The Dentist

The Dentist

Year: 2020

Runtime: 7 mins

Language: English

WesternDramaCrimeAction

A struggling dentist in the Wild West finds himself unexpectedly confronted by a desperate gunslinger. Unable to afford proper medical care, the robber seeks help for an infected tooth. What begins as a simple request quickly becomes a more complicated situation, forcing the dentist to navigate a precarious and unpredictable encounter.

Warning: spoilers below!

Haven’t seen The Dentist yet? This summary contains major spoilers. Bookmark the page, watch the movie, and come back for the full breakdown. If you're ready, scroll on and relive the story!

Timeline & Setting – The Dentist (2020)

Explore the full timeline and setting of The Dentist (2020). Follow every major event in chronological order and see how the environment shapes the story, characters, and dramatic tension.

Time period

1990s

The events unfold in a contemporary 1990s Los Angeles setting. Advances in dental technology and the era's social mores frame Alan Feinstone's obsession with cleanliness and perfection. The era's visual style supports a polished exterior hiding a violent, destabilized psyche.

Location

Los Angeles, California, Feinstone's dental clinic, university campus

Set mainly in Los Angeles, the story tracks the polished, ritual-driven world of a high-profile dentist. The action moves between his sterile clinic, his home, and key public spaces that reveal the societal veneer surrounding his life. The contrast between glamorous urban life and claustrophobic interiors underscores his need for control.

🏙️ Urban 🏥 Clinical 🗺️ Diverse city

Last Updated: October 01, 2025 at 12:38

Main Characters – The Dentist (2020)

Meet the key characters of The Dentist (2020), with detailed profiles, motivations, and roles in the plot. Understand their emotional journeys and what they reveal about the film’s deeper themes.

Dr. Alan Feinstone

A successful Los Angeles dentist whose extreme OCD drives him toward increasingly violent acts, blurring professional precision with sadistic control. His meticulous routines mask a rapidly unraveling psyche as his jealousy and paranoia take over his practice and life.

🧠 OCD 🧼 Cleanliness 🔪 Violence 👨‍⚕️ Dentist

Brooke Feinstone

Alan's wife, initially the catalyst for his rage and a focal point of his obsessive controls. She survives the violence and is later revealed to be the dentist working on him in the psychiatric hospital, turning the tables in a dramatic twist.

💑 Spouse 🔍 Manipulation 🦷 Dentistry

Detective Gibbs

A detective chasing leads on the murders and disappearances linked to Alan's rampage. He, along with Detective Sunshine, represents law and order as they close in on the truth and confront the psychologist's terrifying break.

🕵️ Detective 🧭 Investigation

Last Updated: October 01, 2025 at 12:38

Major Themes – The Dentist (2020)

Explore the central themes of The Dentist (2020), from psychological, social, and emotional dimensions to philosophical messages. Understand what the film is really saying beneath the surface.

🧠 Mental Illness

The narrative centers on Alan Feinstone's extreme OCD, showing how compulsion distorts reality and fuels escalating violence. Ritualized dental practices mirror his uncontrollable impulses. The film uses close-ups of instruments and sterile spaces to emphasize a mind spiraling out of control.

🔪 Violence

Alan's restraint crumbles into brutal acts as the plot escalates from paranoid defensiveness to murder. The violence is integrated with his professional setting, making each act feel clinical and deliberate. Detective investigations peel back layers of deception and dread.

🦷 Dental Horror

Dentistry is reframed as a site of power and fear, where teeth become symbols of vulnerability. The film ties pain, control, and body manipulation to the toolset of a dentist. The horrifying flipside of a trusted profession drives the suspense.

Last Updated: October 01, 2025 at 12:38

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Explore Movie Threads

Discover curated groups of movies connected by mood, themes, and story style. Browse collections built around emotion, atmosphere, and narrative focus to easily find films that match what you feel like watching right now.

Movies about a descent into madness like The Dentist

Stories where a fragile mind shatters, unleashing graphic violence and terror.If you were fascinated by the psychological breakdown in The Dentist, explore more movies like it. This collection features similar stories of obsessive characters spiraling into violence, featuring high intensity, dark tones, and bleak endings that match the disturbing vibe of The Dentist.

disturbingpsychologicalbrutalfrenziedvengefulunsettlingparanoid

Narrative Summary

These narratives follow a linear yet frantic path of a character's mental collapse. Triggered by a betrayal or discovery, the story escalates rapidly through a series of increasingly violent confrontations, leading to a conclusion where the damage is irreversible and the cycle of destruction is complete.

Why These Movies?

Movies are grouped here for their shared focus on a protagonist's psychotic breakdown, often stemming from betrayal or compulsion. They deliver a consistent experience of high tension, graphic violence, psychological dread, and a profoundly bleak emotional outcome, creating a cohesive vibe of unrelenting despair.

Claustrophobic crime thrillers with tense confrontations like The Dentist

High-stakes encounters in confined spaces that spiral out of control.For viewers who enjoyed the tense, confined confrontation in The Dentist, this list recommends similar crime thrillers. Discover movies with fast-paced, high-intensity stories where a single location becomes a pressure cooker for violence, mirroring the unsettling and paranoid mood of The Dentist.

claustrophobictenseunsettlingparanoidbrutaldesperatecrime

Narrative Summary

The narrative pattern involves a confined setting—like an office, a house, or a small town—where two opposing forces are thrust into a high-stakes negotiation or conflict. What begins as a professional or chance encounter quickly deteriorates due to desperation, mistrust, or hidden agendas, leading to a explosive and morally bleak resolution.

Why These Movies?

These films are united by their use of a claustrophobic atmosphere to amplify tension. They share a fast pacing, a dark tone, and a straightforward plot that focuses on a single, escalating confrontation. The experience is defined by its high intensity, psychological pressure, and the visceral thrill of a situation spinning into chaos.

Unlock the Full Story of The Dentist

Don't stop at just watching — explore The Dentist in full detail. From the complete plot summary and scene-by-scene timeline to character breakdowns, thematic analysis, and a deep dive into the ending — every page helps you truly understand what The Dentist is all about. Plus, discover what's next after the movie.

The Dentist Summary

Read a complete plot summary of The Dentist, including all key story points, character arcs, and turning points. This in-depth recap is ideal for understanding the narrative structure or reviewing what happened in the movie.

The Dentist Summary

The Dentist Timeline

Track the full timeline of The Dentist with every major event arranged chronologically. Perfect for decoding non-linear storytelling, flashbacks, or parallel narratives with a clear scene-by-scene breakdown.

The Dentist Timeline

The Dentist Spoiler-Free Summary

Get a quick, spoiler-free overview of The Dentist that covers the main plot points and key details without revealing any major twists or spoilers. Perfect for those who want to know what to expect before diving in.

The Dentist Spoiler-Free Summary

More About The Dentist

Visit What's After the Movie to explore more about The Dentist: box office results, cast and crew info, production details, post-credit scenes, and external links — all in one place for movie fans and researchers.

More About The Dentist