Afraid of the Dark

Movies: Dark Horse

There are movies out there that are difficult and challenging. Films like Schindler's List, Hotel Rwanda Midnight Express, and Brokeback Mountain are sad, and show us a side of the human condition that we might not like or want to see. But they have nobility in their sadness. They're like vegetables: they don't always taste great, but we know they are good for us.

And then there are movies that are downright hostile. They are misanthropic and their central thesis is usually something to the effect of: "people are shit." In fact, the characters might express this very sentiment out loud.

The films of Todd Solondz fall into this category--hostile, ugly cinema. I've seen five Solondz films now, and I know that when he is at his best (as he is with Happiness and Welcome to the Dollhouse), his films are darkly humorous and outrageous, like less campy John Waters movies. His films make you hate characters you should sympathize with (the hapless Dawn Weiner in Dollhouse) and sympathize with characters you should be disgusted by (Dylan Baker's sensitive portrayal of a pedophile suburban dad in Happiness is haunting).

But when Solondz is at his worst, as I feel he is with his latest film, Dark Horse, his films are downright boring. Like Abe, the boorish main character, Dark Horse is grating, rude, and annoying. But it's also bizarre, with numerous dream sequences and fantasies that made it difficult to tell what was real and what was in Abe's twisted, childish mind. Also, and this might sound sick, but I didn't find Dark Horse dark enough. Whereas Happiness and Welcome to the Dollhouse seem to come from a dank, dark pit in the recesses of the human psyche--a place where shame, fear, and taboo hide away--Dark Horse comes more from a smelly, fluorescent-lit dentist's waiting room in small town middle America. Horrible pop music plays in the background. The decor is tacky. The people there look like they really don't want to be there. But it's not like, awful. It's just bad.


Dark Horse concerns a childish, thirty-something man, Abe, who lives with his parents, works (or rather, avoids working) for his dad (Christopher Walken, very understated here), collects toys, and believes that all the good things in life were handed on a platter to his smarter, more attractive younger brother. Abe's most irritating characteristic is that he blames everyone else for his lack of success, while he is clearly a lazy oaf.

Abe meets a woman, Miranda (Selma Blair), at a wedding and proposes to her a week after meeting her. Miranda is severely depressed and seems to cling to the idea of marriage and babies--with someone, anyone--as the answer to her problems. She reluctantly, kinda sorta goes along with Abe's plans. But, as happens in all Solondz films, things eventually go to shit and lead to a very strange yet also very underwhelming ending.

Dark Horse has some good qualities in spite of its overall unimpressiveness. All the actors excel in their roles. Selma Blair is especially good as a woman who is so depressed, she looks like she hasn't slept in weeks. Jordan Gelber is game to play the entitled, insufferable Abe, and does a wonderful job expressing the rage and disappointment coursing beneath Abe's sweaty surface.

There are also some pretty funny moments, such as when Abe tries to return an opened toy to Toys R' Us, only to be rebuffed by the faux-polite employee working there.

In the end, Dark Horse isn't a total loss. It's just not that great. I can only recommend it to fans of Todd Solondz and filmgoers who like very dark, uncomfortable comedies.

2.5 out of 5 stars