History Film / Dogtooth

''Dogtooth'' (2009) is a Greek arthouse drama directed by Creator/YorgosLanthimos that won the "Un Certain Regard" award at Cannes and was nominated for an UsefulNotes/AcademyAward for Best Foreign Language Film.

The plot concerns a husband and wife, who have kept their three adult-age children isolated within the walls of their country estate for their entire lives. They tell them lies about the outside world and even the most basic concepts of life, keeping them in a perpetual state of helpless childhood. Their only outside visitor is Christina, a security guard at the father's workplace, who is brought in for sexual services with the son. As she interacts with the children, she reveals new concepts and realities that threaten their parents' hold over them.

* {{Sabotutor}}: The parents fill their children's heads with lies about the outside world to control them. Even their perspective of language is twisted to prevent them from understanding concepts that would clash with the parents' teachings.

* BlackComedy

''Dogtooth'' (2009) is a Greek arthouse drama directed by Creator/YorgosLanthimos that won the "Un Certain Regard" award at Cannes and was nominated for an UsefulNotes/AcademyAward for Best Foreign Language Film. A husband and wife keep their three adult-age children within the walls of their expansive country estate, warning them of the supposed dangers of the outside world. The parents explain that the children can leave only when their "dogtooth" (i.e. their canine) falls out. Having no other options, the kids spend their days engaging in strange games and learning about the world around them. Their only outside visitor is Christina, a security guard at the father's workplace, who is brought in for sexual services with the son. As she interacts with the children, she reveals new concepts and realities that spark their curiosity about the outside world.

* AmbiguousEnding: [[spoiler: After the eldest daughter knocks out her canine, she escapes and hides in the trunk of the car. The family goes out and tries to find her, but to no avail. The following morning, the father drives to work; the last shot is of the trunk of the car.]] Could also be considered as NoEnding.

* ManChild: Played for drama with the children. All are sexually mature, in their late teens to early twenties, yet they act like children since they haven't been exposed to enough of the world to grow up. They invent games to pass the long days at home, and wrestle like little kids over toys. This trope is used to demonstrate the paralyzing effects of isolation from the real world.

[[quoteright:250:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/dogtooth_8757.jpg]]

''Dogtooth'' (2009) is a Greek arthouse drama directed by Creator/YorgosLanthimos that won the "Un Certain Regard" award at Cannes and was nominated for an UsefulNotes/AcademyAward for Best Foreign Language Film. A husband and wife keep their three adult-age children within the walls of their expansive country estate, warning them of the supposed dangers of the outside world. The parents explain that the children can leave only when their "dogtooth" (i.e. their canine) falls out. Having no other options, the kids spend their days engaging in strange games and learning about the world around them. Their only outside visitor is Christina, a security guard at the father's workplace, who is brought in for sexual interaction with the son. As she interacts with the children, she reveals concepts and introduces outside realities that spark their curiosity and tantalize them to escape.

* SliceOfLife: For the most part, although the plot does ramp up near the end.

* KnightTemplarParent: Both of the parents, but especially the dad, who'll stop at nothing to protect his children from the dangers of the outside world.

* ImprovisedWeapon: VHS tapes, taped to a hand, as well as a whole movie player later on.

* AmbiguousTimePeriod: Christina and the family exclusively watch VHS cassettes. The films that Christina has are from the 1970s and 1980s. The family's hidden phone is a rotary. However, the father has a cell phone.

* NoNameGiven: The mother, father and the three children. This becomes a plot point later in the film.

* ShoutOut: After watching tapes Christine gives her, the elder daughter constantly quotes and reenacts scenes from ''Film/{{Rocky}}'' and ''Film/{{Jaws}}''.

* AbusiveParents

* AnimalMetaphor: When the father has the process of training a dog explained to him, it is exactly what he is doing to his children.

* PlatonicCave
* {{Sabotutor}}: The father manages to twist the children's vocabulary to his likings.
* ShoutOut: After watching tapes Christine gives her, the oldest is constantly quoting movies that the film's director said he loved.
* SmallSecludedWorld: The estate again.

* UtopiaJustifiesTheMeans

* WomenAreWiser: The daughters are notably more motivated and intelligent than the son - in particular, the eldest daughter [[spoiler: eventually finds a way to escape the estate.]]

* AmateurCast: Most of the actors haven't had much of an acting history, if at all. The director has stated that he prefers working with amateurs, as he finds their performances more pure.

* LeFilmArtistique:
** Tiny budget, only €250,000.
** In a foreign language
** Depressing
** Offensive
** Hard to understand

* SaboTutor: The father manages to twist the children's vocabulary to his likings.

''Dogtooth'' (2009) is a Greek arthouse drama directed by Yorgos Lanthimos that won the "Un Certain Regard" award at Cannes and was nominated for an UsefulNotes/AcademyAward for Best Foreign Language Film. A husband and wife keep their three adult-age children within the walls of their expansive country estate, warning them of the supposed dangers of the outside world. The parents explain that the children can leave only when their "dogtooth" (i.e. their canine) falls out. Having no other options, the kids spend their days engaging in strange games and learning about the world around them. Their only outside visitor is Christina, a security guard at the father's workplace, who is brought in for sexual interaction with the son. As she interacts with the children, she reveals concepts and introduces outside realities that spark their curiosity and tantalize them to escape.

* ImprovisedWeapon: VHS tapes, taped to a hand, as well as a whole movie player later on.
* KnightTemplarParent: Both of the parents, but especially the dad, who'll stop at nothing to protect his children from the dangers of the outside world.

''Dogtooth'' (2009) is a Greek arthouse drama that won the "Un Certain Regard" award at Cannes. A husband and wife keep their three adult-age children within the walls of their expansive country estate, warning them of the supposed dangers of the outside world. The parents explain that the children can leave only when their "dogtooth" (i.e. their canine) falls out. Having no other options, the kids spend their days engaging in strange games and learning about the world around them. Their only outside visitor is Christina, a security guard at the father's workplace, who is brought in for sexual interaction with the son. As she interacts with the children, she reveals concepts and introduces outside realities that spark their curiosity and tantalize them to escape.

'''''Dogtooth''''' (2009) is a Greek arthouse drama that won the "Un Certain Regard" award at Cannes. A husband and wife keep their three adult-age children within the walls of their expansive country estate, warning them of the supposed dangers of the outside world. The parents explain that the children can leave only when their "dogtooth" (i.e. their canine) falls out. Having no other options, the kids spend their days engaging in strange games and learning about the world around them. Their only outside visitor is Christina, a security guard at the father's workplace, who is brought in for sexual interaction with the son. As she interacts with the children, she reveals concepts and introduces outside realities that spark their curiosity and tantalize them to escape.

* Sabotutor: The father manages to twist the children's vocabulary to his likings.

''Dogtooth'' (2009) is a Greek arthouse drama that won the "Un Certain Regard" award at Cannes. A husband and wife keep their three adult-age children within the walls of their expansive country estate, warning them of the supposed dangers of the outside world. The parents explain that the children can leave only when their "dogtooth" (i.e. their canine) falls out. Having no other options, the kids spend their days engaging in strange games and learning about the world around them. Their only outside visitor is Christina, a security guard at the father's workplace, who is brought in for sexual interaction with the son. As she interacts with the children, she reveals concepts and introduces outside realities that spark their curiosity and tantalize them to escape.

This film provides examples of:

* NoNameGiven: The three children. This becomes a plot point later in the film.

* LeFilmArtistique:
** Tiny budget, only €250,000.
** In a foreign language
** Depressing
** Offensive
** Hard to understand