An elegant simulation method, suitable for investigating the dewetting dynamics of thin and viscous liquid layers, is discussed. The efficiency of the method is exemplified by studying a two-parameter depinninglike model defined on inhomogeneous solid surfaces. The morphology and the statistical properties of the contact line are mapped in the relevant parameter space, and as a result critical behavior in the vicinity of the depinning transition is revealed. The model allows for the tearing of the layer, which leads to a new propagation regime resulting in nontrivial collective behavior. The large deformations observed for the interface are a result of the interplay between the substrate inhomogeneities and the capillary forces.