Comments on: Alpha Dog and Nicholas Markowitz

Alpha Dog and Nicholas Markowitz

russilwvong — Sun, 21 Jan 2007 23:27:36 -0800

(Spoilers for Alpha Dog.) Alpha Dog (trailer), the story of a botched kidnapping set in a Southern California milieu of affluence, bad parenting, rich kids, partying, and marijuana dealing, is based on the case of Nicholas Markowitz. Crime Library. Interview with Nick Cassavetes, the writer and director. Susan Markowitz.

By: chasing

chasing — Mon, 22 Jan 2007 01:17:30 -0800

What a surreal story... Sad.

By: delmoi

delmoi — Mon, 22 Jan 2007 01:53:06 -0800

Omg, don't spoil Alpha Dog!

By: Sticherbeast

Sticherbeast — Mon, 22 Jan 2007 02:28:46 -0800

I'm actually rather fond of Alpha Dog, which reminded of any number of wackadoo cult 70s thrillers, and the true story is both bizarre and...well...Alpha Dog. Some of the strangest moments from the movie are, amazingly, all simply a matter of record. Good post!

By: dogwalker

dogwalker — Mon, 22 Jan 2007 05:02:54 -0800

I saw this movie in a half-full theatre. About 80% of the crowd was comprised of teenage girls who only showed up to see Justin Timberlake. (One of whom whispered, "I love you Justin," everytime he appeared on screen. She later freaked out when he delivered the line, "Fuck me." Really, you should have seen it.) Unfortunately, I think this movie will miss the demographic most in need of seeing it. That said, I agree with Sticherbeast in that the strangest moments are also the most real, and those slight touches of absurd reality give the film unexpected value.

By: Smart Dalek

Smart Dalek — Mon, 22 Jan 2007 05:29:15 -0800

Omg, don't spoil Alpha Dog! Tyrannosaurus rex dies at the end.

By: teece

teece — Mon, 22 Jan 2007 08:41:09 -0800

I already saw this movie on Dateline NBC or America's Most Wanted or whatever. Well, that one didn't have Justin Timberlake, but the plot was the same.

By: b_thinky

b_thinky — Mon, 22 Jan 2007 09:30:10 -0800

Yeah, I saw it on 20/20 or whatever last year. The really strange thing is Justin Timberlake doesn't seem like somebody who totally needs to get his ass kicked anymore. What happened? Is this accurate or am I turning gay somehow?

By: geoff.

geoff. — Mon, 22 Jan 2007 10:14:55 -0800

No, Justin Timberlake's PR skills are amazing. He's gone from boy band, to shedding anything to do with Britney Spears (great move), to avoiding fall out over the Super Bowl incident, to positioning himself as the definition of cool (if that definition includes loud Miami influenced beats). Besides this, I still can't believe the guy was named Jesse James Hollywood. It is akin to naming your kid George Washington Normandy and sending him into politics. The only thing that would make these seemingly bizarre events more rational is if it was revealed Jesse Hollywood was really hyped on cocaine/amphetamines or something. It would make everything seem a lot more lucid.

By: Sterling Hoyt

Sterling Hoyt — Mon, 22 Jan 2007 10:54:17 -0800

Oh great, the triggerman has my last name. Some Hoyts are non-murderous nice people, really. Though one of the defendants was 17, most were in their 20s; blaming the situation on "bad parenting" is misguided, I think. Surely all of them could have been given stronger moral compasses by their parents, but at some point you've got to let adults take responsibility for their own actions, particularly assholes like these guys.

By: rougy

rougy — Mon, 22 Jan 2007 21:49:52 -0800

"...blaming the situation on "bad parenting" is misguided, I think. Surely all of them could have been given stronger moral compasses by their parents, but at some point you've got to let adults take responsibility for their own actions, particularly assholes like these guys." I think it says a lot more about both the apathy of our society and its willingness to ignore the truth. The whole story makes my skin crawl because I'm sure it's not an isolated case; perhaps the murder part, yes, is the extreme conclusion, but I know that this kind of scene is being played out every year by high school kids all over our country. And - sorry I have to say this - if pot were legal a lot of that crap never would have happened.

By: nickyskye

nickyskye — Mon, 22 Jan 2007 23:47:54 -0800

Disturbing and compelling story russilwvong. Thanks for the post about it. Jesse James Hollywood sounds like a classic young psychopath, who attracted other destructive personality disordered kids, as psychopaths often do.

By: poppo

poppo — Tue, 23 Jan 2007 07:42:49 -0800

I can't find any evidence that this is true, but I could swear this story was already made into a movie a couple of years ago, because I saw something just like it on cable. No brand-name actors that I recall, probably straight-to-cable, since I don't recall it having been in theaters. Does anyone else know what I'm talking about?

By: dogwalker

dogwalker — Tue, 23 Jan 2007 16:40:21 -0800

poppo, maybe you're thinking of Bully? I doubt that's it, but comparisons are easily drawn between the two.

By: bleucube

bleucube — Tue, 23 Jan 2007 19:56:48 -0800

I saw the preview and thought to myself The Chumscrubber