Babyteeth (2019) User Reviews

Challenging in so Many Ways...

[Xstal · 7/10 · 8 July 2020]

Take any of the characters, they all behave legitimately from their perspective, a result of their personal and social circumstance.

A teenage girl on chemo befriends a rogue, much to her parents dismay and their own dysfunctional relationship. A film about how we interact, with ourselves and with others. Beautifully performed, written and directed.

An incredible piece of cinema

[ethanbresnett · 8/10 · 19 September 2021]

Where to start with this fantastic film?

Firstly every single performance is flawless. Eliza Scanlen as the lead is magnetic, impossible to take your eyes off. She plays the role so well, showing great vulnerability and warmth balanced with such fire and spirit in her character. It's such a well written part and so well played. Toby Wallace as Moses is equally brilliant, and the on screen chemistry and interactions between the two are so captivating.

In terms of the story it is so compelling. Each character has such different reactions and ways of progressing through the unfolding events of the plot, with everything feeling very real and poignant. There's so much beauty in the story and so much emotion as well, it really will take it out of you after watching this.

To top it all off the film also has such a gorgeous feel to it. It looks beautiful, has such a peaceful and calming score, and has this vein of almost tranquillity running through it.

A beautiful hidden gem of a film.

Wait till the End !

[vinayaksirkeck · 8/10 · 19 October 2020]

You could watch it thinking just another teenage drama all doomed with tragedy but wait till the end. It's not till the end the true goal is achieved and true characters are revealed. Truth is, this is story with obvious outcome but what makes it different is the characters and how they reach to reality of situation. The scene cut abruptly and goes back and forth from sad to jumpy to anger to romance and back to being sad. Even the mysterious reveal is so subtle that many of us won't notice. But it's all with good intentions that movie is wrapped up by the waves crashing beach which metaphorically symbolises that you live multiple lives of your parents and your friends and you lose all those lives when you die.

A beautiful surprise

[damianphelps · 7/10 · 14 September 2020]

This movie is kind of like going to your favourite holiday spot, you know what your'e going to get when you arrive but the drive is wonderful.

The story of a dysfunctional family as they try and cope with 'life' as it currently presents itself to them.

The film carries this emotional melancholy which the actors use to float through the events they are met with.

Not dramatic for the sake of it, no epic speeches, just the honest (feeling) expressions of emotions.

Its a very worthwhile film.

This is why I love cinema

[choquetflorian · 10/10 · 12 July 2020]

This movie is pure love. It captured everything. I am so grateful for art like this to exist and to remind us we are alive. I think it's the best music I've ever heard in a movie in years. It is a masterpiece because it used everything this very diverse form of art has to offer to deliver such a palpable, direct, honest, and real taste of the beauty inherent to life and love. I'm always shocked when I discover a movie like this, stunned by the clarity and the truth of the vision it offers. Watch it, live it. Thanks to everybody involved in this piece of art.

Well Acted But Very Depressing

[evanston_dad · 7/10 · 3 December 2020]

Well acted but very depressing.

Eliza Scanlan gives a fascinating performance as a young woman who's going through cancer treatment and falls for a drug addict who may or may not be good for her. Her parents (Essie Davis and Ben Mendelsohn) are dysfunctional and unraveling and have drug problems of their own. They don't like her daughter's boyfriend and under normal circumstances probably wouldn't tolerate him. But he's the only thing that brings their daughter some respite from the hell she's going through, so they sort of adopt him as their own.

"Babyteeth" is a coming of age movie that's set apart from others like it because of the protagonist's existential crisis. Scanlan's character is as immature in some ways as any sixteen year old, but at the same time is being asked to summon up reserves of maturity to deal with the ultimate curve ball life has to throw at us. How do you balance the emotional and hormonal ups and downs of teen romance with the possibility of your impending death?

The film is a bit monotonous in tone and starts to feel like a grind after a while. But again, it's worth seeing for the performances and for the unsentimental treatment of the subject matter that would have possibly segued into the maudlin in different hands. The ending scene is the most devastating thing I've seen in a movie this year.

Grade: B+

Exceptional

[shbs-71594 · 9/10 · 22 June 2020]

The story is well told; especially good is that they SHOW you about various aspects of the story, and dont just TELL you key points. You are SHOWN that the parents have a complicated relationship, and as such hers is likely going to be. Characters are well fleshed out with interesting foibles, tics and characteristics. I don't know if this is the work of the scriptwriter? The director? Or if the book was just that good that it inspired everyone to great heights.

I dont like stories about teenagers very much typically, but I'm VERY glad I watched this. It's probably the best Australian movie I've seen in many years.

Falls a little shy of greatness, but there's still a great deal to like here

[Jeremy_Urquhart · 7/10 · 29 July 2020]

There are a lot of things this movie does great, I want to comment right off the bat. However, part of me was frustrated I didn't love the whole movie, and I think there were just a few things holding it back from greatness. As such, I'm probably going to cover more negatives than positives here. If anything it's probably more like the equivalent of a 7.5 rather than a 7, so I hope it doesn't read too much like I'm bashing on the movie.

On the topic of positives: the acting across the board is very strong, particularly from Ben Mendelsohn, who seems to shine no matter what movie he's in. It captures the feeling of living in the Australian suburbs with an uncanny accuracy (can confirm, I've been there all my life), it uses music extremely well (especially one scene around the halfway mark that uses the anxious yet beautiful 'Bizness' by Tune-Yards), there are some genuinely emotional moments, and the direction is largely good.

I say largely good because aspects of how the movie looked would be one of my complaints. It adopts a handheld style for much of the runtime, and honestly it works the vast majority of the time. That being said, I couldn't help but notice a couple of instances where it was too rough; where it stopped looking like handheld camerawork and instead just looked like shoddy camerawork. These moments were rare, but one instance early on- where it looked like the camera banged into something and jolted slightly but noticeably- was distracting.

Speaking of distracting: so were the occasional Flea-Bag style glances to the camera from the main character. I'm sure there was a purpose, but it was lost on me (such a minor comment though, and not really a flaw if it just comes down to me being a dummy and not understanding).

Also, the film has a very episodic feel that creates a mild sense of repetition in parts. For just under two hours, it does feel a tiny bit long. I think you could have kept it episodic and maybe shortened some sequences, or excised one of the subplots (the violin teacher stuff didn't add a whole heap to the story, in my opinion). Or: give the narrative more of a logical flow and make the series of events more coherent and satisfying; traditional, even. The risk with doing that would be making the already quite simple story feel dangerously cliche, and so I think the best solution would be to keep the episodic feel but with about 10-15 minutes trimmed off the run time.

Like I said, it's very good though. And the acting, music, emotional content, setting, and most of the visuals are clearly good, while some of those other aforementioned nitpicks- had they been addressed- could have made for a movie that I would've loved.

Never cried so hard in my life...a parents perspective.

[safsurfer · 10/10 · 21 June 2020]

Yeah this film from down under is funny, quirky, heart-warming, and heart-breaking and the on screen chemistry and electricity between the young lovers is so remarkable and unlike any love story ever put to film. The actors were phenomenal and absorbing and played their parts perfectly well. I was laughing one scene and crying the next.

So 'Babyteeth' is primarily a love story on one hand and a tragic family drama on the other with a bunch of comic circumstances and scenarios thrown in and juxtaposed with the love, loss, addiction, disfunction, and dieing portrayed in the film. Please don't think it's dark comedy or similar. This is serious film first. Direction, casting, acting, everything was perfect and spot on.

This film will elicit a lot of emotions....happy at times , sad others, and then flat out sadness sorrow and crying at the end. The plot/theme is nothing new but the way the director kept each scene simple and focused and kept dialog minimized and the chemistry and character development and interaction maximized, breathed new life and not cliché.

Take the time to see this picture....it won't disapoint. The subject matter may be bleak but you have never seen it like this and as tearful as it may be, it's so worth watching and experiencing the emotions for yourself. Rate 10/10 for 'off the richter'.

memorable first feature

[ferguson-6 · 7/10 · 19 June 2020]

Greetings again from the darkness. There is no logical explanation for how an Australian indie film, the first feature from director Shannon Murphy, can contain so many elements: a terminally ill teenager, first love, addiction, music lessons, questionable parenting, comedy, a small time drug dealer, a defensive smoking pregnant neighbor, a clueless classmate, a school formal, multiple wigs, a music teacher, a smorgasbord of prescription and illegal drugs, a doctor and dog both named Henry, a bad haircut, and a broken 4th wall ... all kicked off by a bloody nose during the 'meet cute' at the train stop.

The best explanation for how this crazy jigsaw fits together is the extraordinary work from director Murphy, the tremendous performances from the talented cast, and the exceptional script (her first screenplay) from Rita Kalnejais, which she adapted from her own play. That cast is made up of screen veterans Ben Mendolsohn (always great) and Essie Davis (the mother in THE BABADOOK, 2014), as well as rising star Eliza Scanlen (so memorable in "Sharp Objects"), and relative unknown (but probably not for long) Toby Wallace. Support work is provided by Emily Barclay, as the neighbor mentioned above, and Eugene Gilfedder as the music teacher.

Sixteen year old Milla (Ms. Scanlen) has terminal cancer. Her resigned demeanor turns to excitement when she meets Moses (Mr. Wallace), a gangly hyper-active ball of energy who looks her in the eye through his own blood-shot peepers. She falls quickly and hard. When Milla invites Moses to dinner, her parents Henry (Mr. Mendolsohn) and Anna (Ms. Davis) are as shocked and confounded as any parent would be - and least of all at her haircut. They forbid Milla to see Moses, and we all know how well that approach works for parents.

Henry is a psychiatrist who walks to work, which sometimes leads to an exchange with his new neighbor Toby - the one who has a dog named Henry, and whose defense of her smoking while pregnant stuns us and Henry (the man, not the doctor). Milla's mother Anna was a musician, and now suffers from bouts of depression. She's heavily medicated thanks to her husband who can legally prescribe drugs for her. Moses has been cast out by his own mother in an effort to protect her younger son, and Milla views Moses as a way to live life before dying.

Director Murphy uses segment/chapter titles to distinguish the bouts of dysfunction, and to allow time to skip ahead. Initially we find ourselves asking the same question Henry and Anna ask, why would Milla go 'slumming' for a guy like Moses? We all slowly come around to accept what's happening. It's all about feeling as much as possible and experiencing what she can before it's all over. Time remaining is her motivation.

There are some terrific moments throughout - some easier to watch than others. Milla's clueless classmate's selfie is excruciating for us and Milla, and when Anna tells Henry, "This is the worst possible parenting I can imagine", every parent can relate. The actors are in fine form here, each making their character relatable without being showy - even Milla's breaking the 4th wall is understated. The film teeters between pain and underlying humor, and balances on the edge of melodrama without tipping. The closest film I can recall in tone and style is Mike Mills' underrated THUMBSUCKER (2005). With characters that come across as sincere and organic, director Murphy offers up a heartbreaking celebration of living while you are able. Chaos is inevitable, so we might as well accept it.

unique, touching and beautifully australian

[jasminespork · 10/10 · 3 January 2021]

The cinematography, the sountrack, the complex characters and of course the acting- a movie I wish I could unwatch only to experience the pure joy (and other emotion) I felt watching this. An instant all time favourite.

Good acting, dramatic story.

[deloudelouvain · 6/10 · 2 July 2020]

In this genre (drama) babyteeth isn't a bad movie. It's not really the kind of movie I would go for normally but since I read from another reviewer that she never cried that much I was curious. The truth is that it isn't a happy movie, but certainly not the saddest either, I didn't drop a tear and it's not I'm coldhearted. The quirky chemistry between the two main characters Milla and Mo is entertaining to watch though. Good job from Toby Wallace and Eliza Scanlen for playing those characters. The cast was good, the acting was better than I expected, the story is easy to follow, just don't expect a lot of comedy. I don't know why they call it a comedy to be honest with you.

An okay movie. Overrated.

[rockinkettles-1 · 4/10 · 14 December 2020]

This movie got so much praise that I decided to watch it to see just how good it was. It was just okay. More drama than anything. Not much of a comedy. A girl named Milla has a terminal illness. She meets a loser small time drug dealer named Moses and falls in love with him. They had pretty good chemistry but nothing all that special. Most of the movie is of Milla being in love with Moses but not feeling any love back from him. He leaves her and comes back more than once. This is a slow movie that was maybe a half an hour too long. It probably could have been wrapped up in 90 minutes. I've seen other love stories similar to this that touched me more with actors who had much better chemistry. One of my favorite love stories is Untamed Heart with Marissa Tomei and Christian Slater. That one really got to me and made me cry my eyes out. This movie is sad at the end, but the impact was not that great to make me fall apart and cry a lot. I'm sure it will be different for everyone. Maybe you'll like it more than I did. But for me, I don't recommend it.

hurtful warning sad story

[seathrushtgm · 7/10 · 20 March 2022]

This makes you consider if you are her parents. It describes so well confusion of their situation with the great camera angle and sound tracks.

At the beginning I felt bit bored to insane situation, but you'll into it in the end.

Unexpected

[scnytbvf · 8/10 · 4 March 2023]

I started this movie thinking what am I actually watching here and was thinking it was gonna be a waste of time but it ended up surprising me greatly. It is very weird and a little slow to start with but as the story unfolds you start to warm to all the characters and feel their pain.

It's a great Australian movie that deserves more celebration

It's told from all the characters perspective as they deal with this journey of tragedy and loss with git and rawness.

This storyline has been told time and again but not like this. A great story told so differently that it was unexpected and raw and fantastic.

Babyteeth

[jboothmillard · 6/10 · 29 April 2021]

I think I watched Mark Kermode review this Australian film for the BBC News, it sounded like it would be good, and the director Shannon Murphy (Killing Eve) was nominated at the BAFTAs, so I was looking forward to it. Basically, sixteen-year-old schoolgirl Milla Finlay (Little Women's Eliza Scanlen) has recently been diagnosed with cancer. One day, heading home from school, she meets twenty-three-year-old Moses (Toby Wallace), a small-time drug dealer, at a train station. They have a conversation, and he asks her for money to catch a train, but he changes his mind, and they spend time together. Milla quickly develops a crush on Moses and introduces him to her parents, musician Anna (Essie Davis) and psychiatrist Henry (Ben Mendelsohn). Milla's parents are uncomfortable with Moses, due to the age difference, and the signs that he is a drug user. But due to Milla's illness they are permissive. Some time later, Anna wakes up during the night and finds Moses trying to rob the family for prescription drugs. Milla and Henry wake up and are alerted to the situation, Henry wants to call the police, but Milla pleads for them not to. Anna notices how much happier Milla is with Moses but still disapproves. The following day, Anna warns Moses to stay away from her daughter. Moses continues to visit Milla at school. Milla tracks Moses down and they go to a party together one night. But Moses abandons her, and she becomes weakened. Her distraught parents find her and take her to the hospital. Aware that they are unable to stop the relationship between Milla and Moses, Henry and Anna come to accept it. Having lost her hair to chemotherapy, and wanting a change of look, Milla starts wearing wigs, including coloured ones, and finds a new sense of fashion. When Milla gets ill at home, Anna realises that Moses has taken her medication. Milla becomes angered, believing that Moses is using her for her father's access to drugs and throws him out. Later, Henry tracks Moses down and asks him to come live with the family, promising him access to drugs if he continues to make Milla happy. For a while, the family and Moses almost peacefully until Milla discovers her father is supplying Moses with drugs. She is angered again and asks Moses to leave. He eventually comes back and goes through withdrawal and recovery to stay sober. After Milla celebrates a happy seventeenth birthday party, she reveals to Moses that she is in constant pain and knows she does not have much longer. She begs Moses to kill her, using a pillow to suffocate her, they try but he cannot do it and Milla stops him during the process. Following this, they calm themselves and have sex for the first time. The following day, Anna and Henry realise that Milla had sex for the first time. When Anna goes to take Milla breakfast in bed, she instead discovers she has died during the night. In a flashback, Henry remembers a day with Milla at the beach. She tells him she is at peace with dying and asks him to take care of Moses when she is gone. Henry, in turn, promises that he and Anna will be okay when she dies. Also starring Michelle Lotters as Scarlett, Zach Grech as Isaac, and Georgina Symes as Polly. It should be mentioned that the meaning behind the title is because it opens with a baby tooth dropping in a glass of water, and the lead character later has a baby tooth fall out following a tense moment. Scanlen gives an authentic performance as the girl on the cusp of womanhood who cannot help her feelings for a wrong 'un, Wallace is alright as the boyfriend, and Davis and Mendelsohn are interesting as the parents. It is familiar story involving cancer and the turmoil it causes for a family, and the petty criminal boyfriend adds to the dysfunctional situation, it may be predictable in moments, but it is absorbing, a worthwhile comedy-drama. Good!

It's just perfect

[xsagaroth · 10/10 · 20 June 2020]

It's funny, it's artistic, it's dark, it's beautiful. I always feel a perfect movie will make you laugh, cry, and fall in love with something, this film has so many moments you can fall in love with, you are missing out if you don't take the time enjoy this.

Can't get into the story

[Gordon-11 · 28 June 2020]

The story is slow, and none of the characters capture my heart. I can't get into the story at all.

It was okay. A bit too long of a film for what it is

[helghast-1337 · 6/10 · 28 June 2020]

I watched this only because I saw it advertised from my cable company , it sounded semi interesting and I had a free pay per view certificate. I do not think i am this movies target demographic but from what I saw I would say I was entertained but won't ever have a need to watch it again. This movie is 20-30 minutes too long as well and in some parts seemed to be going on just to try to be "artsy". Frankly there are parts to me that are too weird but maybe it's Australian culture ? They meet at the train station (Which is fine) but she gets a nose bleed and he lays her down in his lap after taking his shirt off to stop the nose bleed. This is weird to me. The way the parents let him just kind of run amok in their home is also something I don't understand (talking about before a big change in scenery not after. Don't want to a spoil it ). The acting was decent and nothing special. I did enjoy the soundtrack so it gets positive remarks for that. Overall I wouldn't watch it again and I do have difficulty in actually recommending this to a first timer. It's not a terrible movie but there's something about it (probably the length) that rubs me the wrong way.

Heartwarming Picture

[vincentedte · 8/10 · 3 October 2019]

Babyteeth is summed up pretty fast: A young teenage girl is falling in love with a drug dealer and her parents don't like that. Babyteeth was a movie i didn't really looked forward to, when i heard it will be screened in Venice. But for me it was one of the biggest surprise. It has a nice heartwarming story, focusing on family, love and the big changes in life. The story is kind of mind-blowing in some twists, especially if you only know the plot-summary above and the characters are great. The main character: Milla is beautiful crafted and everybody can understand her actions...okay, maybe not all of them, but the movie often asks the viewer to ask yourself: How would you act in this situations? What would you do? It is a movie, which extends your view on love, life and family. Her parents Henry and Anna are just very warm and nice persons, they create a beautiful and familiar atmosphere for the viewer. You get the feeling you are sucked into the situation and can understand them. Her big love Moses is just like your typical drug dealer guy, but what makes the difference here to other movie drug dealers is the character development. You see yourself coming of Age with this character as the story moves on. You start to feel with him and understand him. So to sum it up at this point: Story, characters and of course the actors are great. (the award for best newcomer for Moses actor Toby Wallace was so well deserved!) The ending ist heartbreaking and so beautiful. I loved it! Okay, so why just 8 points? For me this movie has big leaks, when it comes to cinematography and pace. The cinematography was just normal and never blew me away. The pace of the story and within this the directing was too unbalanced in pace and continuity. Many parts of the movie felt very slow and boring. 20 Minutes less, would have been better.

So finally: I loved the movie, as a character movie, telling a story about love and life. But it fails to become a all around great movie, because of the leaks in the technical aspects.

worth watching

[jewelch · 7/10 · 21 March 2021]

Milla's charm, paired with the messy, complicated love that these four central characters develop for one another, gives Babyteeth a strong heartbeat that carries the film from its first frame to a bittersweet ending. James Welch Henderson, Arkansas 3/21/2021

Stark and honest about the dysfunction rampant in the contemporary Australian family and society at large

[m_imdb-905-691213 · 9/10 · 19 June 2020]

Saddled with cancer and surrounded by pretentious, unhappy people posing as family and friends, a teenage Australian girl tries to find some happiness with a chaotic young man she meets through a chance encounter on a train platform.

Babyteeth is stark and honest about the dysfunction rampant in the contemporary Australian family and society at large, about the roles that people find themselves forced to play in order to 'fit in', and how they force this role playing on others. For a young girl facing her mortality, these machinations seem like farce - why would anyone live like that when their life is all that they have?

As the young man, Moses, says, why would anyone pigeon-hole themselves into being just one thing?

Why indeed.

An odd but well-acted Australia dramedy

[eddie_baggins · 6/10 · 1 September 2020]

We've seen a number of teenager's with a sickness coming of age films over the years, ranging from darkly humorous to downright devastating, with new Australian film Babyteeth attempting to walk the line between both as it examines the life of its main protagonist Milla as the teenage girl battles her cancer and her life growing into an adult.

Directed by Shannon Murphy, in what acts as her feature debut after work in famed TV shows such as Killing Eve and Rake, Babyteeth is an impressive first-up effort from the emerging local talent who manages to ensure that Babyteeth is at all times unpredictable and original, even if it bites off a little more than it can chew at times with its excessive oddness and strange plot developments.

Collecting together an all-star cast that includes Australian legends Essie Davis and Ben Mendelsohn (always a pleasure to watch when given the right material to work with) and soon to be stars Eliza Scanlan as Milla and the rats-tail sporting Toby Wallace as Milla's new friend/love interest Moses, Murphy's material was clearly strong enough to attract some serious talent, who all deliver knock-out performances as a dysfunctional family and group of friends that are trying their best to keep their heads above water in this crazy world.

Wasting little time introducing us to the world that Milla finds herself in, one with drug addled parents trying to stay strong for their only daughter, chemo and the junkie that is Moses who might just be Milla's saving grace in her dark time, Babyteeth doesn't attempt to follow a linear or predictable story-line as the free-spirited Milla makes her way through various situations that at times are confronting, awkward and even moving.

It's an odd balancing act for the film to maintain, many scenes in the film feel completely removed from the one before it or after it and at stages you do begin to wish that the film may've stayed the course a little longer in certain areas with lots of backstories and plot developments feeling rather arbitrary to the greater good of the film.

Many of the elements of Murphy's film also feel like you need to be willing to suspended disbelief more often than not, particularly Milla's families acceptance of a thieving and much older Moses into their lives that makes you wonder if the family is on much stronger medication that one initially expected but when its focus is on the very human and relatable relationships that appear in the film and with Davis, Mendelsohn, Scanlan and Wallace all knocking their performances out of the park, there are enough strong elements here to suggest Babyteeth is the birth of a very talented director and a further reminder of the incredible talent that exists in our country.

Final Say -

Make no doubt about it, Babyteeth is an odd beast and a unique take on the sickness dramedy sub-genre but its got enough stand-out moments and array of fine performances that ensure its one of the years best local products.

3 light bulbs out of 5

It was missing something

[miababic · 4/10 · 6 February 2021]

I could tell that the people who made this are obviously talented but something about the film was just seriously lacking. It was all there... like they were so close but I just didn't find it good. I wish I knew why

Eccentric and electric ailing teen romance. Much more than that.

[JohnDeSando · 20 June 2020]

"This is the worst parenting." Anna (Essie Davis)

A young woman seriously ill has had its wispy films like The Fault in Our Stars (2014), so Babyteeth is not original by any means, except that it is. However, director Shannon Murphy has infused it with a casual and light attitude that allows the growing love between teen Milla (Eliza Scanlen) and charismatic 23-year-old Moses (Toby Wallace) to dominate rather than the illness.

A forced eccentricity pervades with the teens and her parents Henry (Ben Mendelsohn) and Anna. Milla dances and loves with Moses, who when not dealing drugs can provide wispy sentimentality and demanding reality to nurture the ill Milla. Watch the play of color and light and spot-on lyrical music to convince the skeptical dad how much better Moses is than prescription drugs. Although dad is a psychiatrist, the family is dysfunctional enough to amuse the audience and blunt the force of Milla 's decline.

Because both mom and dad actors are Australian icons, Shannon can underplay them to give full force to Milla and change agent Moses, whom parents let into their lives as they witness how happy he makes Milla.

Actually, mom and dad may be more interesting to an audience that prefers adults with baggage who are still passionate about each other and more or less work together to give Milla a comfortable life they hope without the dangers the older boy promises. Regardless, this is a teen coming of age story like no other-joy abounds amid family chaos and illness. Milla is a teen to remember when joie de vivre is needed.