Baxter (1990)

Wow, this is one of those films where after you watch it you can't get your mind off it. The atmosphere is so great, and the plot is so dark. The idea is so twisted, but really only to our eyes. It may seem twisted but actually, it is an interesting thought we should except. No, dogs aren't killers but do we really know what's going on in our dogs head. Is he really just wagging his tail and running around not thinking about anything else. Don't think I am crazy, I don't think dog's have such advance ideas, or maybe they do. What I am saying is their thoughts are probably much more advance they we may think. It's something we should think about.

Baxter (1989) was a crazy film from France. It's about a Bull terrier that thinks like a human. He's a mean dog that only cares about himself and no one else. Baxter had several different masters (they include an elderly shut in and a young couple with a baby) and he cares about none of them. One day he finds a boy who he takes a liking to. The boy makes him very aggressive and runs him ragged. But the kid tries to turn him into something he's not (after witnessing him defend his master from an angry dog), a trained killer. The kid soon begins to neglects Baxter and he turns to other activities that don't include his dog. Tired of the boy, his weird fetishes and smelling his weakness, Baxter decides to take him out. But he doesn't get to do the job and his eliminated. Whilst Baxter expires, his memory will always live on.A great intellectual thriller about a dog with a human brain. I loved the stark realism that the film makers brought to the table. They could have easily fumbled the ball and made a flat out terrible film. Underrated and neglected.Highly recommended.

I rented Baxter one night just on a whim after reading the cover. Sometimes this works and sometimes it doesn't. But I was truly stunned by this picture, about a disturbed evil bull terrier and how he came to go from master to master, until he meets his match in a maniacal pre-teen neo-nazi. Any film that can have you laughing out loud while a dog is plotting to drown an infant in a fountain, will not be for all tastes. For those who like a comedy blacker than midnight on a moonless night will definately enjoy this movie.

A graphic depiction of cruelty and emotional detachment that may well depict elements of real life, but is not funny so much as it is unsettling. While there is no question that the director designed a powerful film, I missed the perspective or balance of emotional depth that is also a part of real life. The director's point of view seems as heartless and emotionally stunted as the characters he describes.