Dina (2017) User Reviews

Sometimes it's difficult to watch something so real and different from your life.

[miike-52468 · 8/10 · 9 April 2018]

Don't let the review title fool you, this was a good movie. Taking a person's life and making it real is not that easy to do regardless of the situation that person is in. The director takes the life of two people who are so invested in being good to each other that it supercedes every other situation in their life that they struggle with. The simplicity of the story a couple planning a marriage and honeymoon undercuts the complexity of the reality of these two people. The characteristic that moves the story and flatlines the suspense (there isn't any) is the untouchable honesty they share with each other over the most complex things most of us fumble with horribly to talk about. I enjoyed the movie but it wasn't perfect and could have used a little more continuity in the timeline, but I think the way it was done was intentional and other people might like that. Wonderfully real people and an amazingly boring story line makes this difficult to watch at times but pushes us to look at life from an angle very different from what most of us see through an event that most of us go through.

If you can find it see it.

[ahejna · 8/10 · 14 March 2017]

Dina is a documentary film by Antonio Santini and Dan Sickles as they follow an autistic couple on their approach to marriage. Dina Buno is a 48-year-old widow that lost her husband to cancer and had a violent attack by her ex-boyfriend. But Nina never shows these setbacks because of her huge self-esteem. Scott Levin works at Walmart and is very opposite of Dina. Scott has a hard time showing emotion and is always invested in his phone. Dina is a longtime family friend to Dan's family and after meeting Dan became so interested in Dina he followed her getting 600 hours of footage. We see the couple after deciding to get married and they move in together before their marriage to test out living together. Very quickly they start to notice their differences. But Dina is not a person to give up easily and we follow the character's struggle to overcome their obstacles. One of the most memorable scenes is the bachelorette and bachelor parties. Scott's version is going bowling with his friends and Dina's is a hired stripper for her and her friends. At first the idea of an autistic couple may not seem relatable. But Dina and Scott go through the same things any other couple getting married would go through. The film explores the couples wants and needs and how they can provide them for each other. The film does an extremely good job at humor. When Dina brings Scott to see the ocean for the first time she brings Scott a book about sex. This scene shows a very private moment with lot of humor. Dina finds it extremely easy to talk about this when Scott really doesn't. There are many moments like this where we might question laughing or put us in an uncomfortable spot. The filmmakers want us to laugh with the characters instead of laughing at them. Everything we see in the film seems so private but with every changing scene we want to know more about Dina and we are invested in what she is going to do next. As the documentary goes on we learn more and more about her past but the film takes there time. The filmmakers wanted us to know Dina as herself and then show how her past has affected her and possibly made her a stronger person. So the information we get makes us want Dina to succeed. Dina is a charming love story like no other that makes us think about marriage, love and overcoming our past.

Pleasant, if not outstanding

[gholderbach · 6/10 · 23 June 2017]

Dina was decent. The standout elements are the very restrictive cinematography, with everything shot on a tripod making the film resemble a slice-of-life drama award contender; and the incredibly entertaining characters, with everyone behaving in a nonchalant and quirky way, almost like characters in a Wes Anderson film. While this film has an abundance of charm, I didn't find it exceptional. One metric I use to judge a documentary's quality is determining whether I would still care if it were a work of complete fiction, and I don't see myself being as forgiving if that were the case. My main annoyance with this film is that the story begins to feel extremely repetitive after a while. We are constantly cycling through the process of Dina getting frustrated, her fiancé having trouble compensating, and the to making up before starting again. If not for how entertaining the people featured are, the film would have been a complete slog.

Powerfully moving, intimate view of a disabled couple's beginnings

[scaalto · 26 October 2017]

The filmmaker's ability to take such intimate, personal scenes and tell such a powerful story truly honors these two people. If you are empathetic with those who are challenged and struggle to find meaningful relationships I think it would be hard to not be quickly drawn in to this story. Dina has had significant life experience - Scott's world has been much more limited. But his love of Dina and his wish to succeed in this marriage won me over repeatedly. Dina was surprising in her ability to articulate what she needed from Scott. His appreciation of Dina's past said so much about his character. Dina's accident was revealed in such a stark and stunning manner. This is not a commercial film but I hope it continues to find an audience. This is the most moving film I've seen in decades.

A different world

[jjmoore-65607 · 10/10 · 2 September 2017]

We go to the movies to be changed. This film sits you in the life of a couple- with lots of things against them. They change your view. Worth seeing, and seeing again to think about. We all are not the same, but we all love, find ways to make it through life. The differences are more than most of us think about.

Genuine and Moving

[abondgirl · 9/10 · 26 February 2018]

At first I was a little ambivalent about this movie. While watching it (about an hour in), my husband said "Can we turn this off?" Parts of the movie were awkward and a little difficult to watch. However, there were several times I laughed out loud and really enjoyed the scenes. I especially loved the bachelorette party with the stripper. It was hilarious. I also really started to care about the characters; especially Dina. Dina is so open and honest and genuine that it is very easy to care about her. I thought that in real life we could be friends. The 911 call towards the end was very moving. Movies that mean the most to me are the ones I can't stop thinking about after they are over. I felt that way with this movie. I wanted to know MORE about Dina and was sorry the movie had ended. I wanted to keep up with her life and join in the conversations with her and Scott - ie talks about Hilary versus Trump and the election. Ha! I loved this movie. I love that it made me THINK About Aspberger's and autism, but it wasn't overly sympathetic - just genuine and real and thought provoking. I think people will either love or hate this movie, but that most will be moved and changed for the better.

ENJOYABLE AWKWARDNESS

[lanaliliya · 4/10 · 5 December 2019]

I enjoyed the awkwardness and realness of this documentary, but the movie had parts in it that could've been edited out. Some scenes were too long and unnecessary.

10/10

[singcang883 · 10/10 · 26 April 2018]

I really love the movie. The fact is that it takes time to discover anything about the plot not a problem for me, but it was clear to many. If you can just keep asking questions until the end of the movie then this is for you. The plot is really engaging and unique. For me, it was a great movie. Easily one of my favorite movies of all time, and the best movies of recent months !

Exasperating

[metta1 · 1/10 · 26 February 2018]

Where to start? The colors were very pale pastels in a fog. The filming of many talking heads scenes was done at a distance so no heads or mouths talking were seen and I could not understand what was being said. I did not understand the point of the movie at all. I could not finish watching it as it was so annoying director wise.

Patience is Nonnegotiable

[thirtyfivestories · 9/10 · 11 November 2017]

Dina reaches for a stranger's hand, unaware of the social constructs that have ruled this action taboo. She's a woman that overflows with honesty and is incapable of deceit. Grasping the assistant's hand, Dina compassionately squeezes, knowing that a drill in her mouth pales in comparison to the blades of her past.

After far too long, Dina has chosen to marry again. Scott is the most personable Walmart employee in town, and has an obsession for his sports teams and Evanescence. Dina's vice is plush toys the Kardashians. Together they only share interest in one another.

Scott's ESPN app chimes audible tension as Dina sighs at her scatterbrained finance. Dina's not-so-subtle seductions fly clear over Scott's head, but it is impossible to scold his density. The truth is that Scott's confidence has always been in limited supply, while Dina has floated to the surface of hell.

Scott tells Dina that he would be dead if he had lived her life. They are trying to savage their remaining years, but childlike innocence might clog their engines. Terrors of Dina's past spill out of her mouth, but the faucet of exposition is throttled to perfection by the filmmakers.

Love hands out second chances, and patience does not always appear kind. The complexities of joining grow more compelling when the subjects are honest to a fault. Life becomes more the television programming, evolving into terrible foot massages and onomatopoeic kisses.

Dina offers the intangible "perspective". She becomes irritated, but always for appropriate reasons. More so, she articulates her frustrations openly. This skill has been pushed into the recesses of human expression. Peering into Dina's struggles and triumphs inspire a straight-forward, authentic approach to living, one that looks a little funny, but the laughter fills the gashes.

I often forgot that this was documentary!

[kcitraro · 9/10 · 16 July 2020]

Worth watching! I'd be surprised if anyone could dislike! I was Curious throughout if the two would meet in the middle. Such lighthearted moments mixed with such sadness while they navigate. I often found myself thinking this was a work of actors.. but it's not... and I knew that.. it's that I found myself so invested in the film that makes that happen. What a great capture of a slice of life! Well done!

Masterpiece!

[dragonball329 · 10/10 · 23 April 2018]

I watched this movie today and I was positively surprised. This movie was documentary packed, but still tasteful and fun to watch. I haven't seen the prequel and still enjoyed this movie a lot. If you want to see a good movie with comedy, this is a must watch!

Making our weekend awesome!

[TeonJaya · 10/10 · 20 April 2018]

I am feeling myself luck for watching an awesome documentary movie after so long. I would love to convey my gratitude to Antonio Santini and Dan Sickles. These guys are talented and know their work really well. Thanks to the whole team for making our weekend awesome!

Wonderfully moving

[kelliekarl · 10/10 · 26 August 2019]

I am always grateful to find non-mainstream movies that appeal to my off-the-beaten-path taste and Dina now tops my list. What a wonderful, beautifully told story. Everything about this movie appeals to me from the story to the snippets of daily life to the challenges and successes. Lovely and worth watching again and again.