Chills & Thrills: Teeth (2007)

Movie Name/Year: Teeth (2007)

Tagline: Every rose has its thorns.

Genre: Comedy, Fantasy, Horror

Length: 93 minutes

Rating: R

Production Companies: Pierpoline Films, Teeth

Producer: Richard E. Chapla Jr., Mitchell Lichtenstein, Richard Lormand, Joyce Pierpoline

Director: Mitchell Lichtenstein

Writer: Mitchell Lichtenstein

Actors: Jess Weixler, John Hensley, Josh Pais, Hale Appleman, Lenny von Dohlen, Vivienne Benesch, Ashley Springer, Laila Liliana Garro, Nicole Swahn, Adam Wagner, Hunter Ulvog, Ava Ryen Plumb, Trent Moore, Mike Yager

Blurb from Netflix: When a virtuous high school student is sexually assaulted, she discovers that she has an unexpected line of defense: a toothed vagina.

Selina’s Point of View:

This movie is NOT for everyone. You need to have a very dark sense of humor and you need to be nearly impossible to offend.

The jokes this film makes are about incredibly dark and triggering subjects. There’s a reason it could never possibly be anything more than a cult film.

I won’t lie, this film is a total guilty pleasure for me.

Teeth is ridiculous, offensive, dumb, and completely in bad taste… and I still enjoy watching it. This wasn’t even my first watch-through. I’ve seen it about eight times in total – approximately.

As much as this film jokes about dark topics, it also sheds light on them while giving a taste of revenge to the story. The main character deals with a lot of things that real life women go through, the only difference is that she has a natural defense against it. That means we get to see real life jackass-architypes get exactly what they have coming to them when, in reality, there isn’t usually punishment for some of them.

It’s a harsh reality that the state of politics lately has very clearly shined a light on.

As someone who has been a victim of sex crimes, I get the fantasy in this movie enough that it keeps the more offensive aspects from affecting me. But that’s a very personal take on it. It’s not going to be the way everyone reacts.

Definitely only watch Teeth if you’re in it for the cult horror of it all. If you have triggers that revolve around rape or sexual assault – keep in mind that the scenes can get VERY graphic. The revenge fantasy helps me deal in general, but you’re the only who can decide if it would help you. 

Trust yourself, and skip it if you don’t think you can handle it. There are plenty of other awesome horror films out there that don’t go the same route.

If you have been assaulted and are in need of help, call 1-800-656-4673. That is the number for the RAINN -  the National Sexual Assault Hotline. By calling RAINN you will be given an anonymous ear to talk to, referrals to long term support, medical and legal information. The service is confidential and the staff members are highly trained.

Cat’s Point of View:

So one of the first things that comes to mind after watching this movie is… why?

For the love of Bob, why.

My initial kneejerk reaction aside, I do have to say that this is a very effective and successful horror movie. This wasn’t my first watch-through, and yet I am no less horrified for the repeat experience. (Truth be told, I’d forgotten a few of the bits here and there – quite likely on purpose.)

The theme is solid, and it’s well executed. This also isn’t the sort of horror movie you see every day, even though it has quite a lot of the elements of your standards present.

If you’re not a fan of body horror, this probably isn’t the movie for you. There are some rather graphic aspects to this film. There’s also a few points where things are just so wrong that it hits a comedic note. IMDb does show comedy as one of the genres for the film, but overall it seems like the story is taking itself seriously – unlike Tucker and Dale vs. Evil (2010) which is a clear-cut comedic horror thrill ride from start to finish.

There are some nuances that I didn’t notice on my first watch-through of the movie that I started picking up on with this second viewing. The details were interesting, but weren’t of any mind-blowing significance.

I’m generally all for movies that celebrate girl-power…but eesh.

The crazy thing is, I can’t say that I DON’T like the movie; and yet I am not entirely sure that I do. This is one of those I’d recommend just to see what someone else thought about it, as they experience The-Things-That-Cannot-Be-Unseen. 

Languages

Speech Available: English

Subtitles Available: English

Rotten Tomatoes Critic Score – 80%

Rotten Tomatoes Audience Score – 45%

Metascore - 57/100

Metacritic User Score – 5.7/10

IMDB Score – 5.4/10

Trust the Dice: Selina’s Rating – 4/5

Trust the Dice: Cat’s Rating – 2.5/5

Movie Trailer: