The Dentist (1996)

Strong and Moving!

One of my all time favorites.

When a movie has you begging for it to end not even half way through it's pure crap. We've all seen this movie and this characters millions of times, nothing new in it. Don't waste your time.

All of these films share one commonality, that being a kind of emotional center that humanizes a cast of monsters.

I was just surfing the web and found this movie and I soon rented it on my pad for the weekend. I finished it today, and I thought "Oh, my God!" In a GOOD way! What I MAINLY liked about this movie is the actual storyline. I prefer a Mystery/Horror movie to a Horror/Horror movie.It actually DID convince me to be scared of my dentist, but I laughed at myself after that. I did have a book with my while I watched it so that I could cover up any shots that were TOO gore. By gore, I mean close-ups of bloody mouths, such as when Dr. Feinstone stabs Jodi in the gum and blood sprays everywhere, and we see Brooke with her tongue cut out. AND when he 'tortures' Mr. Goldblum. And in one scene, Dr. Feinstone strangles Jessica to death and gave Karan a needle, and the air bubble travels to her brain and kills her. I had to cover the screen for THAT, too. There's also a lot of swearing in this movie, "Whore" is used loads, so is "Shit" and "Fucking". Well, Sarah reminds me of myself, the fact that she had her braces off. I got MINE off a month ago and NOW a have a plate.Overall, FOR CHILDREN? Almost CERTAINLY not. The VERY STRONG gore and violent scenes are VERY LIKELY to scare children and possibly some teenagers.

If you ever plan on visiting the dentist again, I recommend not watching this movie.Corbin Bernsen provides an engaging, enjoyable portrayal of Dr. Allen Feinstone. If you're into poorly done horror comedies in the likes of Dusk until Dawn 2, this film could be for you.As a dentist myself, I work with patients daily to allay their dental fears. A few of my extremely fearful patients took years to become relatively comfortable at my practice. Only through compassionate dental care was I able to slowly ease these patients into healthy dental practices.If any of dental fear patients saw this film, it would set back their progress by years.

Dr. Allan Feinstone witnesses his beautiful wife having an affair with the pool cleaner, thus sending his mind out of control. Plotting revenge on the offending couple is merely the start of a gruesome regime of dental terror.So it looks cheap and Corbin Bernsen in the lead role of Feinstone is hardly a top performer, but as horror pictures go, The Dentist certainly hits a nerve {ahem!}. Director Brian Yuzna is perfect for this type of piece, nicely fusing Feinstone's off kilter visions with genuine scenes of horror, and there is no denying that the horror witnessed in the chair here is seriously messed up!. Outside of that the film really doesn't add up to much, it actually feels more like an 80s film than one from the mid 1990s, such is the cheese feel of the surroundings. Yet The Dentist is something of a must see for horror aficionados, whilst simultaneously acting as a further reason for those who fear the dentist chair to steer well clear of dental problems!.Bloody and at times squirm inducing, The Dentist is an above average genre piece that is just about recommended to those of a similar mind. 5.6/10

Corbin Bernsen gives a terrifically intense and riveting performance as Dr. Alan Feinstone, a wealthy and successful Beverly Hills dentist who's obsessed with perfection. When he discovers that his lovely blonde babe trophy wife has been cheating on him and the IRS start hounding him about tax problems, Feinstone cracks under the pressure and goes violently around the bend. Director Brian Yuzna, working from a suitably dark, witty and demented script by Stuart Gordon, Dennis Paoli, and Charles Finch, exposes the seething neurosis and psychosis bubbling underneath the squeaky clean well-manicured surface of respectable affluent rich America with deliciously malicious glee. Moreover, Yuzna further spices up the grisly goings on with a wickedly twisted sense of pitch black gallows humor. Bernsen positively shines as Dr. Feinstone; he expertly projects a truly unnerving underlying creepiness that's right beneath Feinstone's deceptively calm and assured veneer. The supporting cast are likewise excellent: Linda Hoffman as Feinstone's bitchy, unfaithful wife Brooke, Earl Boen as smarmy, meddlesome IRS agent Marvin Goldblum, Molly Hagan as feisty assistant Jessica, Patty Toy as perky assistant Karen, Jan Hoag as jolly office manager Candy, Virginya Keehne as sweet, gawky teenager Sarah, Ken Foree as thorough, no-nonsense Detective Gibbs, Tony Noakes as Gibbs' equally shrewd partner Detective Sunshine, Michael Stadvec as womanizing stud muffin pool cleaner Matt, and Mark Ruffalo as on the make sleazeball Steve Landers. The first-rate make-up f/x are every bit as gory, gross and upsetting as they ought to be. The polished cinematography by Levie Isaaks boasts lots of great crazy tilted camera angles and a few tasty zoom-in close-ups. Alan Howarth's spirited shuddery score also hits the flesh-crawling spot. An enjoyably warped treat.