cicadas and crickets put me right there in the era.

    Hounddog is basically, to put it bluntly, a coming-of-age tale that doesn't have much of anything meaningful to say.
  • wbgoose13
    January 1, 2009
    wbgoose13
    A risible piece of Southern gothic that's both ponderous and exploitative.

View All Hounddog Reviews

Critic Reviews

Steven Winn
October 31, 2008
Steven Winn, San Francisco Chronicle

The whole distasteful mess is sunk up to its neck in a brew of Southern Gothic atmosphere and hocus-pocus sentimentality. Full Review

Michael Phillips
October 18, 2008
Michael Phillips, Chicago Tribune

Only Fanning's emotional honesty makes Hounddog watchable. Full Review

Peter Travers
September 26, 2008
Peter Travers, Rolling Stone

If there's a Southern-gothic cliché (oh, those snakes!) that writer-director Deborah Kampmeier misses, I don't know it.

David Hiltbrand
September 25, 2008
David Hiltbrand, Philadelphia Inquirer

A slow procession of degradation and suffering, Hounddog is like a tall glass of bitter iced tea. Full Review

Stephen Whitty
September 19, 2008
Stephen Whitty, Newark Star-Ledger

The latest wallow in regional cliche and stereotype. Full Review

Lou Lumenick
September 19, 2008
Lou Lumenick, New York Post

The clichés are thick as the kudzu in 1956 Alabama. Full Review

Elizabeth Weitzman
September 19, 2008
Elizabeth Weitzman, New York Daily News

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

Mark Olsen
September 19, 2008
Mark Olsen, Los Angeles Times

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 ... Full Review

Joshua Katzman
September 19, 2008
Joshua Katzman, Chicago Reader

A bewildering slice of southern gothic hokum, it suffers from a weak script, proving that old saw about actors being only as good as the lines they're given. Full Review

Roger Ebert
September 19, 2008
Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times

Dakota Fanning takes an impressive step forward in her career, but that's about the only good thing about Hounddog. Full Review

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  • this actress played in the following shows: charlotte's web Hounddog Dreamer Sweethome Alabama Malcom In The Middle  Answer »
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  • Which actress plays in all these movies? Uptown Girl Hide and Seek Hounddog  Answer »
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