Spoiled Gen Z rich kids have a destructive queer romance while partying, doing drugs, and committing ludicrous crimes in the insufferablePet Shop Days, which ticks every box on the checklist for terrible films.It’s hard to believe that Hollywood stalwarts Willem Dafoe, Peter Sarsgaard, and Maribel Verdú play supporting roles in this dreck.There had to be a massive disconnect between the scripted material and what was filmed (multiple years ago) and then clumsily cobbled together in post-production.Pet Shop Daysachieves that rare feat of havingnothing positive to write about. The story, acting, and filmmaking on display are abysmal.MovieWeb doesn’t have a tier for zero stars, butPet Shop Dayscomes close.
In Mexico City, Alejandro (Darío Yazbek Bernal) lies in bed with his mother, Karla (Maribel Verdú) — insert ewww here — before an important family dinner. Neither wants to attend a birthday celebration for Alejandro’s father, Castro (Jordi Mollà). Castro despises his bratty and tempestuous son but still loves his wife. The meal descends into screams and shouts before falling completely off the rails.
Abysmal in Every Regard
Pet Shop Days
Pet Shop Days follows Alejandro, who flees Mexico and encounters Jack, a pet store employee in New York City. The duo embarks on a tumultuous relationship, navigating drugs and the Manhattan underworld. As Alejandro’s past looms, Jack faces a critical decision between family obligations and a fugitive life.
Meanwhile,in a New York City duplex, 20-year-old Jack (Jack Irv) is too bored to have sex with the latest girl in his bed. She leaves in a huff. Jack’s mother, Diana (Emmanuelle Seigner), spurns the advances of Francis (Willem Dafoe), his controlling father, who’s bitterly disappointed in his son’s lack of ambition. Jack leaves for work at a nearby aquarium and pet store, where the frustrated owner is also upset at his employee’s apathy.
A Random and Ugly Film
Why does Alejandro want to work at the pet store? That’s never explained. We are meant to believe he’s so unstable and impulsive that seeing the commercial prods him to go and find it. Then he somehow gets a job from a place that wasn’t even hiring. Alejandro randomly meeting the hunky Jack is simply pure kismet meant to instigate an orgiastic spree of shagging and snorting drugs.Pet Shop Daysrelies on pure coincidence to advance the plot at every turn.This is the definition of lazy screenwriting.
MeMo Films
Exclusive: Olmo Schnabel on His Directorial Debut Pet Shop Days with Willem Dafoe
The indie filmmaker chats up Pet Shop Days, a fiery new relationship drama about two lost souls searching for solace.
Director/co-writer Olmo Schnabel, son of the brilliant artist and filmmaker Julian Schnabel, strikes out badly in his debut feature.Pet Shop Daysis shot on grainy stock with handheld cameras and exaggerated lighting effects. Every scene is bathed in obnoxious hues as jerky camera movements attempt to capture the chaotic love affair. Schnabel’s goal is to portray intense lust and infatuation spiraling out of control and dragging down everyone involved in the process. That’s obvious without the erratic approach.Schnabel’s visual style doesn’t work and becomes more annoying with each passing minute.
Unlikable Characters Abound
Secondary subplots fail just as badly as the primary arc.Alejandro and Jack both have serious daddy issues. The difference is that Alejandro and Castro are truly adversarial. Hatred burns bright between them, but a completely predictable twist has Castro seeking his wayward son’s return. Francis genuinely loves Jack, but cannot mold him into the man he thinks Jack can be. Conversely, Jack is aware of his father’s faults, but doesn’t give him any leeway to pursue his own happiness. This is quite convoluted and handled with an utter lack of nuance.These characters don’t have the aptitude for understanding and forgiveness.They’re all selfish and arrogant with no redeeming qualities.
Jack’s discovery of his sexuality with Alejandro should have been a profound awakening. The problem is that Schnabel doesn’t give them time to establish a believable connection. Some people can just click and get along like peanut butter and jelly, but they must actually interact. That’s not what happens here.Jack and Alejandro barely talk between having sex and getting wasted.It’s fine for them to have a purely physical magnetism that leads to bad choices, but the film can’t dress that up as unrequited love.
Willem Dafoe Thinks Audiences Misunderstood His Most Controversial Film
The actor insists the film’s equally controversial director has more sympathy toward women than men.
Alejandro and Jack’s criminal endeavors are laughable.Their pathetic efforts to disguise themselves before dangerous home invasions are beyond idiotic. What’s the point of wearing a wig and costume without gloves or a mask? I guess fingerprints and security cameras don’t exist in Schnabel’s New York City. The second act introduces another character searching for Alejandro, who can somehow find him like a homing pigeon. None of this makes any sense. The sad part is the filmmakers don’t seem to care.
Pet Shop Dayswastes a lot of talent in an exasperating experience.The ending sprinkles extra crumbs of stupidity just when you think the film couldn’t possibly get worse.Pet Shop Daysis a production of MeMo Films, Storyteller Productions, and TWIN. It will have a limited theatrical release on March 14th from Utopia.
