Must Love Dogs (2005)

User Rating:

5.9/10   

Director:

Gary David Goldberg

Writers (WGA):

Claire Cook (novel)
Gary David Goldberg (screenplay)

Release Date:

29 July 2005 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy | Romance

Tagline:

The hardest trick is making them stay.

Plot:

A forty-something preschool teacher looks to the personals for a change of pace and a relationship, with hilarious results.

Plot Keywords:

Dog | Teacher | Love | Dating | Dog Park

Awards:

1 nomination

US TV Schedule:

Sat. July 11	1:00 AM	TBS
Sat. July 11	12:45 PM	TBS

Cast

Diane Lane	...	Sarah Nolan
John Cusack	...	Jake
Elizabeth Perkins	...	Carol
Christopher Plummer	...	Bill
Dermot Mulroney	...	Bob
Stockard Channing	...	Dolly
Ali Hillis	...	Christine
Brad William Henke	...	Leo
Julie Gonzalo	...	June
Glenn Howerton	...	Michael
Ben Shenkman	...	Charlie
Jordana Spiro	...	Sherry
Kirk Trutner	...	Deli Guy
Victor Webster	...	Eric
Michael Spound	...	Marc

MPAA:

Rated PG-13 for sexual content.

Runtime:

98 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English | Armenian

Colour:

Colour

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

DTS | Dolby Digital | SDDS

Certification:

Brazil:12 | Germany:o.Al. | Ireland:12A | Netherlands:AL | Argentina:Atp | Finland:S | Taiwan:PG-12 | Australia:M | Sweden:Btl | Czech Republic:12 | Iceland:L | Malaysia:U | South Korea:15 | New Zealand:M | USA:PG-13 | UK:12A | Canada:PG (Ontario) | Canada:PG (British Columbia) | Canada:G (Quebec) | Singapore:PG (edited for re-rating) | Singapore:NC-16 (original rating) | Philippines:PG-13

Filming Locations:

Columbia/Warner Bros. Ranch - 411 N. Hollywood Way, Burbank, California, USA

Company:

Warner Bros. Pictures

Trivia:

Gary David Goldberg's company mascot, UBU, is a Newfoundland--the same dog in the film. "Sit, Ubu, Sit. Good dog."

Goofs:

Errors made by characters (possibly deliberate errors by the filmmakers): When Dolly is showing Sarah her multiple personalities on different matchmaking web sites, her computer screen shows an Apple Mac OS X desktop. Then she goes on and tells Sarah how her computer is working for her 24 hours a day "God bless its little Pentium-chip heart". Apple Mac OS X did not run on Intel Pentium computers when the movie was filmed.

Quotes:

[first lines]
Rebecca: The best place to meet a guy is at the supermarket. You don't need to waste a lot of time there, either. You see a guy holding a list, you know he's married. He's in the frozen food section carrying a small basket, he's single. I like to hang out by fruits and vegetables, there's a better chance of getting a guy who's healthy.

Movie Connections:

Features Giant (1956)

Soundtrack:

Come On Get Happy

I'll keep the dog

Pairing attractive actors with cute dogs is something Hollywood loves to present, again, and again. This is a film that has that "cute factor" written all over it. Fortunately, we caught it in the form of a borrowed DVD, never having the stomach to spend full price on this formula comedy.

Director Gary David Goldberg's take on this situation doesn't bring anything new. The film is harmless enough not to offend anyone, but in retrospect, one has to wonder why was the film made in the first place? Poor Diane Lane, she keeps showing up in these inane comedies that don't do anything for her. She is a beautiful woman who could do better, but whoever is advising her keeps steering her in the wrong direction, unfortunately. Ditto for John Cusack. One wonders what attracted actors of the stature of Christopher Plummer and Stockard Channing to appear in a movie that will certainly not add anything in their C.V.s.

The cute Newfoundland puppies that were used in the movie should have been given more opportunities to show their talents.