Day 9: Teeth (2007)

I don't remember where or when I first heard about this film, presumably it was back in 2007 when it was released. As it never got a theatrical release in my city and since I usually didn't remember to look for it at the movie store, I was shocked last week to realize that I hadn't yet seen it upon coming across it in a movie store.

My initial impression was how low budget the film's production was - it could easily have been filmed by someone in one of my film classes, and the discrepancy in the lighting and quality of the image from one shot to the next threw me off. Yet, once I was able to move past the low budget-ness of the film (to be fair, it is a low budget horror film) I found myself quite enjoying it. The plot is not overly complex - Dawn, a teenage girl, has vagina dentata and must deal with the issues it causes - but it is the film's message that is created throughout the subtext that carries the film. Much more of a satire than a horror, and all the "horror" elements are easy to see coming. There is nothing jumping out at the audience, the "horror" occurs pretty predictably, ie. whenever someone has sex with Dawn. Jess Weixler is
wonderful as Dawn, as she finds a way to turn her imperfection into a form of empowerment. Despite Lichetenstein's production shortcomings, he makes up for it with style and message, creating an enjoyable black comedy. The film could have been better and could have gone further, and I was expecting more, but it still remains a film worth checking out.