Pups is a movie with both good sides and bad sides. To start with the good news: Great acting by all three major roles. Burt Reynolds does his best. Cameron van Hoy is even better. But Mischa Barton is the best of all and shows that she is very talented. Also very good: The dramatic development during the hostage. Ash seems also a very talented director. But the film is also a failure. The Burt Reynolds part is very unrealistic and badly written. But the worst part of Pups is the extremely simple moral views. The writer/director is telling us "look what happens if parents are away all the time and the media is showing violent movies". This simplistic view is a missed chance. Pups could have been much better.
53 Reviews
Unique
w_akeup14 April 2006
This film was worth seeing. It tackled the issue of gun violence among youths head-on and was very witty and thoroughly entertaining. Cameron Van Hoy, as Stevie, puts forth a tremendous performance and has amazing presence in front of a camera, bringing to our attention the very real anger and emotion of this young, fragile looking boy. Rocky, a young Mischa Barton, is very full of wit and is very corrupt in her innocence as well, and their dialog is clever and amusing. Their relationship projects the idea that they have grown up too fast, which makes sense in today's world. The emotional connection that each of the hostages (who's individual characters are also developed very well in this movie) make with each other and with Stevie and Rocky is heartwarming, and the way this movie comes together is brilliant and shocking. Considering that it was so low-budget, i think everyone involved did a fantastic job. It even has Burt Reynolds. My rating: 7/10
Very Underrated
Lok09893 June 2003
I thought of Pups as a good movie. So what if it has bad acting. So what if they blur out F*** in every sentence. I liked it! I know most people hate it, and I know why and I respect your Opinions, but some people need to be a little open minded sometimes. Misha Barton is a great actress...but she was so bad in this film. And believe it or not....Burt Renolds was good in it. Has This world gone mad!!!
My Rating: 8/10
My Rating: 8/10
Also recommended...American Beauty?!
Willow19229 December 2001
Why oh why did someone have to recommend American Beauty. That would be hinting that American Beauty and this movie had something in common. American Beauty was a beautiful piece of cinematic work. This movie was a piece of trash written by an angry 13 year old that never should have made it to film
The "movie," if that is what you call it mainly consists of 2 kids, waving guns around, and saying "f**k" repeatedly. I take it that we are in turn supposed to feel their pain because they come from broken homes. This movie gets no sympathy out of me. The only sympathy is have is for the people that watched this movie and will never get those precious hours of their lives back.
The notion that two kids could rob a bank is completely preposterous. The scenes were downright unbelievable. Especially the scene where Rocky goes outside and waves her gun around at the cops and media. In any real situation she would have been shot as soon as she took the gun out.
The movie plays out almost like a documentary. The sound quality is horrible, I don't remember hearing any music, and the scenes don't even fit together in any kind of order. One minute they are screaming at people outside. The MTV appearance was just plain wrong and didn't help the situation at all. And Rocky getting her period just added more confusion to an already too confused movie.
The acting was atrocious. I thought that Misha Barton was going places after seeing her in Lawn Dogs. But watching her in this movie washed all of those good feeling that I had about her. It was as if she had no acting experience at all. I swear if she moved her arms one more time I would have screamed. And when she is trying to be dramatic talking about her father molesting her, it pointed it out even more.
I should have turned the movie off as soon as the boy came on talking about "f**king the dog." So I guess it is my fault for putting myself in that sort of situation. Don't make the same mistake that I did.
The "movie," if that is what you call it mainly consists of 2 kids, waving guns around, and saying "f**k" repeatedly. I take it that we are in turn supposed to feel their pain because they come from broken homes. This movie gets no sympathy out of me. The only sympathy is have is for the people that watched this movie and will never get those precious hours of their lives back.
The notion that two kids could rob a bank is completely preposterous. The scenes were downright unbelievable. Especially the scene where Rocky goes outside and waves her gun around at the cops and media. In any real situation she would have been shot as soon as she took the gun out.
The movie plays out almost like a documentary. The sound quality is horrible, I don't remember hearing any music, and the scenes don't even fit together in any kind of order. One minute they are screaming at people outside. The MTV appearance was just plain wrong and didn't help the situation at all. And Rocky getting her period just added more confusion to an already too confused movie.
The acting was atrocious. I thought that Misha Barton was going places after seeing her in Lawn Dogs. But watching her in this movie washed all of those good feeling that I had about her. It was as if she had no acting experience at all. I swear if she moved her arms one more time I would have screamed. And when she is trying to be dramatic talking about her father molesting her, it pointed it out even more.
I should have turned the movie off as soon as the boy came on talking about "f**king the dog." So I guess it is my fault for putting myself in that sort of situation. Don't make the same mistake that I did.
original
atinder2 January 2012
When I first Heard of this movie, I thought it be Adult movie, I just think this name is really bad for this movie.
This movie is self is really well made and is some what Original
This movie is about 12 year old boy and his girlfriends, skip school and end up robing a bank.
This movie is really entertaining from start to end there is some dark Humor added to this movie at times.
The acting in this movie was really good from the whole and the ending was really sad as well and which was not predictable
Really good movie
This movie is self is really well made and is some what Original
This movie is about 12 year old boy and his girlfriends, skip school and end up robing a bank.
This movie is really entertaining from start to end there is some dark Humor added to this movie at times.
The acting in this movie was really good from the whole and the ending was really sad as well and which was not predictable
Really good movie
Blazingly dramatic
Quinoa19841 March 2001
Pups came as somewhat of something that I was familiar to- after seeing Bonnie and Clyde, Mad City, Natural Born Killers. Because, 5the film is mostly about making points, big or small. The film is centered on two youths (reminding me of my old friends, oddly enough, but no not completely) who get a sudden impulse after stealing a gun to hold a bank hostage and then having the usual cops and FBI standing outside. Nothing new, and often when the kids try and make a message (at one point the girl tries to say that anybody would take stolen money by throwing a bunch to bystanders) it might not be always the greatest, however... the performances by these two kids (Cameron Van Hoy and Mischa Barton) with all the intensity of Al Pacino, Leatherface and Sam Kinison combined, they turn this film into an absolute powerhouse with a surprisingly surprising ending. Kurt Loder appears in a almost gag cameo and Burt Reynolds plays the coolheaded (sometimes) negotiator. A
S o near and yet so far
daniel-mkatz18 December 2005
Well I'm giving this a 7 because of the movie it could have been. Generally, most of these comments are pretty accurate, but it really was a very good idea - the movie shows the media obsession with violence, similarly to natural born killers, but with the added spin of the effect this has on children. This was not meant to be a serious movie and while people have been criticizing it as more of a child's fantasy than a real drama, I think that this was the point and I rather criticize the movie for not making it as obvious. The acting leaves a lot to be desired and the script could have used some editing but this could have been a very good movie. Shame really.
A pathetic piece of crap
=G=3 September 2001
"Pups" tells of a 13 year old boy/girl couple who attempt to rob a bank with Reynolds playing the on-scene FBI honcho. Total rubbish, poorly acted, with a terrible script, awful acting, lousy direction, and no sense at all of police procedure, etc. this flick has no entertainment value, is a new low for Burt Reynolds, and is generally a complete and utter waste of time.
Worth Your Time, Go See It!
tabledancrnc173 July 2002
When I first began watching this movie, I didn't think it would be good. After spending 10 minutes of my time to see the first bits of the movie, I was glued to the T.v. This movie was excellent it all ways. The characters where interesting and believable, the plot had you on the edge of your seat, and the ending has you shocked in disbelief. If you ever get the chance, I highly recommend that you see this movie, it is defanitly worth your time. With all the action, and serious parts in this movie, Ash, the writer, threw in some comidy to losen you up. Stevie (Cameron Van Hoy) shows an excellient proformace! ( "I'm Psycho" ) and Rocky plays what a real 13 year old girl might think. After watching this, the only thing i could say was "Wow!"
an intense film experience
gorcana11 August 1999
What struck me most after seeing 'Pups' is how intense the whole experience is - you feel as though you have lived through it. As such, at times it is not a particularly enjoyable film, but thought provoking to say the least - especially in the way it challenges the viewer to evaluate their own motives for seeing the film, practically daring the viewer to enjoy it. Worth watching (if you can stay with it for the whole distance) just for the last 10 seconds. They'll stay with you for a long time.
Embarrassing child acting. What was it?
insomniac_rod4 March 2007
Warning: Spoilers
Sometimes independent or low budget pictures get undeserved praise because it's believed that "a little more effort" should be recognized.
"Pups" demonstrates that independent cinema does not means filming or writing anything you want if you don't have the talent.
The whole movie is confused of whether it should be considered a black comedy or a serious teen drama. You can't say.
The truth is that it's a teen bad version of the wonderful "Dog Day Afternoon". But I repeat, you can't say if it's somewhat a homage or a new vision of the fore-mentioned movie.
The acting is embarrassing. Cameron Van Hoy is a terrible child actor. Really, his lines "I'm psycho" or something like that was truly horrible. A painful moment. Mischa Barton is pretty, cute, and does a decent job. Burt Reynolds makes a fool out of himself as the conciliator cop. The ending may be the best feature about the movie... an unintentional "mistake" solves the whole sad situation.
Overall, this movie is a dull, boring, and will make you mad if you are looking for something different.
"Pups" demonstrates that independent cinema does not means filming or writing anything you want if you don't have the talent.
The whole movie is confused of whether it should be considered a black comedy or a serious teen drama. You can't say.
The truth is that it's a teen bad version of the wonderful "Dog Day Afternoon". But I repeat, you can't say if it's somewhat a homage or a new vision of the fore-mentioned movie.
The acting is embarrassing. Cameron Van Hoy is a terrible child actor. Really, his lines "I'm psycho" or something like that was truly horrible. A painful moment. Mischa Barton is pretty, cute, and does a decent job. Burt Reynolds makes a fool out of himself as the conciliator cop. The ending may be the best feature about the movie... an unintentional "mistake" solves the whole sad situation.
Overall, this movie is a dull, boring, and will make you mad if you are looking for something different.
Thought provoking
mogcat12 September 2003
An excellent film depicting the upsurge of 'meaningless' youth crime and the problems faced by the authorities when having to deal with it (is it OK to shoot children in this situation?).
Maybe not completely realistic but engaging and thought provoking nonetheless.
Maybe not completely realistic but engaging and thought provoking nonetheless.
this is what awful films are all about
CoZMaCHiNE12 February 2002
this is without a doubt one of, if not THE worst move i have ever seen. Never before have i been so upset by a movie, not because it was emotional, it just makes you feel rotten inside. This movie actually seems to think that it is smart, and thinks it's trying to tell us something about todays society. I almost start crying when reading the 'user comments' here at IMDB, i cant understand how anyone can find this movie even watchable. By the way, the acting is horrible and the story also.
I hope i can save at least one person from watching this crap by writing this review.
Rating: below 0 out of 10, wouldn't watch it again for all the butter in smallcountry.
I hope i can save at least one person from watching this crap by writing this review.
Rating: below 0 out of 10, wouldn't watch it again for all the butter in smallcountry.
Want to see a STUPID movie? This is for you!
Ribtin28 September 2001
I don't need to explain the premise of this movie, you can read that from the other comments. It sounds like a great idea for a movie and I'm sure it could become one if you used a new director, producer, and actors, and if you would write the script as things would happen in real life. What started as a good movie quickly went downhill and became a horrible movie. Once inside the bank everything changed. Screaming and cursing seemed to be the main dialog. Burt Reynolds had a chance to do some good acting but he had to follow a stupid script which made him look stupid. He's screaming at the robber, at fellow police officers, into the phone, etc. The only true to life moment was at the ending when one police officer on a roof finally did something that really would happen in this situation. All the other police actions in the movie were silly and inane. The scene showing the girl outside with a gun in her hand waving it at the police and press and no one shooting her was totally unbelievable. If you want to see a movie about some nutty teenager who screams, curses, and hurts people and we are told we should feel sorry for, then this is your movie. If you want to see poor directing and acting, not to mention poor sound quality, then this is also your movie. If you want a good action adventure then this is NOT your movie. A HORRIBLE piece of junk! Score it less than zero!
Powerful!
LDeer19 February 2002
This is a powerful film with some great performances! In a post-Columbine world, this movie offers no easy solutions. Ultimately, that's the film's message. Solving youth violence isn't a matter of controlling guns or chastising children for not caring about society.
Ultimately this film is about how society has neglected to show kids that life has any meaning beyond making money. Facing such an existential crisis, what's a kid to do? This film shows what one such kid did. Why did he do it? Even the kid didn't know, and in our world, which is currently searching for solutions to youth violence, that's about as scary of a message as it gets.
Ultimately this film is about how society has neglected to show kids that life has any meaning beyond making money. Facing such an existential crisis, what's a kid to do? This film shows what one such kid did. Why did he do it? Even the kid didn't know, and in our world, which is currently searching for solutions to youth violence, that's about as scary of a message as it gets.
great acting
cdsmith-227 August 2000
This movie contained the best child acting I have ever seen (by Mischa Barton). That alone makes it worth the watch. It's also a great debut for Cameron van Hoy, and make a very sharp point about our world, in a humorous way... something that's very hard to do but is done very well. I may be alone in this, but I think it's one of the best films I've seen.
A kids movie
encyclpedia28 March 2002
From start to finish, this movie failed to do anything successful. I thought it was a joke, and it's not even considered a comedy. Any adult in any given situation could have found an easy exit. I couldn't even count how many times the kid had his back turned to be taken down by one of the "wimpy" hostages. The kid has problems, Burt Reynolds has problems, and this film is nothing but a headache. Only kids will enjoy this movie, and it's not even a good influence. The only aspect of this movie I enjoyed was the hostage situation. I always love a movie when it displays a way for the bad guy to hold the line on the coppers. Still, it doesn't help me understand how 2 kids can become something their not. You'll need aspirin when watching this film, trust me. My rating: 4/10
Pups is an MTV Tarantino wannabe
trousers54@hotmail.com25 November 2002
The first thing that must be said is that the director ("Ash" as he likes to be called) is one of the most unoriginal try hard directors that I have ever experienced. "Ash" wants the world to think that his films are cool cutting edge and in your face, with a hint of intellectual flavour and witticism. But it's none of these things the whole plot is completely unbelievable, the script is written in the pretentious Dawson Creek dialect that a 13 year old could never pull off and all of the attempts a philosophy are just plain observation dressed up with poorly constructed metaphor that really want to be written by Quentin Tarantino.
The idea of two 13 year old kids robbing a bank isn't even that crazy but the way it's dealt with in this film is ridiculous and especially the way the police deal with the situation. But the thing that really made me angry was the way the director tried to make everything so hard hitting when it just came off lame such as having an angry guy in a wheelchair tell us how bad the world is.
The direction is sloppy and the whole point about the world being horrible is lost for convenience towards the end of the movie. The movie doesn't even end properly, there is actually a noticeable point in the movie where you can see where the writer has given up and just wants to end things. This movie should be shown in film school along with Harry Potter as an example of how not to make a movie.
I give this movie .0000000001/5
The idea of two 13 year old kids robbing a bank isn't even that crazy but the way it's dealt with in this film is ridiculous and especially the way the police deal with the situation. But the thing that really made me angry was the way the director tried to make everything so hard hitting when it just came off lame such as having an angry guy in a wheelchair tell us how bad the world is.
The direction is sloppy and the whole point about the world being horrible is lost for convenience towards the end of the movie. The movie doesn't even end properly, there is actually a noticeable point in the movie where you can see where the writer has given up and just wants to end things. This movie should be shown in film school along with Harry Potter as an example of how not to make a movie.
I give this movie .0000000001/5
An amazing film.
gingenie18 October 2003
'Pups' is about very emotive subjects (gun crime and gun ownership in the US, the loss of innocence and nihilism of younger generations) that manages raise them without ever turning to didacticism.
It is the sort of film Michael Moore wishes he had the intelligence to produce. It is political without wearing a badge on its sleeve, rather than spending the entire film hammering home an anti-gun message it treats us as adults.
But that's not really what I wanted to talk about because the political message is of secondary importance. Foremost this film is a very very dark comedy that is playful with convention and whilst not perfect (it lacks pace at points, Rockie can be annoying) it is beautifully crafted and well worth anyone's time.
It is the sort of film Michael Moore wishes he had the intelligence to produce. It is political without wearing a badge on its sleeve, rather than spending the entire film hammering home an anti-gun message it treats us as adults.
But that's not really what I wanted to talk about because the political message is of secondary importance. Foremost this film is a very very dark comedy that is playful with convention and whilst not perfect (it lacks pace at points, Rockie can be annoying) it is beautifully crafted and well worth anyone's time.
Unadulterated crap!
billcody14 July 2002
Oh, boy. This flick is really, really bad. Pretentious, badly written and poorly directed. And of course a 100% rating on rottentomatoes. I think I have it down now. If Roger Ebert gives it a thumbs up you can guarantee a stinkeroo painful movie-going experience.
I don't know who Ash is, but he should be working at Blockbuster watching movies, not making them.
I don't know who Ash is, but he should be working at Blockbuster watching movies, not making them.
Good movie.
ChrisMorrow3 July 2002
Pups was a great script gone bad by a low budget probably. There could have been some minor changes to the script to make it better. The young actors playing weren't that good but they did all right. If the budget was low that is what messed it up. If they had a higher budget they probably could have got better performances for the characters. This could have been a really great film but it was kind of weak. I liked it but the script seemed like a rough draft, a little bit of revising could have helped.
Serious subject, serious flaws.
WHITESHU28 September 2001
This is an important subject; something we can add to our database about raising children. The premise of this movie however, doesn't give kids and some adults enough credit.
We have: A terribly neglected boy. Finds gun, no Eddie Eagle he pulls the trigger to find out if it's loaded. Points it at a friend. Becomes a baby bank robber. Gets caught in the bank by the FBI no less. Uses the worst language I've heard since Scarface. Surrenders, and walking out of the bank reaches in has pocket. Guess what happens next.
Of course we know that this boy has been going nuts for a while. In the bank he gestures with the gun in the totally impractical Hollywood sideways hold. He talks to people with the gun sometimes touches them with it. Sometimes he even looks away from the object of his intimidation. I counted 20 times that he could have been disarmed by a person of average strength. I thought of grabbing him and washing his mouth out with soap. (his girl friend wasn't going to shoot anyone). So this movie was not convincing, just a contrivance to a problem that deserves better.
We have: A terribly neglected boy. Finds gun, no Eddie Eagle he pulls the trigger to find out if it's loaded. Points it at a friend. Becomes a baby bank robber. Gets caught in the bank by the FBI no less. Uses the worst language I've heard since Scarface. Surrenders, and walking out of the bank reaches in has pocket. Guess what happens next.
Of course we know that this boy has been going nuts for a while. In the bank he gestures with the gun in the totally impractical Hollywood sideways hold. He talks to people with the gun sometimes touches them with it. Sometimes he even looks away from the object of his intimidation. I counted 20 times that he could have been disarmed by a person of average strength. I thought of grabbing him and washing his mouth out with soap. (his girl friend wasn't going to shoot anyone). So this movie was not convincing, just a contrivance to a problem that deserves better.
poor but watchable
tom99uk200315 June 2004
Hi
the movie let itself down in so many ways. It had the potential of a 9 /10 movie but drops to a 5/10 due to the way it was put together.
Some kids of 13 do talk like the kids in the script but it didn't seem to fit the visual character that the kids were putting across, they looked to clean cut? The kids did however do a very good job of trying to get the script to work. The fact Stevie was shouting would reflect what a kid his age would do in that situation to try and control things. Rocky was a little too much like the girl next door.
What was Burt Reynolds doing??? the whole police activity was so unreal it spoiled the film.
The adult characters were all very very weak.
It's a shame as this could have worked very well
5 /10 worth a watch just to understand what I mean about lost opportunity.
the movie let itself down in so many ways. It had the potential of a 9 /10 movie but drops to a 5/10 due to the way it was put together.
Some kids of 13 do talk like the kids in the script but it didn't seem to fit the visual character that the kids were putting across, they looked to clean cut? The kids did however do a very good job of trying to get the script to work. The fact Stevie was shouting would reflect what a kid his age would do in that situation to try and control things. Rocky was a little too much like the girl next door.
What was Burt Reynolds doing??? the whole police activity was so unreal it spoiled the film.
The adult characters were all very very weak.
It's a shame as this could have worked very well
5 /10 worth a watch just to understand what I mean about lost opportunity.
Displays of force
c.h.u.d.27 April 2000
A modern remake of "Rebel Without a Cause," "Pups" strengths lie in its demonstration that adults -do- care, but if the kids try to believe in them (too much?), like all of real life, they have the potential to fail us.
Stevie's magnificent use of modern resources--the Internet, guns, girlfriend, too much t.v.--has resulted in the twisted plot of his robbing a bank "to get on t.v. and be famous." Enter the F.B.I. and Burt Reynolds, Kurt Loder and MTV, undercover agents trying to infiltrate the bank (complex), and accusations against parents of incest for full dramatic effect. The kids know what they're doing. Or do they?
The crevasse between adults and youths today seem almost insurmountable--teen cynicism, failed role-models, absent parents, multimedia distractions as substitute for personal interaction--all contribute to the problems, but when the pot boils over, what's left is a frightful situation, like a kid with a gun and no faith or vision of a future beyond right now.
"Pups," sadly, will never be shown in a P.C. overridden world like this because it takes on, directly, the possibility of teen violence. It was scheduled for release, but as the date approached, the Columbine event occurred in Colorado, and the distributors dropped it. Buy it for yourself, watch it with your kids, trust them to interpret the message and the differences between t.v. and real life, and learn to love Stevie for all his faults and mistakes.
Stevie's magnificent use of modern resources--the Internet, guns, girlfriend, too much t.v.--has resulted in the twisted plot of his robbing a bank "to get on t.v. and be famous." Enter the F.B.I. and Burt Reynolds, Kurt Loder and MTV, undercover agents trying to infiltrate the bank (complex), and accusations against parents of incest for full dramatic effect. The kids know what they're doing. Or do they?
The crevasse between adults and youths today seem almost insurmountable--teen cynicism, failed role-models, absent parents, multimedia distractions as substitute for personal interaction--all contribute to the problems, but when the pot boils over, what's left is a frightful situation, like a kid with a gun and no faith or vision of a future beyond right now.
"Pups," sadly, will never be shown in a P.C. overridden world like this because it takes on, directly, the possibility of teen violence. It was scheduled for release, but as the date approached, the Columbine event occurred in Colorado, and the distributors dropped it. Buy it for yourself, watch it with your kids, trust them to interpret the message and the differences between t.v. and real life, and learn to love Stevie for all his faults and mistakes.
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