Chloë Sevigny, Darby Dougherty, Jacob Reynolds

Some time after a devastating tornado has leveled their town, a group of eclectic, ennui-stricken teenagers in Xenia, Ohio pass their days by riding their bikes, playing practical jokes, sniffing glue...( read more  read more... ) and paying for sex with a friend's sister.

Flixster Users

78% liked it

16,654 ratings

Critics

32% liked it

34 critics

R, 1 hr. 45 min.

Directed by: Harmony Korine

Release Date: October 17, 1997

Invite friends to see

DVD Release Date: March 20, 2001

Stats: 1,795 reviews

Get movie widget Recommend it Add to Favorites

Your Rating



clear rating
Share on: Facebook Twitter

Flixster Reviews (1,795)


  • September 23, 2009
    This is a great little film. It won?t be to everybody?s tastes but it?s a gem, albeit, a grubby one . Harmony Korine is an underappreciated genius!
  • May 6, 2009
    A largely plotless, impressionistic and depressing tour of the hopeless white trash residents of Xenia, OH. A lot like what would result if someone took home videos of that embarassing welfare-addicted branch of the family no one likes to talk about and mixed them in a blender w...( read more)ith experimental shorts from film school; it's sometimes interesting, more frequently incoherent and annoying.
  • April 24, 2009
    A pointless, depressing and vile piece of crap. There are no characters to feel anything for, other than hate. The film is just tasteless in a very tacky way, but it seems to think it is saying something. There's no plot, there's no relevance. It's a string of random scenes, wher...( read more)e everybody acts weird to disguise just how bad the film is. Korine completely misses the mark with this arrogant and annoying film.
  • October 22, 2008
    Intriguing beginning and end, but nothing of much interest happens in between. Not to say there aren't interesting characters (there are); they just don't really do anything. That is, I wanted something to laugh or cry about it but got neither (perhaps, I'm an emotionless psychop...( read more)ath).

    They could've done a hell of a lot more with the rabbit character; I rather enjoyed his parts. And the editing, too. It really captured the family home-video feel. On the other hand, the music, while perhaps necessary, rather irritated me.
  • August 2, 2008
    I tell you true, I could not take my eyes off this film. I'm not sure what exactly that means in terms of me, but it is an ugly movie from start to finish. The ugliness, from mistreatment of animals, to mistreatment of persons with disabilities, to mistreatment of people in gen...( read more)eral runs the gamut from just disgusting to 100% disgusting. But I could not stop watching it.

    This is no loving tribute to middle-America, not by a long shot. And the casting call must have been exhaustive in order to find such odd looking actors to play such screwed up idlers and miscreants. It's kind of like Wrong Turn or Deliverance brought to a real-world town near you. See the kid on the DVD cover, for instance? No offense -- I'm sure he's a handsome enough little lad in real life -- but just picture him with a banjo and you'll know what I mean. What with the tornado, I'd be tempted to think along post-apocalyptic lines, but you just know they were all like this long before the tornado. Nope, Dorothy, you are not in Kansas anymore. You're not in Oz either. Unfortunately -- believe it or not -- you're in 1990s' Ohio . . .

    Still, I couldn't take my eyes off this . . . . I guess I am just one sick SOB . . .

  • November 19, 2009
    It seemed somewhat interesting to read about, but knowing about the treatment of cats in the movie turned me off completely, whether they're fake or real (hopefully not) is what made me turn away a movie that could've seemed promising, but not for me.
  • November 16, 2009
    There is so much said about human behavior in this film that has never been able to be captured before. Some might call it nihilistic or dumb, but it depicts a reality that is hauntingly real. It might be way too much of a reality check for some, to see the true disgustingly beau...( read more)tiful world we live in. You can just see how much time and energy was poured into this movie to get a simple message across: We're not perfect. The tone is almost set like a horror, which it really kind've is. The acting was actually really amazing for the look they were going for and was probably the most effective aspect of the film. Years and years of warped generations can be seen so easily and that makes it all the more disturbing.
  • November 4, 2009
    Buen cine gringo receinte
  • October 31, 2009
    This film completely changed my life. What else can I say. It's my number one favourite movie ever.
  • October 18, 2009
    A pseudo-documentary movie about the inhabitants of a small town ravaged by a tornado.

Critic Reviews


April 12, 2002
Liam Lacey, Globe and Mail

In real life, this town was devastated by a tornado 20 years ago. According to Korine's version of things, it never recovered. full review

View more Gummo reviews at RottenTomatoes.com

Comments


  • MorpheusOne
    July 3, 2008
    Filled to the max with apathetic characters, this is one of the most disturbing and disgusting films that I have ever seen!!!
  • YlowBstard
    November 1, 2006
    This film will leave you compelled and angered at the same time. I liked it, and there is nothing else quite like it- NOTHING!
  • andresh86
    August 20, 2006
    Bizarre, plotless and arguably messageless film about a town whose infrastructure and psyche (though the psyche was probably already lacking) were destroyed by the passing of a tornado. Harmony Korine doesn't present us with a plot as much as he presents a disturbing showcase of unsettling individuals. Black Metal, poverty and boredom take their toll on the nihilistic lives of the residents of Xena, Ohio. As you can tell, this movie is neither a pleasant nor easy watch, personally I found it enjoyable as an oddity.

    Politically correct types proceed with extreme caution.

Critic ratings and reviews powered by RottenTomatoes.com

Fresh (60% or more critics rated the movie positively)

Rotten (59% or fewer critics rated the movie positively)

More Like This


Click a thumb to vote on that suggestion, or add your own suggestions.

  • Acid Bath: Double Live Bootleg
    Acid Bath: Double Live Bootleg (0%)
  • O Magnata
    O Magnata (100%)
  • Happiness
    Happiness (100%)
  • Freaks
    Freaks (0%)

Facts


No facts approved yet. Be the first

Gummo : Watch Free on TV


Gummo Trivia


  • Which Marx Brother wasn't in the films?  Answer »
  • In response to the question "This is a correction on the quesion about the Marx brothers. There is not a Gummo but there is a..." This question is wrong - there really WAS a Gummo in the Marx Bros (briefly).  Answer »
  • Which of these films was NOT directed by, or in part by, Larry Clark?  Answer »
  • What was the name of the fifth Marx brother?  Answer »

Recent News


No recent headlines. Got one?

Most Popular Skin


No skins yet. Interested in creating one?