Dogman

This is a story about - guess what? - a Dogman! It's also a well done indie movie about a small village of rural-ites confronting said Dogman to the best of their abilities.

It won't win any big awards, but so what? Most Oscars reward the propaganda machine and its bizarre agenda. This is just a great story told well and presented by an outstanding cast and crew.

Don't listen to the naysayers on this one. Watch and believe in the Dogman!!!

Dogman is a skillfully executed and engaging story that elaborates on the mysteries of a Michigan monster myth while still maintaining a sense of good Midwestern charm. There's something subtly "feel good" about this thriller - a fun contradiction that plays all the way through the film without serving up an expected and cliché ending that you might expect with other "light" thrillers. Writer, director and cinematographer Rich Brauer's characters are fresh, natural and unassuming and his camera work exceeds what one might expect from an independent film. If there ever was a thriller for the whole family, this would be one.

2012's "Dogman" is a low budget story around the legend of Michigan's Dogman. The film is directed by Richard Brauer, who does a really good job of navigating the issues of budget when telling this creature- feature. The film isn't so much about the actual legend per se, but more about a couple's farm and small community's deadly ordeal with the creature. Great horror story premise, with hit and miss execution-budget constraints withstanding.

The story of "Dogman" uses the legend of the creature to create an ominous set-up, with a couple struggling between, what they believe to be the acts of delinquent relatives causing property damage, or some other force terrorizing them. It soon becomes clear just what the situation is, and Brauer uses some classic tricks to tease the creature on camera. Some moments work and others show up on screen as uber-cheap. Budget- I know. The cast, for the most part, give pretty decent performances. Oddly enough the most seasoned among them-Larry Joe Campbell-gives the least convincing performance. The story arc never really falls apart, leaving most of the flubs to technical issues with special effects shots, and inability to create necessary thrills when needed.

The special effects are super low budget, when used, give poor quality and weak performance. Brauer does show prowess in his ability to create some suspenseful moments by leaving a lot of the creature off camera for the most part. Similar to how the werewolf creature in "Silver Bullet" is used. For the most part the actual effectiveness of the film's horror element comes from melodrama, creepy soundtracks, and the legend of the Dogman. There are better wolf-creature films out there that bring the beast clearly into the terror-zone but "Dogman" does give good story. It hits just below the 50/50 point with me personally.

Released in 2012, "Dogman" is about Michigan's legendary half-canine, half-human creature first supposedly sighted in 1987 in the northwestern quadrant of the Lower Peninsula. The star is that goofy rotund guy from the sitcom According to Jim (who has since lost the weight). Mariann Mayberry plays his wife, Kimberly Guerrero a Native American neighbor and Stacie Mitchell (aka Stacie Hadgikosti) an investigating deputy.

Despite an outstanding opening & closing folk-rock song, presumably by Grant Floering (who's credited for the music), and the presence of a few formidable actors, you can tell this is a micro-budget flick right out of the gate. The slow-going, mundane proceedings don't help. For instance, there's a scene of the deputy interviewing two teens at the hospital that's just tedious and unnecessary. The runtime could've easily been cut in half. Then there are some inexplicable elements, like all the time spent on the tree camera, but we mysteriously never get to see the footage. The ending leaves you with a big question mark and the potential for a sequel (which materialized in 2014 with, amazingly, the same cast). Speaking from someone who appreciates low-budget woods-oriented flicks, "Dogman" is just too uneventful and pedestrian with uninteresting characters. Still, it's competently made for a no-budget flick. It's just not that entertaining and entertainment is the name of the game.

The movie runs 90 minutes and was shot in Benzie County, Michigan.

GRADE: D+

If you're looking for mindless and silly fun, watch this movie. It won't ever be a classic or a contender for any awards, but so what?