Todd Solondz (born October 15, 1959) is an American filmmaker and playwright known for his style of dark, socially conscious satire. Solondz’s work has received critical acclaim for its commentary on the “dark underbelly of middle class American suburbia,” a reflection of his own background in New Jersey. He made his feature debut with Fear, Anxiety & Depression (1989), with Stanley Tucci.
Solondz’s breakout film was the dark teenage comedy Welcome to the Dollhouse (1996), with Heather Matarazzo, Brendan Sexton III, Eric Mabius, and Matthew Faber. It won the Grand Jury Prize for best dramatic feature at the 1996 Sundance Film Festival, and was a critical and commercial success. He followed that up with the black comedy-drama Happiness (1998), with Jane Adams, Elizabeth Ashley, Dylan Baker, Lara Flynn Boyle, Ben Gazzara, Jared Harris, Philip Seymour Hoffman, Louise Lasser, Jon Lovitz, Camryn Manheim, Rufus Read, and Cynthia Stevenson.
Films in the 2000s include Storytelling (2002), with Selma Blair, Leo Fitzpatrick, Robert Wisdom, Maria Thayer, Paul Giamatti, Mark Webber, John Goodman, Julie Hagerty, Steve Railsback, and Franka Potente; Palindromes (2004), with Ellen Barkin and Jennifer Jason Leigh; Life During Wartime (2010), with Shirley Henderson, Ciarán Hinds, Allison Janney, Michael Lerner, Chris Marquette, Charlotte Rampling, Paul Reubens, Ally Sheedy, Dylan Riley Snyder, Renée Taylor, Michael K. Williams, and Gabby Hoffman; Dark Horse (2012), with Justin Bartha, Blair, Mia Farrow, Jordan Gelber, Donna Murphy, Christopher Walken, Zachary Booth and Aasif Mandvi; and Weiner-Dog (2016), with Ellen Burstyn, Kieran Culkin, Julie Delpy, Danny DeVito, Greta Gerwig, Tracy Letts, and Zosia Mamet.
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(*seen originally in theaters)
(**seen rereleased in theaters)
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