The Dirties

Plot synopsis:
The film opens with the main characters, Matt and Owen, making a movie about a gang of bullies and the revenge that two victimized students take on them. This project, “The Dirties”, contains references to a score of other movies such as Being John Malkovich, Pulp Fiction, and The Usual Suspects. Matt is shown being bullied.
Afterwards, Matt asks some members of the student body, as well as faculty about what someone should do if they are getting bullied. The students see that getting help is much more difficult than the faculty members perceive it to be. Matt and Owen are then shown editing clips together for their film, during the course of which it is revealed that a popular girl, Chrissy, had a crush on Owen in grade three. Matt and Owen shoot more scenes for their film project, and Matt has Owen attempt to look cool in front of Chrissy to see if she still likes him.
After finishing filming, the rough cut of the project is brought to the film teacher, Mr. Muldoon. The movie is revealed to contain Matt and Owen shooting and killing other students, as well as their teacher, in addition to containing a large amount of expletives. Muldoon demands the film be changed.
The edited version of the film is shown in class, and Matt leaves the room in humiliation, while Owen puts his head down while the rest of the class talks and laughs through the entire movie. On their walk home from school, Owen has a rock thrown at his head. As Owen is icing his head back at Matt’s, Matt suggests that the movie would have been better if the two had actually shot the Dirties within their movie with real guns.
Matt erases the script for The Dirties from his whiteboard, and proceeds to begin working on The Dirties II. Owen begins to practice the guitar more in attempts to win over Chrissy, and the boys are shown being bullied some more. Matt then acquires blueprints of his high school from the library for the school project he told them he was doing, which Matt points out was concerningly easy to do, and that his school ID was never even checked. Owen is then shown having a lunch dumped on him and being slapped across the face by another student.
The boys go out at night and create a bonfire, where they reflect on being bullied. Matt measures the lockers and takes photos, which Owen sees as suspicious. Matt says that it is entirely inconspicuous, and goes as far to tell Chrissy that they were planning a school shooting and gets Chrissy’s number for Owen. Owen calls Chrissy and says he is at a party, at Matt’s suggestion. The two go to a cottage and fire guns together with Matt's cousin, shooting targets consisting of milk jugs, melons, and a propane tank bomb. They bake a cake for Chrissy, and Matt gets upset with Owen for sharing it with the Dirties.
Matt is seen reading Columbine, and checks out six copies of Catcher in the Rye “to seem crazy.” Owen gets concerned that Matt’s basement has plans and pictures of people he plans to shoot in the movie. Owen tells Matt that he is “always acting” and that he is not always in a movie.
Matt self-diagnoses himself as a psychopath, which he glorifies as he reads Columbine. Owen, having had enough of Matt's attitude, berates him for "talking big" and not doing anything, leading to an argument between the two. Matt indignantly responds that Chrissy doesn't care about him and that she exists in Owen's life because of "his plans", but Owen takes a firm stand and asserts that Matt is jealous of Chrissy because he has no other friends. Owen then takes off his wireless mic and leaves, much to the dismay of Matt.
Matt has a conversation with his mother where he asks if she thinks he is crazy. His mom says that crazy technically means that someone loses their ability to tell their thoughts from reality and the real world. Matt goes, alone, to the place where he and Owen had the bonfire and burns all of his notebooks. Owen tries calling Matt, who ignores it. Matt goes to the school with a duffel bag full of his cousins firearms entering through a stairwell. He then sets up cameras, shoots Josh and Jackman, and chases Owen. Matt enters a dark classroom where Owen is cornered trying to open a locked door, Matt simply asks, “What are you doing? It’s me!”

Tags: comedy, cruelty, murder, violence, humor, revenge, sadist, prank

Review:
The Dirties premiered in Park City Utah this year, and it was clear from the beginning that it was one of the best films at either Sundance or Slamdance.This film is quite possibly the most real and engaging exploration of what it means to be bullied and what it can drive people to.
Part of the high rating (by my standards) is the fact that the flick's as self-made as self-made gets, being produced and acted by basically the same guys (which is something I often dig).The movie throws the viewer directly into its documentary-styled collage of at first glance seemingly random scenes featuring two best friends during their high school time.
While "Two best friends are filming a comedy about getting revenge on the bullies at their high school.
I was relieved that the ending's at least consequent, finishing the movie in a satisfying way nonetheless.I like the concept of the movie and mostly like the execution, and I like being able to say that it's a film worthy of watching with high schoolers, since it provides a lot of stuff to discuss about things that are important to know and realize for each and everyone out there..
Director Kevin Smith, who released The Dirties through his self-proclaimed "movie club," has called the film "the most important movie you will see all year" and he isn't wrong.
They are making a film project about a lawless gang called "the dirties," which is also the name they give to the school bullies who humiliatingly beat them up and harass them whenever they get the chance.
Matt makes it clear he doesn't want to go after everyone in the school; just those who caused him and his friend untold misery by mocking them when they were nothing but harmless and obeying.First-time director Johnson employs the popular film school tactic that will either captivate or alienate you upon its arrival and it's the shaky camera.
It was the first time he was bullied for being himself, and the pain and torment hasn't ceased since then.Constantly I was reminded of Gus Van Sant's Elephant, a highly-impressionistic film that based itself off of the tragedy at Columbine High School.
At only eighty-minutes, it had the power and impact on me I don't usually get from films two hours or longer.NOTE: The Dirties is now available on various video-on-demand outlets and will receive a DVD release later this year.Starring: Matt Johnson and Owen Williams.
The Dirties follows these kids who are making a short film about two kids going into their school and shooting all of the bullies.
Also to anyone who loves film and wants to get into the industry, you (including me) will find that these characters are extremely relatable which ends up being really scary and makes the movie memorable.The acting is just as if the kids were going through everyday life.
They were probably just playing themselves, so it was pretty interesting.The camera work is in the found footage style, but not in the way that it's annoying, it just feels like you are the camera man documenting them making their short film.The soundtrack has some good songs in it, mostly indie music.The Dirties is an experience.
There's obviously a lot to explore in regards to the people who do it, and this film has an interesting take on it.To start off, it's kind of a different film from other school shooting films like Zero Day or Elephant that have a serious and somber tone throughout.
Two high school best friends, Matt and Owen, decide to make a movie project for class where they pretend to murder the group of boys who routinely harass them.
It's one of the better indie films that I've seen and is certainly worth your time.Matt and Owen are two friends who are in High school together.
There's not as much gruesome violence as one might expect from a film that is essentially about a school shooting, but it is still terrifying, and works better without any blood and gore.While the movie is very dark and disturbing, don't expect the film to be completely void of any entertainment value.
So they decide to make a film about how they take revenge on the bullies - as they call them 'the dirties' - and use as many filmic references as possible.This all seems well and good, only one of them is slightly more serious than the other - cue the mayhem.Well this is a rather well made indie and you can tell a lot of heart and soul has gone into the production.
I felt compelled to watch it a second time because I was wondering what I'd missed that some reviewers obviously hadn't, and after watching it a second time, I realised I hadn't, in fact, missed anything, and the movie was at least as bad the second time around.I'm going to give it a solid 3/10, because there was some fairly decent acting in it but realistically, as a movie, it probably deserves a maximum of 2/10 but I'm feeling generous.I do love reading lengthy reviews from contributors who never reviewed anything before but felt it was their moral duty to write a glowing review for crap movie, although it does bring out the Sherlock in me and makes me wonder how legitimate some of these reviews are.Anyhow, I guess everyone is entitled to an opinion...
The film doesn't indulge in constructing overwhelming terrible world they live in, so other than the odd physical bullying by stock type characters, there is an authenticity to the school, home, and outside world they live in, as well as the films they draw from and inspired by.Also, there are people I knew and know that talk and act that way, albeit annoying to many, so the rendering and dialogue of these characters isn't too far off the mark, especially in terms of film nerds and today's eccentric outcasts and 'beautiful losers'.
Honestly, if it wasn't for sheer curiosity and Owen Williams...I would not have watched this movie to the end, as it is slow and boring in a lot of the parts and considering what the movie is supposed to be about....they don't seem to talk to each other or anyone for that matter about their actual feelings toward themselves being the target of bullies.
You wanna act like that in high school then you are just rolling the dice for crap to happen to you.Maybe the movie got better...
While the escalating bullying does pierce the atmosphere efficiently, feeling like its acting against filmmaking and passion for anything itself, the fact you know it's going to end badly makes it fascinating to watch and confronts the viewer about how they feel on the matter.
Which may work for some genres like documentary, but when your leading actors, directors, cameramen, and editors are the same people, and they are mostly playing themselves, it just screams "shoestring budget".The filmmakers were there after the showing to talk about it with the audience after the film and among some odd things that they said, they kept trying to pass off this aspect of shaky-cam, poor acting, and editing errors aspect as "found footage" or youtube viral video style.
So funny and refreshing, enjoyable to watch, the two main actors especially the lead were genuine and engaging and fun to be with ,The main won has such a great smile and penetrating eyes makes you want to smile along with him,His joy of life comes through and his manner are fun .You feel like you are hanging out with these two guys.I like the idea that they are wanting and living in the now.It is kind of a peace loving Buddha like movieI really like the simplicity and naturalness .Doesn't rely on special effects or the implausibility of most movies.The dialogue and writing were great and natural.
Shooting their own schlock movie, they may have just stumbled upon a genuinely new AND SICK idea, while simultaneously being filmed by a documentary crew..Rather than be mocked for their derivative short films and pushed around by jocks, why don't they take part in a high school shooting and film the whole process?​ of course, if they only shoot the bullies or 'bad guys', it shouldn't be a problem, should it?​ Do they mean this literally?I want to come back to my answer that this film works.
A great example of low budget indie filmmaking that succeeds without ever truly taking off, the Kevin Smith supported The Dirties is a sufficient comedy, a love letter to cinema's influence and also a sometimes scarily accurate portrayal on alienation and bullying that can sometimes turn deadly.Written and directed by Matt Johnson and starring Johnson and Owen Williams, The Dirties was clearly a labour of love for the two budding filmmakers and the rawness of their film that moonlights as a real documentary, does often make it feel legitimately like a true life doco even if there's little reason for the cameras to be around at certain stages in the narrative.Johnson and Williams share a great on screen chemistry together and it's obvious their real life affiliation as friends has carried over to The Dirties and their love for film shines through in many of the films scenes.
From classics through to modern contemporary pieces of entertainment spotting the many varied references that are spread throughout the film would be quite the job and it's interesting to contemplate the influence films have on certain people in certain situations and Johnson's character of Matt's increasingly unstable mind is a product of not only films but years of torment at the hands of school yard bullies.The dealings of The Dirties, with its titular group of nasties, is both its blessing and its curse.
There's an important message here of tolerance and acceptance but never once throughout this tale are you wondering where things are going to end up and for a film that has a particularly strong opening act the last stanza (and in particular last scene) of the film's final half hour or so feels a tad underwhelming and certain scenarios feel harder to take such as the "cool" kids sudden acceptance of William's awkward Owen or the fact no one cares to stop Matt from becoming increasingly unhinged.The Dirties is a small film with a big message and while emotionally it doesn't exactly hit a home run, the film turns a fairly generic plot line into something unique and wholly watchable and it will be a great joy as movie fans to see where Johnson and William's next project might take them.3 creepy cousins out of 5.
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.
I've seen a couple of school massacre movies, this one may be the best.I don't know if I prefer Elephant because its more artsy.But in terms of story/character development The Dirties is by far one of the greater movies on the subject.This is the only movie in the genre where I felt like the characters really had a personality, and I knew I would never forget them.Also this is the only movie on the subject that I feels has the strongest message.
That's how this film made me feel.But that's a good thing.It means that this movie is incredibly well written and directed.
The subject of school shootings continues to be a hot button topic in America, and it's with no small bit of irony that a young Canadian filmmaker challenges us to re-examine our preconceived notions about these events in The Dirties, the latest release from Phase 4 Films and The Kevin Smith Movie Club.
Written and directed by Matt Johnson (who also stars), the film follows a pair of high school students working on a project for their film class, a Tarantino-esque revenge tale that sees them portraying a pair of renegade detectives hell-bent on taking out a group of bullies they've dubbed "The Dirties."It quickly becomes evident that Matt and Owen (Owen Williams) are using this assignment as an outlet for their own frustration, an opportunity to live out a fantasy which casts them as the heroes, standing up for the little guys.
How would people react to a film about two kids that have finally decided to stand up for themselves, a pair of teenage vigilantes trying to make the hallways a safer place by taking out every arrogant jock that ever stuffed another kid into a locker or threw a classmate's clothes into the shower during gym class?As Matt's excitement and enthusiasm grows, Owen becomes increasingly suspicious that his pal might be planning to inject his next feature with a startling dose of realism, especially when he takes a trip to the shooting range with his older cousin and spends an afternoon poring over blueprints for the high school, charting where to find each of "The Dirties" at any given hour.
But the boys have known each other forever, and despite a lifetime of being on the wrong end of a bully's fists, Owen knows that Matt wouldn't really hurt anyone right?Perpetrators of school violence are always cast as ruthless, cold- blooded killers, but with The Dirties, Johnson forces us to look at the other side of the coin, creating relatable, sympathetic characters that are easily recognizable.
Before I get into spoilers, I just want to say please watch this film and also go in without knowing anything about this movie.
As the title of this review states, this film offers viewers a 'real' insight into the mind of a boy mentally pushed to a place the majority of us will thankfully never reach.The initial 5 minutes introduces us to the protagonist, Matthew, who is creating a satirical 'High School Shooting' documentary with his best friend Owen, for a school project.
Matthew Johnson's finest emotive work is realised in the final scene, which is magnificent, yet genuinely disturbing.Owen Williams is a great Co-Star who has fairly limited dialogue, yet manages to play a huge role in the film, flawlessly.
--The Dirties is a good film with some examples of great acting, however, the final 5 minutes could have been drawn out over 10-15 minutes, built upon the suspense that started when Matthew enters the school doors on the final day.
As mentioned above, I feel the final scene came too soon and I was slightly disappointed when the credits appeared.All in all, The Dirties is a very good film, albeit a rushed ending, which can, and will pick up more awards, deservedly so.I look forward to the next Directorial offering from Matthew Johnson and expect to see Owen Williams feature in studio films within the next 3 years.The Dirties - 8/10.
Being too afraid to speak up to someone because you feel like everyone already knows what they're like, just not doing anything about it.The two main characters Matt and Owen are perfect for the role, such an incredible emotion from both characters which makes you feel like you are really a part of it, which is actually something I think they purposely involved in the film.
The fact you never see who's behind the camera, its almost like you're the person with the camera watching the whole time.The ending was the only thing that makes this film 9 stars out of 10 for me, and that's because it doesn't give the viewers closure, and I think in a film like this, closure is needed to show the point of the actual film..
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.
Eventually Owen begins to choose the girl over Matt which leads to the stand off at the end of the movie.Overall the movie has it's draw backs but it's genuine in it's attempt to reveal a new side to the school shooting pandemic.
The Dirties writer, director, and lead actor Matt Johnson, takes on the subject of bullying, adds his love of film, and creates one of the most shocking and unsettling films of the year.
Matt and Owen create a video of compilations of scenes from their favorite movies, to show to their film class.
The movie shows a clear insight and the thought processes of a school shoot, the action is phenomenal, I do like a few Kevin Smith movies, however this is one of my favourites, the very strange inception within the film is a wonderful feature, because it gives a feeling of being close with the characters and following their ideas.
The Dirties is gripping, frightening, and devastating, and I would say that if you've been avoiding it like me, it's time to check it out.One of the things that really makes this movie work is the performances.
Their time in high school is complicated, and feels a lot like my own experiences with bullying, friends, and just trying to get through.The mockumentary format is very effective, though there are sections that don't make a ton of sense in terms of where/why a camera man is present.
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".
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.