“Society tames the wolf into a dog. And man is the most domesticated animal of all.”
– Friedrich Nietzsche
Canine is—something that should come as no surprise—a film about a dog. It is also a film about a dog owner who has lost his dog and is running around frantically searching for his pet pooch, as most dog lovers would. The dog owner (Earl) is played by the familiar Ira Amyx (of Empire fame) and introduces Sloan Davis as the “good Samaritan” jogger.
Ira Amyx as Earl
With a runtime of approximately five minutes, there is a surprising amount to unpack. Without giving too much away, I believe that director Sean Richard Budde is taking a jab at the suppression of animalistic desires and the taming of predatory urges. The short is quite bloody, with Earl more beast than man.
It is the imagery, the very technical and intentional camera work, and the vexatious nature of the characters that come together to really sell the short. The helpful couple? Annoying. The jogger? Contemplating theft. Earl? Murderous and manipulative. Then there are the beautiful shots, first-person views, the jogging shoes…You can see that every detail has been meticulously thought out, well-planned, and executed diligently.
Sloan Davis as “The Jogger”
Although I cannot fault the technical aspects of the film, I will say that putting my finger on the theme or the story as a whole is…difficult. Without the quote at the start, I would have been hard-pressed to figure out the meaning, although I’m not even sure if I’ve interpreted it correctly to be honest. The method of murder doesn’t seem very…methodical—definitely not practical. Maybe I’m simply trying too hard to read into something that isn’t there.
Overall, it’s a great five minutes and well worth a watch. Themes and meanings aside, if you enjoy a well crafted and technically polished piece of film, then this one is definitely for you. You can watch Canine right now as it is currently part of the June edition of Bloody Disgusting’s World of Death. Thanks for reading and as always, stay sordid. Teaser trailer and poster below.
