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Dogman
Dogman
	Theatrical release poster
Directed by	Luc Besson
Screenplay by	Luc Besson
Produced by	Virginie Besson-Silla
Starring	Caleb Landry Jones; Jojo T. Gibbs; Christopher Denham; Grace Palma;
Cinematography	Colin Wandersman
Edited by	Julien Rey
Music by	Éric Serra
Production; companies	Luc Besson Production; EuropaCorp; TF1 Films Production;
Distributed by	Apollo Films Distribution; EuropaCorp Distribution;
Release dates	31 August 2023 (Venice); 27 September 2023 (France);
Running time	114 minutes
Country	France
Language	English
Box office	$4.2 million

Dogman (or DogMan) is a 2023 English-language French action thriller film written and directed by Luc Besson and starring Caleb Landry Jones, Jojo T. Gibbs, Christopher Denham, John Charles Aguilar and Grace Palma. Set in New Jersey, it depicts a man who was abused by his father and loves dogs.^[3]

Dogman was selected to compete for the Golden Lion at the 80th Venice International Film Festival, where it premiered on 31 August 2023. It was released in France on 27 September 2023. The film received generally mixed reviews from critics.

Plot

Doug is arrested in New Jersey while driving a truck full of dogs.

Evelyn, a psychiatrist, is sent to the police station to interrogate him. Through flashbacks he tells the story of his life. First, as a child victim of his father's violence to the point of having lost the use of his legs; his brief time in a juvenile institution where he falls in love with his theatre teacher, Salma, who introduces Shakespeare to him (he later states that he knows all the playwright's plays by heart); then as the master of numerous dogs helping him steal jewellery and precious objects as well as protect people in need. Doug also reveals he has performed weekly as drag queen in a cabaret act.

Cast

Caleb Landry Jones as Douglas "Doug" Munrow
- Lincoln Powell as teenage Douglas
Jojo T. Gibbs as Evelyn^[4]
Christopher Denham as Ackerman
Clemens Schick as Mike Munrow
John Charles Aguilar^[4] as El Verdugo
Grace Palma as Salma Bailey
Iris Bry [fr] as Douglas' mother
Marisa Berenson^[5] as the aristocrat woman
Emeric Bernard-Jones as Cher
Alexander Settineri as Richie Munrow
Michael Garza as Juan
Tom Leeb as Bradley
Kyran Thrax as Drag Madonna

Production

Dogman was filmed in a virtual production facility in Essonne, France, from February to July 2022,^[6] and on location in Newark, New Jersey, in June 2022.^[7]

Release

Dogman was selected to compete for the Golden Lion at the 80th Venice International Film Festival,^[8]^[9] where it had its world premiere on 31 August 2023.^[10] It was released in French cinemas on 27 September 2023 by Apollo Films Distribution and EuropaCorp Distribution.^[11] Originally scheduled for 19 April 2023, the release was pushed back in hopes to secure a premiere at an autumn film festival after positive reception from buyers at the European Film Market in February 2023.^[12] It was also invited at the 28th Busan International Film Festival in the Open Cinema section and was screened on 6 October 2023.^[13]^[14] The film was released in select theaters in the United States on 15 March 2024 by Briarcliff Entertainment, before expanding to a wide release on 22 March.^[15]

Reception

Critical response

On the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, the film holds an approval rating of 59% based on 71 reviews, with an average rating of 5.5/10. The website's critics consensus reads, "While Besson, Landry Jones, and a pack of mutts lend DogMan their roaring souls, this entry offers ample creative risks and kibbled returns."^[16] Metacritic, which uses a weighted average, assigned the film a score of 45 out of 100 from 23 critics, indicating "mixed or average" reviews.^[17]

Catherine Bray, in her review for The Guardian, called Dogman "the most ludicrous film you'll see all year, maybe ever".^[18] Peter Bradshaw of The Guardian awarded the movie three stars out of five, describing it as odd, but well-executed and amusing.^[19] French film critics of Radio France criticized the accumulation of clichés and the lack of cohesion of the plot.^[20] Jean-Luc Wachthausen of Le Point, however, found the film "disturbing and keeping its promises".^[21]

Awards and nominations

Awards and nominations for *Dogman*
Award	Date of ceremony	Category	Recipient(s)	Result	Ref.
Venice Film Festival	9 September 2023	Golden Lion	Luc Besson	Nominated	^[22]
		Queer Lion		Nominated	^[23]
		Fanheart3 Award – Graffetta d'Oro for Best Film		Won	^[24]