Roger Dodger
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Movie Reviews of Roger Dodger
Movie Review: Good Movie. Even Better DVD
Summary: 4 Stars
Campbell Scott plays Roger--a "ladies man" on the prowl for his next victim. Roger takes his 16-year old nephew under his wing to teach him the ropes. In the end, it just may be the nephew who does the teaching.The more I think back on it, the more I end up liking this movie. The very underrated Campbell Scott pulls off a brilliant performance. And it's hard to believe this is the debut of first-time director Dylan Kidd. His script is polished and very sharp. And although the picture is mostly dark, the colors are really vibrant. I don't agree with the shaky-cam (a technique Kidd says he'll go to his grave defending), but I wasn't nearly distracted by it either.
So, the movie's good...but the DVD makes it a must-own. So many DVD's today are loaded with trashy promotional featurettes--nothing that really tells about how the movie was made. "Roger Dodger" does a whole lot better. The special features are introduced by director Kidd calling it a kind-of film-school-in-a-box. Interviews abound with all the faculty from Executive Producer to music and sound to casting director and more. Also included is the trailer, a tip sheet for picking up women (repeated here from the movie), 2 audio commetaries, and a deleted scene with optional commentary. The one throw-away feature is a guided tour of the New York locations from the movie. A real good idea for a feature gets wasted here when the hosts (actors from the movie) turn it into 10 minutes of goofing off (and no, it's not funny). Overall, a 4-star movie, a 5-star DVD.
Movie Review: Smarmy Fun
Summary: 4 Stars
Going in I assumed this was a film about a suave player (Campbell Scott) who was charm women & end up passing this skill down to his nephew. I was only half right. During the set up we actually find out that he's sort of a prick. If he likes you he uses his elocutionary skills flatter you. If he's having a bad day he using them to debase you. Then his 16 yr. old nephew enters the picture & asks for help with the ladies. Normally he might not "waste" his time in helping another human being, but I believe it creates a nice distraction from the current turbulation in his life. This film primarily takes place during one night. Scott BSs his way throughout the evening trying to teach his nephew a thing or 2. They interact with a couple of chicks at a bar, Elizabeth Berkley who I enjoy & Jennifer Beals who I find highly overrated. They like the boy's naivetivity. Scott then continues the night trying to get the boy laid while the night gets seamier & seamier. There is definitely some truthfullness in this movie, such as when Scott tells his nephew about the closing time scenario in which everyone gets depressed & just don't want to be alone. In the end it seems that the nephew may have learned a thing or 2 even though he'd probably retain his sweetness. Scott may or may not change, but I think it's more about the scene & lonliness than any one or 2 characters. This film really does seem to push you into the movie. I often felt uncomfortable, just like in real life. This is the look the filmmakers were going for & it really worked for me.Movie Review: Cool film with believable characters
Summary: 4 Stars
You are immediately drawn into this from the start with Roger's quirky monologue to his friends at a restaurant about his theories on human evolution - it sounds like anti-social crap but he exudes enough charisma to get away with it, in fact his friends give him a round of applause at the end of these ramblings such is the conviction of his delivery. Is he a total jerk or jaded city guy with a heart of gold? That is pretty much the question that lingers over him the whole time you watch this film. When his 16 year old virginal nephew arrives on the scene asking for tips on how to pick up girls Roger is given a chance to flex his mysoginistic side which he relishes. Enough said on the story, what I liked about this film was that it is one of the few I have seen where the characters are genuinely believable and respond to situations as you would expect real people to. This is what hold yours attention as there are significantly long periods of meandering dialogue in Roger Dodger between the action and drama that unfolds. Also, the director doesn't impose himself on the characters or scenes, instead he leaves it up to the viewer to soak it all in and draw their own conclusions, this is helped by the way it is filmed, the camera moving around casually, sometimes jerkily as though you are eavesdropping in on Roger's interludes with people. It's a certain stylization which isn't overpowering but works well in tandem with Roger's urgent, manic, sometimes infuriating character.
Movie Review: Impeccably well-written, well-made, but...
Summary: 4 Stars
...somehow it just misses the "exceptional" category. The camera work and cinematography are flawless, the dialogue is razor-sharp and often bitingly insightful, the music is superb, the actors are well-cast and well-directed. There are no glaring flaws or shortcomings...and even though I was certainly absorbed, entertained, and even had a few light bulb moments, when it was over I just wasn't completely satisfied. If "Roger Dodger" were food, I'd want to add a lot of garlic or chillis or salt or SOMETHING to put more of an *OOOOH* into it. A note to those who are taken in by the advertising blurb claiming that this is a Cassanova's Handbook sort of movie: it isn't. Campbell's character doesn't really show his nephew all that much about what comprises successful womanizing; he only gives the boy a glimpse into his own hit-and-miss attempts therein. Meaning he's really a wannabe womanizer, further along than most because he's an excellent talker with zero self-consciousness, but still fails because women still see through him and cringe away. A truly masterful womanizer gets seen through all the time but gets away with it anyway; the women he picks up knows they're being conned---and don't give a damn.
That said, before seeing this I had almost forgotten just how drop-dead gorgeous Jennifer Beals truly is...that raises its score from 3-1/2 starts to 4!
Movie Review: crackling dialogue with good performances
Summary: 4 Stars
A film by Dylan KiddThe movie opens with Roger (Campbell Scott) sitting in a café with his coworkers and speaking exactly what is on his mind and the topic is women and how destructive women will be to men and a male society. This is interesting stuff and perfectly shows just how far out there Roger is and what his point of view is on life and women. He really believes what he is saying.
After he is dumped by his lover, who happens to be his boss, Roger returns to his office at work and finds his nephew Nick (Jesse Eisenberg) standing there, waiting. With a little bit of prompting, Roger takes Nick out on the town with the intent on teaching Nick about women and to help Nick with his first "conquest". What we have is a mixing of Nick's hesitant, nervous innocence with Roger's scorn, confidence, and perhaps even distaste for women as anything but an object to acquire.
Considering what the subject matter is, I did not expect to like this movie very much. I was surprised. The dialogue is sharp, and it is easy to see why this movie was produced, the screenplay must have been a real gem to find. Visually, "Roger Dodger" is not much to look at, but the performances and the dialogue help it to rise above what it could have been. "Roger Dodger" also co-stars Isabella Rossellini and Elizabeth Berkley.
-Joe Sherry