Hounddog
Empire Film Group | Release Date: September 19, 2008 CRITIC SCORE DISTRIBUTION
31
METASCORE
Generally unfavorable reviews based on 18 Critic Reviews
Positive:
2
Mixed:
6
Negative:
10
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Critic Reviews

Critic scorePublicationBy date
70
New York Magazine (Vulture)David Edelstein
Fanning is a child actor with a grown-up soul, and every move, every breath, seems mysteriously right. Read full review
70
The Hollywood ReporterJames Greenberg
In spite of a few missteps, the cumulative impact of the film is undeniable. Read full review
50
Village VoiceMichelle Orange
In the wake of the inadvertent betrayal that leads to her now-notorious rape (a sequence that, ironically, seems to have lost the horrific impact it needs), the film turns listless. Read full review
50
Chicago TribuneMichael Phillips
The film is responsible, earnest, well-intentioned and, as it was in Sundance, maddeningly inconsistent. Read full review
50
The A.V. ClubNathan Rabin
Pretty but overwrought, Hounddog doesn't deserve its infamy, nor does it merit being seen or remembered. Read full review
50
Chicago Sun-TimesRoger Ebert
Assembled from the debris of countless worn-out images of the Deep South and is indeed beautifully photographed. But the writer-director, Deborah Kampmeier, has become inflamed by the imagery and trusts it as the material for a story, which seems grotesque and lurid. Read full review
50
TV Guide MagazineKen Fox
A handsomely produced but unintentionally risible film that mistakes high grotesquerie for high gothic. Read full review
40
The New York TimesJeannette Catsoulis
Hounddog is never more than a sluggish dawdle from shack to swimmin' hole and back again. Read full review
38
ReelViewsJames Berardinelli
A failure on pretty much every level, Hounddog would never have been known beyond Park City had it not been for the notoriety surrounding the rape scene. Read full review
38
PremiereJenni Miller
It was received at Sundance 2007 with a resounding thud. Not because of this controversial rape scene, but because, well, it just wasn't good. Unfortunately, even with over a year of rejiggering, it's still not good. Read full review
30
Film ThreatJamie Tipps
Overall, director Deborah Kempmeir mistakes ominous and depressing for deep and meaningful, a misfire that undermines the effect it tries to achieve. Read full review
30
VarietyTodd McCarthy
An indigestible gumbo of Southern Gothic ingredients seasoned with snake oil, biblical hash and thoroughly unpalatable spice. Read full review
30
Chicago ReaderJoshua Katzman
A bewildering slice of southern gothic hokum, it suffers from a weak script. Read full review
25
New York PostLou Lumenick
Fanning gives a sensitive and fairly impressive performance. But like her over-the-top movie family, Hounddog is still trailer trash of the worst kind. Read full review
20
New York Daily NewsElizabeth Weitzman
Rarely has there been a movie as misguided as Hounddog, which self-righteously indulges in exploitation while loudly decrying it. Read full review
12
Rolling StonePeter Travers
What I can't figure is why anyone would want to release this tripe in theaters just when Fanning has nearly lived it down. They ain't no friends of mine, or any other moviegoer. Read full review
10
Los Angeles TimesMark Olsen
The problems that plague the movie land squarely with the writer, director and producer, Deborah Kampmeier, who has crafted a howler of a bad script, shows little affinity for working with actors and displays no visual sense behind the camera. Read full review
0
Entertainment WeeklyLisa Schwarzbaum
Fanning is remarkably collected and even dignified. As for the rest of the gang, they ought to be returned to sender. Read full review
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