Director: John Duigan
Sam Rockwell- Trent
Christopher McDonald - Morton Stockard
Kathleen Quinlan - Clare Stockard
Bruce McGill - Nash (Security Guard); and
Misha Barton - Devon Stockard |
As children we all grow up with stories of gentle giants and evil witches, stories that are used to warn us against staying too far from the home or talking with strangers.
John Duigan's latest film is best described as an adult fairy tale, warning us about the divisions developing in today's society.
"Lawn Dogs" is the story of 10 year old Devon. She and her parents have recently moved to Camelot Gardens, one of those up-market, high security housing estates, where everything and everyone is kept in the right place. An only child who is recovering from major surgery, Devon retreats from the caring but distant attentions and encouragement of her ambitious parents into her very lively imagination. She is fascinated by a Russian folktale she heard from her grandmother about Baba Yaga, a witch who lives in the woods and kills and eats children.
One day Devon explores/stays into the nearby woods and stumbles across an old trailer which is home to Trent the "lawn dog", a young man who mows lawns for the inhabitants of Camelot Gardens. She is fascinated, he at 22 is wary and seeks to discourage her visits. Despite the tensions the pair strike up an unlikely and fulfilling friendship.
The people of Camelot Gardens are hostile to the likes of Trent and when Devon' s parents become aware of her friendship with one of the hired help, they immediately fear the worst and take violent action against Trent. Just in time Devon calls on her memories of the witch and through her imagination summons up the power to free her friend.
Misha Barton as Devon gives an amazing performance. At 10 years of age she is already a seasoned performer having appeared in films, on television and on the stage. She is totally believable as an imaginative young girl, as yet innocently unaware of her potential sexuality, reaching out for honesty and friendship.
Sam Rockwell is perfect as the young man working hard to escape to a better life. His one freedom is to stop on the bridge on his way home, strip off and dive naked into the river in front of the admiring eyes of the local women! In Devon he discovers friendship and loyalty rather than constant suspicion and open discrimination.
The director, John Duigan, is perhaps best known for his award winning Australian films "The Year My Voice Broke" and "Flirting" and in "Lawn Dogs", he again explores that tenuous time when a young person first learns about life and relationships.
Although told from the perspective of a 10 year old, this is certainly not a children's film There are darkness and violence before the happy ending and the film makes some strong comments on modern day American society with its growing divisions between people.
The dark violence underlying the relationships and the actions of the inhabitants of Camelot Gardens is constructed with the natural beauty of the woods and the genuinely loving and respectful friendship that develops between Devon and Trent.
An intriguing and fascinating film that raises questions about the direction of today's society with its growing divisions and loss of imagination.
| 
