Pups (1999)
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90% of critics liked it
(10 reviews) -
62% of users liked it
(1,581 ratings)
Two bored suburban kids looking for something to do get trapped in the wrong kind of excitement in this independent drama. Stevie (Cameron Van Hoy) is a boy in his early teens, depressed and out of sorts, who half-heartedly attempts suicide without having the wherewithal to go the whole nine yards.… More Two bored suburban kids looking for something to do get trapped in the wrong kind of excitement in this independent drama. Stevie (Cameron Van Hoy) is a boy in his early teens, depressed and out of sorts, who half-heartedly attempts suicide without having the wherewithal to go the whole nine yards. When his girlfriend Rocky (Mischa Barton) shows up on her way to school, Stevie has just found his mother's gun while poking around the house. As they head off for class, Stevie brings the pistol along. They pass a bank along the way, and Stevie impulsively dashes in and decides to rob the place. Before Stevie and Rocky can get away, police and FBI agents arrive on the scene, and Stevie announces he's taking the customers inside the bank hostage. FBI negotiator Daniel Bender (Burt Reynolds) is sent to the scene of the crime; while it's quickly obvious to him that these are two kids pulling a prank that got out of hand, they're also armed and in the middle of a very dangerous situation, and Stevie's bursts of adolescent rage aren't making things run any smoother. Financed by a Japanese production company but written, directed, and starring American talent, Pups had its premier screening at the 1999 Los Angeles Independent Film Festival -- only two days before two armed high school students went on a tragic killing spree in Littleton, CO. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi
- Directed By
- Ash
- Written By
- Ash
- Genres
- Drama, Action & Adventure, Kids & Family, Mystery & Suspense
- In Theaters
- Jan 1, 1999 Wide
- Studio
- Allied Entertainment
Critic Reviews
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Robert Koehler, Variety
The crisp images and Bill Foster's unnerving ambient sound of hovering copters enormously aid this low-budget powder keg.
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Owen Gleiberman, Entertainment Weekly
Ash ... is a genuine provocateur-filmmaker.
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Lou Lumenick, New York Post
Raw but effective reworking of Dog Day Afternoon.
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Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times
Pups looks ragged and slammed-together, but that's part of its appeal; the film has a wildness that more care would have killed.
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Lawrence Van Gelder, New York Times
Hyperkinetic, perceptive though derivative.
See more critic ratings and reviews on Rotten Tomatoes
Fresh (60% or more critics rated the movie positively)
Rotten (59% or fewer critics rated the movie positively)
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Cast
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Cameron Van Hoy
as Stevie
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Mischa Barton
as Rocky
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Burt Reynolds
as Daniel Bender
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Adam Farrar
as Wheelchair Man
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David Alan Graf
as Bank Manager
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Kurt Loder
as Kurt Loder
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James Gordon
as J.P.
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Darling Narita
as Joy
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Ed Metzger
as Mr. Edwards
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Suzie Gordon
as Rio
- Adam Ferrar
- David Allen Graf
