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My face throughout most of “Teeth.”
If you happen to be the proud owner of a male reproductive organ, you may want to think twice before seeing Teeth. Or for that matter, even reading this review.
Not possessing one of the above-mentioned organs, I was able to fully enjoy this campy black-comedy-bordering-on-horror flick. My male friends have told me, however, that even discussing the subject matter gives them a raging case of the willies (pun intended). Maybe that’s a testament to how powerful the myth of “vagina dentata” was for the cultures that invented it–even a modern, enlightened man can’t stand the thought.
Teeth, astonishingly enough, was written and directed by a man, yet relishes its subject matter with a distinctly feminist glee. Dawn, the cherubic leading lady, is cursed (blessed?) with a special power (the aforementioned teeth in the hoo-ha). She copes with her… uniqueness… by shunning sexuality altogether, becoming the poster girl for her local abstinence group. The movie deals with Dawn’s rapid, hormonal swing from one extreme to the other, from holy roller to man eater (in the most literal sense of the word).
Dawn lives in a world of unusually violent, twisted men who, the movie posits, richly deserve the punishment she inflicts. The film has a wicked sense of justice, leaving shell-shocked viewers no time to pity the victims of Dawn’s unforgiving nether regions. Jess Wexler gives a delightfully subtle performance as a young woman discovering her sexuality and the power that goes with it–for better or for worse.
A winning balance between horror and comedy is difficult to strike–see Slither for an introduction, and Shaun of the Dead for a master class. Teeth struggles to find the right tone; rather than establish a mood with staying power, it fluctuates between arty drama, campy comedy and sheer gross-out horror. Each of these is engrossing in its own right, but the movie’s failure to consistently mesh them makes it feel jarring and stilted.
But the sheer audacity of the film’s premise, and its unflinching execution, are reasons enough to give it a chance. Seeing it is practically a badge of honor. If you’re a woman, the “girl power” factor will give you some serious feminist street cred. If you’re a man… you might just deserve a medal.
Teeth stars Jess Wexler, John Hensley, Josh Pais and Hale Appleman. Click here for movie times in Austin, TX.
