Too much of everything

One of my all time favorites.

Fresh and Exciting

It's an amazing and heartbreaking story.

Shot in a documentary-like (some would say, found footage) style, and aided by the natural performances and dialogue of the characters, everything in this production seems eerily authentic. At first glance, The Dirties simply appears to be a cautionary tale on the bullying problem that plagues students in most schools, but it is much more than that. It also stands as a prime example of all that can still be accomplished in independent cinema today. Filmed on a budget of approximately $10,000, first time filmmaker Matt Johnson and his team simultaneously manage to create a work of art flourishing with film-making energy, while displaying an honest, realistic and chilling portrayal of those who are victimized as a result of bullying. Though it's nowhere near as graphic as the plot would lead one to believe, it's bound to bring up some controversy as it challenges one's moral values and blurs the line between what is right and wrong when seeking repentance.

"piece of crap" is a compliment for this endeavor. Documentary style film making seems to be in vogue and this might have worked if the director or producer had actually employed kids who were 17 or 18, not 25 and 26. Their mannerisms reflect their age and that completely takes the film far from watchable. 2 out of 10 only that I was able to view as long as possible. Do not waste your time on this trash. It is awful. poorly directed, poorly photographed, acting? no Oscars here. I would've preferred watching a Justin Bieber video...over this. Time wasted when life is so short should be a criminal offense. Have I posted the expected 10 lines yet? Let's see....

If I were to sum it up in a single sentence, watching THE DIRTIES made me feel dirty. THE DIRTIES is about two teenagers, Matt and Owen, who are making a comedy film about getting revenge on their school bullies which Matt labels "The Dirties". However, as Matt continuously raves about his plans for the shooting - both referring to the film and to the school shooting he's been excitedly telling Owen about, it soon becomes clear that everything is becoming all too real.From writing, directing, and acting in his own movie, Matt Johnson shines as the troubled teenager Matt, His angst against the bullies in his school and the psychotic measures he comes up with while remaining arguably sane translates perfectly to film, and the effect is simply jarring. Add to that his best friend Owen, played by Owen Williams, who slowly descends from being very supportive of his friends ideas to totally taking a 180-degree turn when he realizes the gravity of the situation, and the result is a disturbing masterpiece into the mind of a disturbed individual who gets pushed too far and goes even further.The camera-work for the movie is astounding. Not a moment in the film felt fake, even though at times I was questioning myself and asking "this is supposed to be a found-footage movie, so who is documenting everything?" The answer to that would come much later in the film. When the realization of the camera's purpose in the movie hits you, it hits you hard. The strength of the effect only adds to what could only be described as a dreadful finale to this tragic story. There's simply no looking away as Matt finally pulls out the guns and lets all hell break loose.THE DIRTIES starts out like an innocent comedy romp and ends up being a modern classic, a thoughtful exploration of the troubled human psyche that also serves as a scathing commentary on the issues of bullying and school violence, and the things that regular people would normally consider as harmless entertainment.

I desperately wanted to like this movie. I saw the preview a week ago and just last night saw it was added to Netflix, I couldn't click on it fast enough. Here was a movie that was going to examine high school bullying through the eyes of those being bullied, here was a movie that was going to show high schoolers not self-reporting when a student tells them they are going to commit a violent act, here's a movie that is going to explain how teachers are completely unaware of what their students are up to right before they commit the heinous act of a school shooting. But no, in no way is that the movie that was made.**SPOILERS** The movie opens with the mains, and apparent co-writers Matt and Owen, presenting their high school movie to the drama teacher. The movie clearly shows the students committing violent acts against fellow students, a gang they've nicknamed "The Dirties" (clever movie name amright?), as well as misrepresenting agreed upon clips of the teacher himself. Instead of reporting the students to any sort of higher authority, the teacher simply tells them to remove the language and make the movie "PG". What follows is a sad excuse at character study, showing the apparently insanely shallow friendship between two supposed best friends who actually know nothing about the character of the other person. Owen is an outcast who wants to be accepted, Matt is an outcast who wants revenge; Owen listens to Matt's psycho ideas and sees the degree that he has taken them to (pulling blueprints from local government, taking photos of the future victims), and fails to report him even after he backs out of the plan. This all purportedly happening so far after Columbine that Matt is actually reading the book on the shooting and antagonizing his friend and then his mother into offering their analysis of his mental state.In the end, we see an ill conceived school attack in which two teachers catch the eventual shooter setting up his cameras, they back off without question despite living in an era of increased school violence, then the movie ends with a ridiculous confrontation that offers no conclusion. This movie very much reminds me of an eighth grade writing assignment I had to complete regarding suspense, and this ending may have been even worse than mine, which involved an American soldier confronting a reincarnated Hitler with the possibility of ending WWIII. Yes, World War THREE. I'd still rather see that ending than the one I saw in this movie.For those reviewers that support the shaky camera as though the viewer is in on the act, during the movie the cameraman is referenced twice, when he is offered popcorn and when he is mentioned by name. That is to say, there were two other people who had definitive knowledge of the heinous act that the character (maybe the writer/actor/director's true desire but was too afraid?) intended to carry out but did not report it. This is not a movie that should be celebrated or shown to high school teens as a movie against bullying, this movie did not examine the impact of the violent acts on their own families, the families of the victims, and most of all, on the victims themselves. Anything less concerning school shootings is simply using that as a gimmick for a horror movie, where once again, this movie falls sorely short. I hope that the writer of this movie is able to get over the bullying that happened to him, believe me when I say I know it sucks, I could especially relate to the scene where the student was antagonizing the main characters from behind during a class, but there is no need to celebrate violence in schools during a time when instances of school violence are increasing at an alarming pace. The people who are celebrating this movie appear to be so wrapped up in the movie world that they fail to realize how this movie could affect younger, bullied viewers, which is dangerous and irresponsible.I hope that the Matt and Owen can go on to have great success in the movie industry, I just hope that they have a better grasp on what they're portraying as they move forward.