Hilarious and stunningly frank, writer-director Todd Solondz's evocation of awkward adolescence is a bracing antidote to the counterfeit nostalgia of
The Wonder Years or
My So-Called Life. Junior-high misfit Dawn Wiener (Heather Matarazzo) is the patron saint of cootie girls, complete with nerd glasses and clueless wardrobe. At home, she's a put-upon middle child -- her younger sister is an adorable ballerina; her older brother, a brainy computer geek. At school, the cool girls torment her mercilessly, calling her "wiener dog" and "lesbo" (she's too dorky even to register on the radar of cool boys). Her parents offer little in the way of sympathy or sup...
Released:
1995
Rated:
R
Length:
87 mins