Whether or not its intentionally messy, erratically paced style resonates with you, there’s something undeniably special about having a show like Rain Dogs in our current television landscape. Almost aggressively opposed to the idea of comfort viewing and easily marketable drama, the series deals with characters who are at rock bottom for all eight episodes. There’s a particular restlessness to its storytelling that keeps it thoroughly unpredictable, and allows Daisy May Cooper and Jack Farthing to play razor-sharp, open-hearted roles without any pretension whatsoever. But Rain Dogs’ unique personality also means it can be especially challenging to latch on to its story—especially when the momentum is rarely carried over from one episode to the next. We become trapped in the show’s central toxic friendship to the point of overemphasis. And that’s a rare, valuable thing, but it can also be much too frustrating.
"The London-set tragicomedy about a struggling single mom is less a plea for sympathy than a showcase for flawed humanity and (occasionally outrageous) gallows humor."
— Inkoo Kang
"There’s a lot of injustice in “Rain Dogs” but also a lot of love, bawdy humor, and perseverance."
— Cristina Escobar
An unconventional love story between a working-class single mum, her young daughter and a privileged gay man. A wild and punky tale of a mother's love for her daughter, of deep-rooted and passionate friendships, and of brilliance thwarted by poverty and prejudice.
Single mother Costello moves from one odd job and temporary housing unit to the next in order to care for her daughter, while getting drawn back into a toxic friendship with her self-destructive friend Selby.
Among Rain Dogs' mix of scoundrels and down-on-their-luck outcasts (some of whom barely get to come into their own as full characters), the one person who remains unforgettable is Farthing's flamboyant, eternally depressed Florian Selby. Aware of his own awful habits and the danger he poses to Costello and her daughter Iris, Selby nevertheless refuses to stay away—accepting his own decline as he acts as his friend's de facto bodyguard and enforcer. Farthing's ability to be charming, pitiful, and surprisingly violent all at once allows Selby to be a convincing, three-dimensional character and not just a collection of random character traits.
If I had a penny for every offbeat half-hour dramedy I've seen with a title that can be shortened to "R. Dogs," I'd have two pennies. Which isn't much, but it's weird that it happened twice.
Venice
1 nomination
