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Movies / On DVD / The Secret Lives of Dentists
The Secret Lives of Dentists

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The Secret Lives of Dentists (2003)

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Reviews Counted:93

Fresh:79

Rotten:14

Average Rating:7.2/10

Consensus: A witty and honest look at marriage in decay.

Rated: R [See Full Rating] for sexuality and language

Runtime: 1 hr 44 mins

Genre: Dramas

Theatrical Release:Aug 1, 2003 Limited

Box Office: $3,637,833

Synopsis: Hope Davis and Campbell Scott play married dentists in this insightful dramatic comedy from director Alan Rudolph (AFTERGLOW, DOROTHY PARKER AND THE VICIOUS CIRCLE). Based on the novel THE AGE OF... Hope Davis and Campbell Scott play married dentists in this insightful dramatic comedy from director Alan Rudolph (AFTERGLOW, DOROTHY PARKER AND THE VICIOUS CIRCLE). Based on the novel THE AGE OF GRIEF by Jane Smiley, the story begins with husband David's suspicion that his wife (and mother of their three adorable daughters) is having an affair. The details of their family life and David's mounting suspicion are brilliantly evoked via overlapping dialogue, great editing, and masterful camerawork. David's jealous mind soars onto some hilarious flights of fancy and eventually caustic comedian Denis Leary turns up as his cigar-smoking alter-ego, expressing all the independent and antisocial traits David has tried so long to repress for the sake of his family. All of this culminates in a hilarious yet harrowing week when the family is hit by a flu virus. SECRET LIVES' performances are very strong, with Scott proving himself an actor of great restraint and subtlety. The young actresses who play the daughters are uniformly talented, as is Robin Tunney (THE CRAFT) as a dental assistant. The lion's share of credit is due to director Rudolph, who is in top form with this film, displaying his mastery of the ensemble cast, camera, and audio tricks; Rudolph and his mentor, Robert Altman, are of the few directors capable of working with such perceptive, funny, and warmly human results. [More]

Starring: Campbell Scott, Hope Davis, Denis Leary, Robin Tunney

Starring: Campbell Scott, Hope Davis, Denis Leary, Robin Tunney, Gianna Beleno, Cassidy Hinkle, Lydia Jordan

Director: Alan Rudolph

Director: Alan Rudolph
Screenwriter: David Newman, Alan Rudolph
Producer: George Van Buskirk, Campbell Scott
Composer: Gary DiMichele
Studio: Manhattan Pictures International

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Release:

Jan 27, 2004

No Details Exist
 
 

Reviews for The Secret Lives of Dentists

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1 - 20 (sorted by date)
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Reviews
Tomatometer Critic Review Category
N/R

Felix Vasquez Jr.

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: | comment Comment | Apr., 29 2009 03:16 AM

Cinema Crazed

tomato
3/5

Mark Halverson

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: | comment Comment | Aug., 07 2008 03:17 AM

Sacramento News & Review

splat
2.5/4

Joe Lozito

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: | comment Comment | Jul., 14 2007 06:28 AM

Big Picture Big Sound

N/R

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: | comment Comment | Jun., 24 2006 04:31 AM

Time Out

tomato
3/5

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: | comment Comment | Aug., 14 2005 05:09 PM

Empire Magazine

N/R

David Edwards

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: | comment Comment | Aug., 13 2005 03:29 AM

Daily Mirror [UK]

N/R

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: | comment Comment | Aug., 03 2005 03:39 AM

BBC

N/R

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: | comment Comment | Jul., 21 2005 03:29 AM

Houston Chronicle

N/R

Peter Rainer

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: | comment Comment | Aug., 07 2004 09:05 AM

New York Magazine

splat
2/4

Paul Sherman

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: | comment Comment | Feb., 02 2004 05:06 PM

Boston Herald

tomato
4/5

Pablo Villaca

Retrata com sensibilidade o cotidiano de uma família em crise e representa mais uma prova dos talentos de Scott e Davis.

comment Comment | Jan., 30 2004 07:36 PM

Cinema em Cena

tomato
4/5

Kim Linekin

One of those quietly brilliant indies, so small in scope that it takes a little extra attention to appreciate how deeply it plunges into its characters.

Full Review Source: | comment Comment | Jan., 15 2004 05:06 PM

eye WEEKLY

splat
3/5

Daniel M. Kimmel

The Secret Lives of Dentists is a provocative title, promising much more than this domestic melodrama is able to deliver.

Full Review Source: | comment Comment | Jan., 01 2004 04:54 PM

Worcester Telegram & Gazette

splat
C

Greg Muskewitz

...[T]he potency is abrogated by Rudolph’s indulgent pretension of including Scott’s personified conscience in the form of an obstreperous patient...

Full Review Source: | comment Comment | Dec., 31 2003 03:34 AM

eFilmCritic.com

tomato
4/5

Geoff Pevere

Rudolph's fondness for angular, oblique characterization is ideally suited to the movie's incidental story of sublimated feelings and contradictory impulses.

Full Review Source: | comment Comment | Nov., 14 2003 06:45 PM

Toronto Star

tomato
3/4

Rick Groen

Domestic scenes with the kids are drawn with letter-perfect naturalism.

Full Review Source: | comment Comment | Nov., 14 2003 06:42 PM

Globe and Mail

splat
2.5/5

Bruce Kirkland

For me (unlike some critics who have embraced this film), Leary becomes so persistent, so grating and so bloody irritating that I want to scream: Stop the madness! End the pain!

Full Review Source: | comment Comment | Nov., 14 2003 01:23 AM

Jam! Movies

tomato
3/5

Kimberly Jones

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: | comment Comment | Oct., 01 2003 05:05 PM

Austin Chronicle

tomato
3/4

Robert W. Butler

Refuses to chuck us under our chins and tell us everything is OK.

Full Review Source: | comment Comment | Sep., 26 2003 09:48 PM

Kansas City Star

tomato
A-

Eric D. Snider

[Campbell Scott gives] a brilliant performance, with hints of humor, rage and agony all lurking around the edges.

Full Review Source: | comment Comment | Sep., 14 2003 01:44 PM

EricDSnider.com

 
 
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