Alpha Dog

Rating: R

Movie Release Date: January 12, 2007

DVD Release Date: May 1, 2007

Plot 411: When a guy won't pay his debt, his dealer kidnaps his kid brother to get back at him.

Review: I just don't know what went wrong with this one. The previews looked good and the cast includes some of Hollywood's up-and-coming young actors, but this just wasn't a good movie. A young drug dealer named Johnny Truelove (Emile Hirsch), who I think is just a rich poser, is insulted when Jake Mazursky (Ben Foster) refuses to pay his debt and breaks into his house. Truelove and his gang decide to confront Mazursky but run into his little brother Zack (Anton Yelchin) instead. They throw him in a van and kidnap him, but they don't really know what to do with him. The gang kicks back and Zack enjoys their company. He even refuses to leave when given a chance. But things soon get real when Truelove decides to kill Zack rather than ask for a ransom. His gang must man up to the task and try not to get caught or automatically face time in jail if they let Zack go. The script was based on real events that happened in Santa Barbara County. The kids involved were seriously just kids. The oldest was only 21. How could they cause the death of another person? Was it just a disconnect between life and death? Were they so drugged out that they didn't feel remorse or guilt or shame? It's just crazy. What the movie did get right was the nonchalant attitudes that the boys had. Life seemed to be one big party that never ended. Also starring in this movie was Justin Timberlake, Sharon Stone, Fernando Vargas, Lukas Haas, Amanda Seyfried and Bruce Willis.

Watch It: For an interesting look at the inner workings of a quasi-gang atmosphere.

Skip It: If you have a low tolerance for youthful stupidity.