Predictably, the movie begins in a dentist's office. Dave and Dana are seen in a professional setting, but the viewer senses no connection between the two until they are seen at home. The viewer then learns that Dana is an aspiring opera singer, when the family gets ready for her evening performance. At the opera, Dave's insecurities come to light. He spies Dana backstage, face aglow, receiving what may or may not be an innocent kiss from another man. Dave's steamy fantasies begin as he imagines that his wife is having a torrid affair. The most subtle and metaphorical dialogue stems from this particular scene. The next morning, a depressed Dana sits alone at the table listening to opera music. She turns to Dave and says in reference to her performance, "I can't believe it's over. It's beautiful. I could sing it every night." Dave replies, "You'll sing other things." Dana's heartbreaking reply is, "I don't want to sing other things." It is here that the viewer first becomes aware of Dana's insecurities.
Dana clings to her rapidly crumbling marriage. Dave refuses to ask Dana about the man at the opera, believing that to do so would mean he would have to take action. The two are clearly in a rut, unwilling and afraid to make the effort to dislodge themselves. Rudolph is truly brilliant in his examination of the theme of lack of communication, painting scenes in which the two dentists are in rooms side by side, or sitting on the opposite ends of a table. The climax of the movie is utterly tremendous, when Dave and Dana have to tend to their ailing family, each in various stages of the flu. The resolution, when the walls of distrust finally fall down, is beautifully accomplished.
At times, the film becomes more painful to watch than having a tooth extracted, because of Rudolph's spectral use of comic relief. Though the movie cleanly flashes to the past and through scenes of fantasy, the presence of an annoying patient (Denis Leary), serving as one of Dave's flawed companions, sugarcoats the fundamental message of the movie. Although he is an entertaining foil for Dave, his vulgar presence is unnecessary. The movie is already so disconcerting that to add such a crass character to the mix undermines the thematic value.
Even with the addition of such a character, the movie is the most brilliant of its kind, comparable to both "Eyes Wide Shut" and "American Beauty." Campbell's and Davis' performances are both refreshing and accurate. The three actors who play their children are among the most talented child stars I've encountered.
Rudolph is able to extract the truth and get to the root of the problem: decay comes with time. He stresses that friendship is of paramount importance to all marriages, because once the red-hot passion dies, you are left with banal family dinners and vomiting kids. "The Secret Lives of Dentists" certainly hits a nerve and is successful in arousing genuine, infallible emotion. It's certainly a treat commensurable to deliciously flavored fluoride.