Rating: 
Summary: You go girl!
Review: This movie almost requires more than one viewing. The first time you watch it, you might be so shocked by the behavior of most of the characters that you will miss the brilliance of the message and its presentation. The actors are flawless, the depiction of suburban life all too hellishly real, and Heather Matarazzo is beyond wonderful as Dawn. She MAKES the movie. Hey, to some extent, we have all been Dawn at some time or other, and watching her trials and tribulations, you just want her to SURVIVE; hang in there, Dawn - you're gonna make it after all!
Rating: 
Summary: Reliving junior high hell
Review: This movie exemplifies why I have always told people that teaching junior high students must be the worst--they are so cruel to one another at that age! Three things impacted me in this movie: (1) the superb performances by Heather Matarazzo and Brendan Sexton III (who manages to have my sympathy even when he is cruel), (2) the family dynamic in which Dawn is ignored or considered the family black sheep, and (3) Dawn's desensitized emotional reactions--she has emotions, but never goes too far in expressing her anger, sadness, frustration. In fact, she eventually resigns herself to her life. What a tragically beautiful, brilliantly satirical, and sadly realistic (for many junior highers) story.
Rating:
Summary: This movie is so disturbing, but so very realistic
Review: This is probably the most disturbing, upsetting movie I've ever seen, but I absolutely love it. It captures Jr High perfectly, from the point of view of the tortured reject of the class. I was oddly fascinated the first time I saw this movie, I was torn between turning it off because it was scaring me, and between taping it because I knew that it was showing how the world really is. This is definitely a masterpiece.
Rating: 
Summary: After the 2nd Run Thru, Still Skeptic and Disappointed...
Review: I will agree that most of the acting was on-point and added a good deal of realism to the film, but that wasn't needed due to the very predictable plot in itself. I see many reviews, stating the movie was "so realistic," but it didn't break any ground in terms of ambition. Solonz took a typical, neglected middle-school girl and allowed us to view a few days of her life. When I think of movies that get points across, I don't think it's that impressive when they do it this directly. "Happiness," a much better and amazing film from Solonz, took serious risks in creating that, intertwining plotlines and conversations we rarely witness (i.e. the father's confession of his obsession to his son). All "Welcome to the Dollhouse" did was bring us back to the hell of middle school. Someone said this movie was Oscar-quality. Compared to such movies as "The In Crowd," sure, this movie deserves to be mounted on a plaque, but on the whole scale of it, I'm still wondering why so many people rave over this movie.
Rating:
Summary: It lingers...
Review: I originally saw this movie on Bravo's Independent Movie Friday. A memorable cast and story excell this title to the top of the independent films.If you have ever felt out of place, nerdy, or just under apreciated, then this movie should speak to your soul. The plot follows a pre-teen girl through her life of being called names, wanting to fit in, etc. in a very enjoyable (and at times humorous) way. Her daydreams play a part in the movie and let the viewer into her world. I do not intend to spoil the movie, so I will quit right here. If youre not sure about buying it, then I would recommend renting it (though the price of a rental and late fee equals the price of owning it).
Rating:
Summary: ~great! ~
Review: This movie was awsome my two favorite parts are when Dawn`s in the bathroom than she sees that girl Lolita, then she pretends she`s washing her hands, but the bully new, the bully makes her use the bathroom. my other favorite part is the first part in the cafeteria, that`s all I`m going to say, I don`t want to spoil it for you.
Rating:
Summary: the truth as it is
Review: i think this movie speaks of the truth, regardless of how frightening it is. it's anti-hollywood, basically becus it's so real and realistic in the way that things seldom, if ever, end in a happy episode. this movie is not afraid to use a less than good-looking star to tell the truth. in hollywood movies, sure someone will go thru' hell but the hell can't be worse than here. i mean, yeah sure, good-looking people go thru hell too but their version and experience with hell is nothing compared to dawn's. this movie addresses the real problem, though there is no attempt to solve the problem, maybe cus in REAL life, no one attempts to solve problems or that there is NO solution--it's jus the way things are, how ever much it stings. anyone who doesn't find this movie realistic either 1)had home schooling 2)too cruel to care as they're too busy making others' lives hell 3) too cocooned and sheltered all their lives that basically, they've become hopelessly ignorant
Rating: 
Summary: Don't waste two hours of your life!
Review: "Welcome to the Dollhouse" was hands down the worst movie I have ever seen! It was depressing (but not in a heart-felt way), unrealistic and just plain awful! I would not recommend that anyone spend money or time on this piece of garbage!
Rating:
Summary: it was funny,in a very different way
Review: this is a very strange movie but with hilarious stuff along with it.i didnt like this movie very much the first time i saw it but the more i saw it i grew to like this movie.its a movie kind of like "carrie" but with a whole lot of really funny misery.the main character,Dawn will be trying to be dramatic and everything but it's just hilarious for some reason
Rating:
Summary: So realistic, it hurts.
Review: I once saw a review of this film that read, in part "Ijust can't believe that children in Junior High School would act withsuch cruelty." All I could think was "Jesus, lady, where ... did you grow up?" Todd Solondz (who followed this film up with the harrowing "Happiness") has done an incredible job of recreating the nightmarish world of adolescence. A world with only two categories - victims & tormenters. One of the great things about this movie is its refusal to pull any punches. After a school bully calls Dawn Weiner a "lezbo", she turns around and calls her little sister one - this pattern is repeated throughout the film. It's almost like watching a nature documentary where the lions eat the zebras, and then the zebras east the gazelles. Anybody who can't identify with at least some part of this movie was, obviously, raised on Mars.
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