Friday, December 26, 2008

MARLEY & ME

“MARLEY & ME” (Owen Wilson, Jennifer Aniston & Several Yellow Labs)

It’s a toss up as to who should receive top billing here – Wilson, or the several Yellow Labs. It is Wilson’s movie with Aniston in the co-starring role, but the ‘stars’ are the dogs that play Marley from puppy to aging canine.
I have yet to read a positive review on this film & that baffles me – Did the editors ask ‘Who here hates dogs?’ & whoever said yes was given the job of seeing ‘Marley & Me’? Because any dog owner/lover is going to thoroughly enjoy this movie. I have had a dog in my life pretty much since age 4 & I could see traces of practically every dog I’ve ever owned in Marley; The gobble-gut/eat everything in sight puppy is my current dog, Duffy. The ‘I’m marching to my own drummer & all I want to do is play & have fun’; that un-trainable young pup was my Husky, Odie. A scene where Wilson is shown laying on the floor with his ailing, getting up there in years dog struck an emotional chord, as I spent the final moments with Laddie, the Collie I grew up with in a similar pose. & the final, heartbreaking moments, that I’m getting a lump in my throat as I’m writing this, was the same situation my wife & I went thru with our first pup, Sarge. I’m always able to forget that awful day by remembering that Sarge was the first birthday present I ever bought for my ‘new’ girlfriend; when we said goodbye to him 16 years later, we were an old married couple coping with the loss of our precious ‘little guy’.
So what does any of my personal reminisces have to do with this movie – Well, I think that’s the best part of ‘Marley & Me’ & why dog lovers will enjoy every moment of it – even the ‘difficult’ scenes – because we can relate to them. That’s the joy of owning a dog – they try your patience at times, but at the end of the day, they love you with every fiber of their being, while asking for nothing back in return but a few bones & an occasional pat on the head. They listen to you moan about your life & don’t say anything negative or tell you to ‘grow up & stop whining’ – they sympathize & offer a cute pair of fuzzy ears to scratch to help you get out of the doldrums.
The dogs that played Marley were either excellently trained (Being told to misbehave couldn’t have been easy to learn) or very intelligent pooches that knew the were ‘acting’ because the facial expressions often said it all; Getting the puppy Marley to look scared; getting the grown-up Marley to chew up everything in sight, including a couch & to freak out during thunderstorms. Then, when the moment came to know that ‘mom’s sad so I have to be gentle with her’, that version of Marley reacted just the way my dogs have – Yet, this canine wasn’t reacting to his real-life mama actually crying, he was reacting to an actress pretending to be unhappy.
So ‘Marley & Me’ is all over the emotional charts – I laughed out loud at some of his antics; I smiled warmly at the cute little puppy moments; & yes, tears rolled down my cheeks when John (Wilson) said ‘goodbye’ to his best friend.
Jennifer Aniston is to be given some credit as well, if just for agreeing to play the ‘heavy’ – It is her character (named Jennifer) that the audience will turn on when she yells at John to ‘Get rid of that dog!’ – Thing is we’ve all had those moments when our dogs misbehave & we threaten to ‘send them back to the pound’ or make them sleep outside or ‘NEVER get to ride in the car again!’ (My wife’s favorite expression) & then they jump in our lap & say ‘But I love you! Why are you yelling at me?’ & we realize we would never do anything to harm our precious pups – which is exactly what happens with Jennifer’s character.
For the first time in a long time, I liked Owen Wilson in a role – as frustrated writer John Grogan, a man that always wanted to be doing something other than what he was being paid to do, he played the part well, letting the dog provide the laughs while he was basically Marley’s foil. His many moments with Marley – both humorous & touching – came across as being very realistic (At least to this dog owner)
On the human side, Alan Arkin was most enjoyable to watch; as Grogan’s boss, he reads John’s first attempt at writing a ‘column’ without changing his expression & then concludes, “This is hilarious! I’m laughing my ass off!”
The column, of course was on Marley, & the writer’s humorous way of telling the citizens of Florida about his extremely hyper pup make him both well known & well-to-do.
No, it doesn’t end happily, we see Marley grow from pre-weaned puppy to elderly dog with health problems – but the last words John says to Marley forced me to fight a losing battle to keep the tears back, it was both heartbreaking & heartwarming - & still, my biggest fear was that the house lights would turn up too fast & the man sitting next to me – Mr. Alan Smithee – would catch me bawling like a 2 year old & call me a ‘pussy’.
And as every dog lover knows THAT’S the worse thing you can call a ‘dog person’...

8 comments:

Anonymous said...

I so prefer cats that one might suppose I should not like this film, but I enjoyed it.

The film did underscore the truism that an under-trained cat is a redundancy while an under-trained dog is a menace. In addition, the viewer is asked to overlook the monumental lassitude of Wilson and Anniston about disciplining Marley. Marley was in many respects a terrific canine; I discovered from the film no way in which the alleged adults were even acceptable "masters." The lampooning of dog trainers and obedience school did not get the owners off the hook.

All those cavils registered, this was a feel-good movie with some worthy insights and family values. It was definitely worth the matinee price. Wilson did a fine job. I was happy with Anniston's performance as well.

Terry is correct that the dogs were stupendously appropriate and evocative.

Dog-lovers will love it.

Cat-lovers will recall why they prefer cats.

Anonymous said...

I believe we all know who the 'pussy' is now! Just kidding, A.S. . . . Hmm, just wondering, Mr. Smithee, does your middle name start with an 'S'? Seems you'd have appropriate initials if it were. All kidding aside, I appreciate hearing the 'cat fanciers' opinion & the amount of lassitude shown by Marley's owners; something lazy cat owners really shouldn't comment on since felines are, of course, un-trainable. But he is correct John & Jennifer were lackadaisical with their training regiment & thus Marley was an uncontrollable handful for most of his life. I'll just say, when I was younger, I felt it was important that my dogs all 'Did What They Were Told' - but as I've gotten older, I've adopted a 'Dogs Will Be Dogs' attitude & have given them some slack when it comes to discipline. The reason the film worked for me is that despite John's failure to assert his dominance over Marley, thus becoming the 'Alpha' male in the family, the heart of the movie was his love for his pet - & at the end, how Marley affected the lives of the entire Grogan family.
I can't help but adding that as we were leaving the theatre, A.S.'s long-time female companion (Also a devout cat person) stated, "I Want To Get A Dog!"

Anonymous said...

I am just now coming back from seeing it. I think a premise like this would be impossible to fail. You'd have to have a soul as black as coal to not like this movie.
I never choose my animals as one being better than the other, I don't try to pick cats over dogs. I have both. Always have since I was a kid. Never favored one over the other. There are strong reasons I like cats, and the same with pooches.
I have put down 3 animals in the last 15 months. One with feline leukemia, after only having Rocky for 13 months, just last week. So I was leery going into this, and it reminded me of my past friends who gave me so much love in the past.
I so remember them vividly, that yes, I did choke up, even though I knew what was going to happen from reading the book previously.
A very solid film, with most definitely the canines the stars of the show.

Anonymous said...

dbm,


I do not know if it helps, but C. S. Lewis [Sir Anthony Hopkins] may have been right to observe in SHADOWLANDS, "The pain now is part of the happiness then. That's the deal."

Pooches or pussies, once admitted, will likely make you ache. But that is the bargain: much joy and companionship [described by Terry in his review] but some pain and loss.

I hope Rocky in 13 months provided you recompense for losing your friend so soon. By the way, "Rocky" is a terrific name for a cat.

As for my long-time female companion, Terry, she was raised with Taffy the dog. She has always wanted canines and felines. For the first few years, she has settled for two cats and a dog named Alan Smithee. Seeing the movie has probably accelerated our acquisition of a dog.

Anonymous said...

Thanks for the kind words Mr. Smithee, as I am still smarting a bit from last week.
I know everyone one likes to think of their animal(s) as being special, or different from maybe other people's. As if ours are the best. But Rocky was truly special. He had an innate old soul about him. By the time he was 10 months, it's as if he understood what we were saying better than the 4 year old cat and the 7 year old dog. It was uncanny. He would respond to what you were saying. Smart cat.
He'd also make eye contact with you which was a trip for such a young animal. I don't ever remember having an animal that did that. Yes they would gaze, but this guy would actually look you in the eye for a little bit. I'd be sitting at the table reading the paper and i'd have this feeling like I was being watched, and I'd look over and he'd be sitting on the counter looking at me. And here's one for you, he'd come to you if you called him. My girlfirend said, the animal gods got confused and put a dog in a cats body !
Anyway, it was but a year or so I had to put another animal down that went into shock from a diabetic seizure in my hallway last Christmas and had to take him to the vet that night.
Just when you think putting one to sleep may harden you and not be so tough the next time you have to do that, it almost seems rougher the next time.
Our animals are a gift to us, and they do provide you something more than just an extra presence in your house hold. They do think and have feelings. I have pictures of every animal I have gladly owned and each one will hold their own distinctive personality in my heart.
Now oddly, how's this for a weird segue, that now I go from this heartfelt topic, to us going to Seattle to see The Reader and Kate Winslet showing off her naked body again.

Anonymous said...

My poking fun at Mr. Smithee & his fabulous female companion was solely based on their present situation as cat owners - I am delighted to hear that they are seriously considering bringing a canine into their lives(& our family) 'More Dogs, Less Kids', that's my motto!
Just a quick note on the film, I was thinking about where to place it on this years 'best of' lists - Emotionally, no other film affected me more - but should that put 'Marley & Me' in my Top 5 ? Because I connect with pups, does that elevate the quality of the movie? I've always been one of those - I don't care what other people think - kind of guys, so do I judge with my heart & put 'Marley' in the upper echelon?
From dbm & A.S.'s comments I would have to say I am wrong in thinking this is a movie that only dog lovers can appreciate, apparently it is a film for 'pet owners'.
If only there were more 'dogs trapped inside a cat's body', I might understand the reason why someone would want to have one in their family - & I'm not saying I'm anti-cat, I like them just fine, I would never own one though. I need to feel needed, I guess, & pups definitely do that better than pussycats.
So how high does this film rank? If it causes us all to remember our past 'best fuzzy buddies', I'd say that makes it pretty valuable.

Anonymous said...

I actually feel better since I have commented on this blog. That cat was real special. I just knew it in my bones. I was really looking fwd to the next 12-15 years with him. I have had a lot of animals, but that guy had personality. Cats are usually highly independent, but Rocky would follow me around and want to sit with you. Plus he meow-talked. I kid you not. Not like a meow, but a garbled meow as if it was trying to say words. That's why I say he was a trip. Unlike any I ever saw. This has been very cathartic to get my soreness off my chest.
As whether Marley and Me deserves to be in your top 5 of the year ?
It's a cute movie. An animal based presence. But I remember when Babe was nominated for a Best Picture Oscar and in no way was that an Oscar caliber film. Anyway, for some reason the consensus seem to be real high for Wall-E as the top cute movie of the year.
Personally, film's like Marley, Wall-E, generally all comedies, including Tropic Thunder and animated films go on a seperate list for me. Not on the so called critically acclaimed list. But that is just how I decipher that.
One thing I will admit, is that Aniston seemed distant. Like how I felt about Kidman in Austalia. As if it hard to get into the material. Equally on the night show circuit as well. They both seemed kind of blah when promoting.
Wilson on the other hand, was his best since Wedding Crashers.

Anonymous said...

dbm; first I completely agree with your Owen Wilson comment - there might be hope for his career now.
To me, 'Marley' had 10 times the personality & cuteness of 'Wall-E'. In fact, I'd easily pick 'Bolt' as the best animated film of 2008.
Commenting on how our much our pets have meant to us is off the track for a blog about films, but that IS what seeing 'Marley & Me' does to you. As dbm wrote about Rocky, I thought about Odie, my Siberian Husky I had about 30 years ago(Doesn't seem nearly that long though, as I still vividly picture him in my mind) Odie was hit by a car shortly before turning 2, so I didn't have him in my life for all that long either, but the short time we had together was very special to me. Seems as though the truly unique pets are the ones that have died young for us. & as Mr. Smithee quoted so perfectly, the pain IS worth the happiness they brought to our lives. Hope others have stories they can share about their pets so I don't feel as though we're boring everyone!