For some reason, many movies seem to think that adolescence was a time even slightly worth reminiscing on. The characters in Stand By Me all build beautiful friendships as they search for a dead body. In Diary of a Wimpy Kid, Greg Heffley’s love interest gives him a flicker of attention; if only by signing his yearbook. Even Bo Burnham’s film Eighth Grade, which is a case study of adolescent anxiety and awkwardness, is chock-full of non-cringe moments. At the end of the day, there is apparently a lot of heart and nobility to being twelve.

In his brilliant sophomore feature Welcome to the Dollhouse, Todd Solondz calls the bluff on that massive lie. The 1996 film follows Dawn Wiener, an insecure, bespectacled 12-year-old, as she navigates the torture chamber that is junior high school. Everyone calls Dawn “Wiener Dog.” She has no friends, except a tiny boy in the sixth grade, with whom she shares a clubhouse with. Her parents want to destroy the clubhouse. They love Dawn’s sister a lot more. The entire world seems to be anti-Dawn. Haven’t we all felt that way, in the torturous, never-ending stages of late pre-teendom?

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A daring and memorable feat, Welcome to the Dollhouse received widespread critical acclaim upon its release. It won the Grand Jury Prize at the Sundance Film Festival, and Roger Ebert placed it as No. 5 on his “Best of 1996” list. Todd Solondz, who is known for his twisted indie comedies like Happiness, was quite surprised by the movie’s success — he initially thought his acceptance letter from the Toronto Film Festival was a prank. Although Welcome to the Dollhouse was never a sweeping commercial success (it was only made on an $800,000 budget), it has deservedly acquired a cult-like status today. Now available to stream on HBO Max, the film remains one of the darkest and most brutal portrayals of adolescent existence—but also one of the most brazenly and timelessly funny ones. More than two decades after its initial release, Todd Solondz still gets it.

Middle School as the Eighth Layer of Hell (Along With The Other Seven)

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Unless they’re made by John Hughes, lots of films have shown us just how grueling and desolate a place high school can be. By comparison, middle school remains relatively uncharted territory.

Solondz knows this fact, and takes full advantage of it. There’s a reason why not as many movies are made about 11-14 year-olds: it is not a good age to be. As per his signature twisted style, Solondz does not hold back in his depiction of middle school as a moral and social void. The movie opens with a scene that might be deeply familiar to many of us: Dawn wandering around the cafeteria, desperately searching for a table to sit. Perhaps, in another film, the girl who invites Dawn over might end up becoming her lifelong friend. In this case, the first thing she says to Dawn is, “Someone barfed there third period.” Then, a bunch of cheerleaders approach Dawn and ask her if she is a lesbian. This is only within the first scene.

Throughout the film, Solondz treads much, much darker subject matters within the hallowed, locker-lined halls. But really, the kids have no idea what they’re actually doing or saying. That is part of the humor of Welcome to the Dollhouse and of middle school at large — it feels like anything can happen at any time, and the joke is that the worst of it often does.

It Doesn’t Get Any Better On the Outside

Even if they’re an over-the-top teacher or clueless parent, adults are usually the ones with a moral compass in teen films. At the end of the day, they know what is right, and it’s a depressing sign that we’re getting older when we start to agree with the teens’ parents in these movies.

In Welcome to the Dollhouse, the adults are just as cruel, petty, and ridiculous as their kids. When a bully cheats on her math test, Dawn is, for some reason, placed in detention, too. She is then made to deliver an essay in front of the class about “grade-grubbing.” Dawn’s parents don’t even seem to care for her much. They want to destroy Dawn’s only sanctuary, her clubhouse, to make room for their 20th anniversary party. When Dawn refuses, they tell her siblings to tear it down anyway, and then they give them Dawn’s share of that evening’s dessert.

Maybe we don’t become better people as we age. Solondz doesn’t waste time bemoaning this fact, though. By showing the film through Dawn’s perspective, we learn to laugh, cry, and be confused by the world, just as she is.

Weiner Dog Learns to Bite Back

Welcome to the Dollhouse is not just a romp through the abyss. Dawn Wiener has a soul. Her resolve is unbeatable, her persistence, completely un-thwarted. This is largely because Heather Matarazzo, who you may know for playing Lily in The Princess Diaries, offers such a spot-on, memorable performance. In all of her suffering, but also, in all of her endurance, Dawn feels so real. She could be any of us.

While Dawn has every reason to feel defeated, worn-out, and hopeless, she is instead infinitely curious and enduring. She questions everything. She relentlessly pursues her brother’s band mate, even though he is several years her senior and has a long line of girlfriends. She won’t let her parents take down her clubhouse. Welcome to the Dollhouse is so funny, and so full of heart, because it not only reminds us of the pain of adolescence, but of how inhumanly strong we once were for getting through it.