The Dirties (2013)

The Dirties is an independent film that was released in 2013. It's the debut feature for Matt Johnson, who directed, co-wrote, and stared in the film. It's one of the better indie films that I've seen and is certainly worth your time.

Matt and Owen are two friends who are in High school together. They are constantly bullied by a group who go by the name of "The Dirties". Matt and Owen are also huge film fans and are in the school's film club. So they decide to shoot a film about their revenge against The Dirties. That's all that I'm going to say about the plot. It's definitely one of those films that you should go into it without knowing too much. Even the IMDb and Letterboxd synopses, I thought, said too much. But anyways, the story is brilliant. I love films that talk about bullies and show how highschoolers, or whatever, deal with the harassment of the bullies. I don't know if Matt and Owen did really experience bullying in their life, but the way it was portrayed felt so realistic and so well done that I'd bet they did. The characters were great, and they felt lifelike. Thus, we as a viewer, care about them and are interested to see what's going to happen in their lives. The film's writers, Matt Johnson and Mathew Miller, did a splendid job indeed.

Matt Johnson and Owen Williams play Matt and Owen in the film. I thought both of them were tremendous. Matt Johnson will probably take all the plaudits but Owen Williams's performance was just as good. The main supporting actress was Krista Madison who played the role of Chrissy, Owen's crush. She was good as well. The acting isn't the main draw of the film though, it's the story and the directing.

The Dirties is a found footage film. I still like found footage films, which I know many people aren't. But The Dirties is well done and doesn't have any moments where you're screaming at the screen "DROP THE CAMERA ALREADY YOU IDIOT!". There is a cameraman, probably more, who tags along with Matt and Owen. I personally have a couple of interpretations about the cameramen, but I'll save those for the sake of not spoiling anything. The movie is also littered with references from numerous other films, so if you're a film buff, you might get a kick out of some of them.

The soundtrack to The Dirties is also pretty good. There are a couple of songs that play over some scenes that fit perfectly. I read that most of the film's budget went into securing the licenses for the music, but I'd say it was worth it.

All in all, The Dirties is a very well done film that shines a new light on bullying. It's evident that Matt Johnson is a very talented young filmmaker who I personally can't wait to see what his future holds for him. A definite recommendation from me.