Year Of The Dog Review

"Year Of The Dog" reviews

Movie

Year Of The Dog

Author

anonymous

Date reviewed

2007-08-27 22:58:07

Rating

3.5/5

Provider

CinemaSource

Review

The understated yet charming Year of the Dog explores just how far a pet owner will go to find herself after she loses her best friend. And yes, to answer your question, this is definitely a movie for dog lovers.

Story

Although actor/screenwriter Mike White writes with hilarious wit for his comrade in comedy, Jack Black--in films such as School of Rock and Orange County--he is also becoming a master at the slice-of-life dramedy. With The Good Girl, he expertly gave us a bored married woman stuck in a nowhere job trying to capture a little happiness. Now, with Year of the Dog, he hands us the ultimate sad sack, Peggy (Molly Shannon), who is practically inseparable from her beagle, Pencil. Life is uncomplicated and safe with her beloved pet, an excuse she uses to great effect in order to avoid human contact as much as possible. But Peggy's world comes crashing down when Pencil meets a mysterious demise in the neighbor's yard. Shattered, Peggy isn't sure where to turn to fill the void. Friends, family and co-workers try to distract her, but in the end, she emerges from her loss with a newfound sense of what will make her happy in the world.

Acting

Molly Shannon, huh? The SNL alum has generally been relegated to kooky sidekick roles after her disastrous (but somewhat guilty pleasure-ish) starring vehicle Superstar. But who knew she had the chops to pull something like this off. She's perfect as the lonely, downcast Peggy, who has completely resigned herself to living with her dog as her only companion. Shannon gets to show off her wacky side in certain moments--like when she "adopts" about 20 dogs and lets them run all over her house--but the actress plays the majority of her role with restraint and great subtlety. Also quite good is Peter Sarsgaard as a fellow dog lover who starts off as a potential love interest for Peggy but ends up disappointing her, like all the other humans in her life. His character's unassumingly sweet and charming personality still wins you over, even when he's being a jerk to Peggy. Someone needs to give him an Oscar. In supporting roles, there's John C. Reilly, as a blowhard and hunting enthusiast who lives next door to Peggy (and could be the reason Pencil died in the first place); Thomas McCarthy and Laura Dern, as Peggy's concerned but rather uptight brother and sister-in-law; and finally Regina King, as Peggy's saucy workmate, just trying to give her friend a little excitement. Kudos all around.

Direction

Mike White also tries his hand at wielding the camera for the first time with Year of the Dog--and much like his minimalist writing style, he keeps the action fairly simple and focused. He seems to love the one-on-one scenes, with his characters sitting across from each other--either in the living room, at a lunch table or a desk--oftentimes with filled with long, uncomfortable (or sometimes very comfortable) silences. Static, yes, but White obviously realizes his movies are more about what's being said (or not being said) than the visuals. He also shows a real talent in guiding his actors to pitch-perfect performances--a very important part of being a good director. Of course, not a lot happens in Year of the Dog, which can be a drawback to indie movies of this ilk. It could be considered a giant bore-fest if you can't connect with people who love their pets way too much. But if you can settle in and really listen to White's quirky but ultimately realistic view on life as its dealt out, you'll really enjoy this stellar effort from the burgeoning filmmaking talent.

Bottom Line

Hollywood.com rated this film 3 1/2 stars.

Movie

Year Of The Dog

Author

anonymous

Date reviewed

2007-08-31 14:40:21

Provider

Review

A bittersweet comedy that mixes in some of the insanity in life and how difficult it can be to hold on to your own sometime. Oh and take some tissues if you're a pet lover!

Polly the secretary lives her life vicariously through her beloved pet beagle, Pencil. they live as a couple, Pencil's picture takes pride of place on her office cubicle and it's evident the pair are very much in love - Pencil definitely reciprocates. Polly has pretty much subjugated the idea of a relationships with a humans. So it becomes all the more difficult for her to cope when Pencil is killed by an accidental poisoning (time to get out those tissues part 1!), forcing her to mix with bipeds. These include a disastrous date with her strange neighbour - going quickly awry when it becomes apparent he's a hunter and has some rather familiar poison in his home! Facing the torment of her perfect brother and his equally infuriating wife whose sole aim in life appears to be to drive Polly to distraction; and then there's the animal shelter worker, the childlike named Newt, about whom Polly remains totally oblivious to his decidedly gay outlook. So it's off to the pound and home - with about a dozen dogs, to save them from euthanasia (tissue time part 2 - but not the last!).

Mike White's first directing work (of his own script) bears the hallmarks of the films he's written (The Good Girl, Chuck and Buck, School Rock and Nacho Libre). So he evidently spent time on set to pick up ideas. However, he's also brought his own panache to Year Of The Dog and proved that he's possibly the best person to direct his writing. There's an extremely fine balance to be kept on a film like this: keep it funny not fatuous, erudite not arrogant, moral not mawkish. White manages all, plus pitches in plenty of places to connect with his characters - whether you like dogs or not. He brings a world-wise viewpoint to his story that's full of characters who most definitely are not!

No doubt White's modesty would make him the the first to defer credit to his cast, who are excellent. SNL veteran Molly Shannon has cut her teeth creating numerous character roles in hit US TV series and film cameo roles, so it's a pleasure seeing her allowed to spread her wings with a fully rounded role. The ever ubiquitous John C Reilly manages to squeeze out yet another misfit from his bulk, Laura Dern sheds her Lynchian stress as Polly's sister-in-law and Peter Sarsgaard adds another great performance to what is becoming a formidable list of films just shy of a being a leading man (It's a disgrace. When will someone offer him one?).

It's not a faultless film. Any film that fits so neatly into that refreshing American Indie genre has to be pressing some well known buttons and treading some well trod paths. However, it's as good as The Station Agent, American Beauty, The Secretary and even Donnie Darko - which is excellent company to keep - in it gives you far more than you expected possible from a film and you'll leave the cinema invigorated and swelled with satisfaction (but wanting about another three hours of the movie to watch). How many films make you feel like that?