Surrender Dorothy | |
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Directed by | Kevin DiNovis |
Produced by | Richard Goldberg |
Written by | Kevin DiNovis |
Starring |
Peter Pryor Kevin DiNovis Jason Centeno Elizabeth Casey Marcos Muniz Keri Merboth |
Music by | Christopher Matarazzo |
Cinematography | Jonathan Kovel |
Edited by | Kevin DiNovis |
Distributed by | TLA Releasing |
Release date
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Running time
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87 minutes |
Country | United States |
Surrender Dorothy is an independent film by director Kevin DiNovis which won first place at the 1998 Slamdance Film Festival. The film stars Peter Pryor, Kevin DiNovis, and is the first film role for Elizabeth Banks, who appears in the credits as "Elizabeth Casey."
After the heroin addicted Lahn robs his roommate Denis, Lahn attempts to hide out at the home of Trevor, Denis's best friend. Trevor, who is afraid of women, takes him in, only to later use Lahn's drug addiction to manipulate him, eventually transforming Lahn into Trevor's idea of a perfect girlfriend.
Critical reception for Surrender Dorothy has been mixed. The Stranger criticized the film, saying that although it "makes the most of its tiny budget" the film was ultimately "inarticulate and immature". The Philadelphia City Paper wrote that Surrender Dorothy was "not without its flaws" but was ultimately "a bold, ballsy and attention-getting debut". Total Film panned the movie, giving the DVD release two stars and calling it a "yawn fest". James Berardinelli gave the film three and a half stars, praising DiNovis's performance. The AV Club called the movie "memorable, but ... also grubby, harsh, and lacking in wit". Variety wrote that Surrender Dorothy was "disturbing, hard-edged tale of physical abuse and sexual aberration that pulls no punches" but that it was ultimately "decidedly for niche tastes". Roger Ebert selected the film for his first Overlooked Film Festival in 1999.