Dogfight (1991)

I hope that everyone's 2011 has been off to a good start! Mine has been nice. Although, I'm looking forward to spring already because it's been pretty chilly outside. Not that springtime in the Midwest is much warmer. I feel like spring is basically winter, but then it somehow dissolves into summer. I've been watching movies placed in warm sunny places to remember that the weather will eventually be higher than at least the teens during the morning time. I do like when it snows out though. It looks so beautiful!

Back to the topic of this post. I love River Phoenix. Mainly because I love him as Chris Chambers in 'Stand by Me' (1986) and Danny Pope/Michael Manfield in 'Running on Empty' (1988). He had a certain energy about him that is meant to last forever. In a way, it has lasted forever because it is apparent in the characters he played in all of his movies.

I recently watched 'Dogfight,' starring River Phoenix and Lili Taylor. It's based in the 60s and River plays a marine, Eddie Birdlace. The night before Birdlace and his friends in the Marines are being shipped off to Vietnam, they decide to live it up for the night. Living it up to them is gambling with each other by playing a mean game known as 'Dogfight.' The way to win the game is to bring the ugliest date to the party they're having at a bar. The one who finds the ugliest wins the prize money.

Eddie ends up bringing a shy girl named Rose, who he meets in a coffee shop. While they are walking to the party and talking, he realizes that she is a very nice and interesting girl. He feels reluctant to take her to the party, but she keeps insisting. By the end of the party, she sees through the game and is furious and humiliated, so she leaves. However, Eddie has learned to like her at this point and is determined to make it up to her. Will she forgive him or not?

At the beginning of the movie, I felt sickened by the game the guys were playing. It was so mean and it made me feel terrible. I especially felt bad for Rose because she was so nice and didn't know what she was getting herself into at all. However, the rest of the movie is very good. I loved it and I recommend watching it. River and Lili did a fantastic job.