Dot (2002) User Reviews

Must See

[jdier · 9/10 · 21 April 2005]

A great movie in the spirit of Waiting of Gufman or Best in Show. If you worked in or near the net during the boom, this is a must see, but even more than that, if you are currently involved in ANY way with computers or IT, this could be considered a training film. The guy who plays the IT director of this imaginary start up is brilliant and really hits the nail on the head poking fun at both IT types, and the position that IT guys are put in by insane marketing and sales people. The commentary tracks on the DVD explain that much of the movie was improvised. Almost impossible to tell that it was done with so little money.

Spinal Tap for the Dot.com era! This will be a classic.

Classic parody

[hedronist · 9/10 · 21 March 2005]

This film is a classic -- a great example of what you can do on a (very) low budget, but with good writing and good characters. Fortunately, we were watching it with TiVo. We had to keep backing up because we were laughing so much that we would miss some dialog. Keep close track of the amount of money they have and the periods of time between updates. Near the end they are burning money so fast they must have been shoveling it into a furnace.

Simon Schnapper (Si Pateauxx) reminds me a lot of John Belushi, both in his appearance and in his comic timing. The interaction between him, Mitch, and Jane is a work of art.

If you worked in high tech during 1999-2000, this is a MUST SEE film

[WatchinFlicks · 8/10 · 31 March 2005]

This has to be the best sleeper movie of the past 5 years. I happened to be receiving a free Showtime channel preview from my cable company and I just stumbled across this film last night and I am glad I did. Like the previous poster said, various family members kept coming in the room to see what the hell was so funny (I am not the type who laughs out loud while watching movies). "Dot" is right up there with one of my favorite movies of all time - "Best in Show". Along the same lines, this movie has plenty of hilarious moments, and the actors involved with this project are so "dead-on" to their characters, they deserve special Oscars in the pseudo-documentary best actor category.

This movie won't appeal to all tastes, but I guarantee that if you have ever worked in the high tech field, been in a small office environment, or hung around internet "gurus" who have pie in the sky expectations of their success, you will find this movie right up your alley and will be laughing out loud for days afterwards.

I still can't stop breaking up over the "WE ARE BROKE!!!!" white board scene...a classic comedy film moment if I ever saw one. Go rent this movie now, you will not be disappointed. Then go tell your high tech friends to do the same.

Funny! Worth watching.

[warriorwhacko · 24 October 2004]

Not to be confused with the ACTUAL documentary of a failed startup (Startup.com) this "mockumentary" was created at around the same time as "Startup". However, it's a mostly improvised effort of the fake rise & fall of a fake startup .com company. This parody was born from the actual experience of the directors (one of whom plays the "CEO" in the film) who worked at 2 different failed startups. Their experience at "what really went on" in those startups show, to very funny proportions. The characters are really developed and believable in their own broth of incompetence. Also good were some thoughtful lines pointing out the whole insane philosophy of the "new economy" era. A must see for those who lived through this time.

I LOVE this movie!!

[superstar49 · 9/10 · 2 February 2004]

Caught this on The Movie Channel within 10 minutes of its beginning while channel surfing and was immediately drawn into it. My wife in the other room kept checking on me to see what was so great on the TV. I was laughing, cheering, holding on to my breath as Sye and Mitch began to fight (oh, no!!), keeping tabs on their bank account, etc., etc.. The onscreen movie guide said this was a documentary, so I was really believing all that was going on until I started to catch on that parts of the film were a little too polished. Like when when the company first goes broke and Sye says it's all over, but whoala, a call comes in to "save the day."

Maybe it is documentary, I don't know. All I know is that I haven't enjoyed a movie like this in quite awhile. Can't believe I'm the first one to review this. Makes me want to start a dot.com enterprise of my own. At least I would make sure I actually HAVE a product to sell!! I rated this film a strong "9."

Start-up Movie

[jqussar · 9/10 · 21 March 2005]

This is a pretty good movie, documentary or fiction. It does describe the start-up business pretty well, the ups and downs, the fighting, and Si is kind of a psycho. Watch the expenditures and how they break down...you will get a big laugh out of it. It is what I think is typical of people who think this kind of thing is easy and that the money will just start rolling in.

I would recommend this movie to everyone who has ever thought about quitting their jobs and doing a startup, and is also why any .com type of business I have tried has failed....because I never would quit my steady job to do this and have this experience.

A great dot com parody

[koffeegod-1 · 6/10 · 27 May 2013]

I'm surprised by the negative reviews of this film. It is really cleverly written and well acted considering the no-name actors and the obviously low budget. If you're a fan of Christopher Guest-style mockumentaries then you'll certainly like this one.

If you've ever worked at a tech start up, this movie is a must see. The self-important egotism and naiveté of the movie's fictional 20-something founders is brilliantly portrayed. The abundant use of corporate-speak and techno-jargon is as irritatingly accurate as it is amusing. This film is as much a commentary on the mindless investment mania of the late nineties as it is a hilarious portrait of the self-entitled young business folk who think "???" equals profit.

not very good-but very bad

[thepotatoHasEyes · 1/10 · 15 March 2013]

i think the seven good reviews are from ppl involved with the movie. i don't know what anyone found funny in this movie , it was obviously a "cheap"make , with a big bad "b" movie feel ,

looks like they only used two or three sets , as everything is filmed in one location or just a few ,

the actors don't seem to really be actors , and it seems they made the movie the same way someone made a dot com biz in 1999. with about 5 bucks and all their friends ,

the only redeeming thing was the factoid tidbits tossed in,

its only my opinion, but you can check out the movies i like from my profile ---i cant recommend this to anyone , not eligible for re- watch ,

they call it a mockumentary because they are sitting back , mocking those who watch it --yes , me included , i feel stupid for watching.

Wow, I never realized what people will do to make such a film work so well!

[gameservedirect · 29 September 2004]

If you call me a sucker for liking this movie, the call me it all you want. Although I only watched about 60% of the actual movie. I still absolutely loved it! And am waiting for it to pop up on The Movie Channel again so I can finish what I started! I don't think I have laughed that hard watching a movie by myself! I was channel surfing just like the other person that wrote the review before me. I was trapped and confused on what it was. I kept on watching to find out what type of movie it was. Then every time a new day would arise. And their bank account would decay like it just got the plague was one of the funniest things i have seen! I still have yet to find out if they actually had a product, which kept me watching. I started the movie right when they hired the lady (no the laundry one) And stopped right when they hired the one guy (After the laundry lady) And got a glimpse of when they hit it big. But I had to leave =( .. Cant wait to see the rest! This movie is a keeper!!!