Welcome to the Dollhouse (1995)
90%RT Audience Score: 86%
Awards & Nominations: 4 wins & 17 nominations
An outstanding sophomore feature, Welcome to the Dollhouse sees writer-director Todd Solondz mining suburban teen angst for black, biting comedy.
Welcome to the Dollhouse is like watching a train wreck in slow motion, but in the best way possible. It’s a dark and twisted coming-of-age story that will make you cringe and laugh at the same time. The film’s objectivity is what makes it so powerful, as it neither romanticizes nor condescends to its protagonist. It’s a near-perfect morsel of suburban angst that will leave you feeling both disturbed and satisfied. Just don’t watch it with your parents.
Production Company(ies)
New Line Cinema, Partizan Films, Partizan
Distributor
NA
Release Type
Theatrical
Filming Location(s)
West Caldwell, New Jersey, USA
MPAA / Certificate
Rated R for language
Year of Release
1996
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Color:Color
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Sound mix:Dolby
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Aspect ratio:1.85 : 1
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Runtime:NA
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Language(s):English
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Country of origin:United States
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Release date:Release Date (Theaters): Jan 15, 1995 Original
Release Date (Streaming): Aug 3, 1999
Genre(s)
Comedy/Drama
Keyword(s)
starring Heather Matarazzo, Matthew Faber, Daria Kalinina, Brendan Sexton Jr., Eric Mabius, directed by Todd Solondz, written by Todd Solondz, comedy, drama, box office performance, budget, reviewed by David Ansen, Lisa Schwarzbaum, Emanuel Levy, Nell Minow, Peter Stack, Mike Clark, Taylor Baker, Josh Larsen, Heather Matarazzo as Dawn Wiener, Daria Kalinina as Missy Wiener, Matthew Faber as Mark Wiener, Angela Pietropinto as Mrs Wiener, Bill Buell as Mr Wiener, Brendan Sexton III as Brandon McCarthy, produced by Todd Solondz, R rating, middle school, suburban teen angst, bullying, misfit, family dysfunction, crush, tormented, degradation, black comedy, poignant, objectivity, misunderstood, inequitable, adolescent, dark, sarcastic, exceptional, uncomfortable, honest, well-written, bullying, cruelty, misfortunes, darkly hilarious, poignant, suburban mores, Jewish girl, tormented, misfit, bullying, degradation, crush, tormented, family dysfunction, black comedy, poignant, objectivity, misunderstood, inequitable, adolescent, dark, sarcastic, exceptional, uncomfortable, honest, well-written
Worldwide gross: $4,569,019
Worldwide gross (inflation-adjusted): $8,721,094
Worldwide gross ranking (inflation-adjusted): 2,011
Worldwide tickets sold (est.): 951,046
US/Canada gross: $4,569,019
US/Canada gross (inflation-adjusted): NA
US/Canada gross ranking (inflation-adjusted): NA
US/Canada opening weekend:
US/Canada opening weekend (inflation-adjusted): NA
US/Canada opening weekend ranking (inflation-adjusted): NA
Budget and Earnings Details
Production budget (est.): $800,000
Production budget (inflation-adjusted): $1,526,996
Production budget ranking: 2,055
Marketing and distribution budget (inflation-adjusted est.): $822,288
Box office net earnings to date (inflation-adjusted est.): $6,371,811
ROI to date (est.): 271%
ROI ranking: 499
Daria Kalinina – Missy Wiener
Matthew Faber – Mark Wiener
Angela Pietropinto – Mrs. Wiener
Bill Buell – Mr. Wiener
Brendan Sexton III – Brandon McCarthy
Director(s)
Todd Solondz
Writer(s)
Todd Solondz
Producer(s)
Todd Solondz
Film Festivals
Awards & Nominations
4 wins & 17 nominations
Academy Awards
All Critics (51) | Top Critics (11) | Fresh (47) | Rotten (4)
The beauty of Welcome to the Dollhouse is its pokerfaced objectivity, which neither condescends to its pubescent victim nor romantically inflates her plight.
February 27, 2018
David Ansen
Newsweek
TOP CRITIC
September 7, 2011 | Rating: A-
Lisa Schwarzbaum
Entertainment Weekly
TOP CRITIC
One of the highlights of the 1995 Toronto Festival, Solondz’s second film is a stark, often funny, always poignant comedy about suburban mores, centering on a misfit Jewish girl tormented by her family and classmates.
December 20, 2006 | Rating: A-
Emanuel Levy
Variety
TOP CRITIC
Searing story of adolescent anguish, almost unbearably painful.
June 12, 2003 | Rating: 4/5
Nell Minow
Movie Mom
TOP CRITIC
June 18, 2002 | Rating: 3/4
Peter Stack
San Francisco Chronicle
TOP CRITIC
At 87 minutes, Dollhouse is a near-perfect morsel. If nothing else, it informs older folk that school principals still threaten to record bad behavior in one’s ‘personal record’ — only now, computers facilitate the process.
January 1, 2000 | Rating: 3.5/4
Mike Clark
USA Today
TOP CRITIC
Episode 36: Love in the Time of Monsters / Barbarella / Welcome to the Dollhouse / Johnny Guitar
October 3, 2021 | Rating: 70/100
Taylor Baker
Drink in the Movies
…a vision of middle-school awkwardness so cringe-worthy you’ll be tempted to look away.
July 18, 2018 | Rating: 3.5/4
Josh Larsen
LarsenOnFilm
Welcome to the Dollhouse marks a substantial (and obvious) improvement over filmmaker Todd Solondz’s underwhelming debut, Fear Anxiety and Depression…
June 29, 2016 | Rating: 3/4
David Nusair
Reel Film Reviews
A dark look at adolescence; not for kids.
January 1, 2011 | Rating: 4/5
Hollis Griffin
Common Sense Media
Welcome to the Dollhouse puts an ugly duckling through her paces.
September 1, 2009
Rob Nelson
City Pages, Minneapolis/St. Paul
At its best it’s like the funniest yet bleakest comic book Dan Clowes never drew.
July 23, 2007 | Rating: 5/5
Rob Gonsalves
eFilmCritic.com…
Plot
Seventh-grade is no fun. Especially for Dawn Weiner when everyone at school calls you ‘Dog-Face’ or ‘Wiener-Dog.’ Not to mention if your older brother is ‘King of the Nerds’ and your younger sister is a cutesy ballerina who gets you in trouble but is your parents’ favorite. And that’s just the beginning
Trivia
Goofs / Tidbits
Heather Matarazzo delivers a stunning performance as the lead character, Dawn Wiener.
Todd-Solondz.jpg
