Year of the Dog

Paramount Vantage | Release Date: April 13, 2007

6.6	USER SCORE Generally favorable reviews based on 34 Ratings

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BlancoA.Apr 15, 2007

Very much a Mike White movie - you leave the theater thinking about it (and wondering what to think, in my case). Every couple of minutes during the film I thought to myself, "Wow... Molly Shannon is really nailing this part." She walks a Very much a Mike White movie - you leave the theater thinking about it (and wondering what to think, in my case). Every couple of minutes during the film I thought to myself, "Wow... Molly Shannon is really nailing this part." She walks a VERY careful tightrope in not overplaying her part, making he character seem overly bizarre or goofy. It's her minimalist approach, together with great supporting actors like John C. Reilly and Laura Dern which really make this a solid film. It's just the subject matter that's a little off-putting, but that is, I suppose the point. What will PETA think??… Expand

1 of 1 users found this helpful

ChadS.May 6, 2007

And finally, when "Year of the Dog" is on the verge of caricaturizing vegans as hopeless neurotics, the filmmaker dramatizes a sort of disclaimer about animal-rights activists not all being maladjusted loner types like Peggy(Molly Shannon), And finally, when "Year of the Dog" is on the verge of caricaturizing vegans as hopeless neurotics, the filmmaker dramatizes a sort of disclaimer about animal-rights activists not all being maladjusted loner types like Peggy(Molly Shannon), as we can also see "normal" people on that same bus(en route to a rally), in a closing scene similar to the one in Todd Solondz's "Welcome to the Dollhouse". Peggy isn't alienated to the extent that Dawn Wiener was in the Solondz film, but this could all change, since her vegetarianism is now formally politicized by her forthcoming participation in a public demonstration. Peggy's newfound moral impetus of non-conformity with the social norms(she once aspired towards) will aggravate her social retardation to a degree that platonic relationships(like the benign, but functional interactions she enjoys with her office co-workers), not only potential romantic ones, will elude her as well. When Newt(Peter Saarsgard) indoctrinates Peggy into veganism, he is taking away one of the last vestiges of common ground she shares with ordinary people(which is a natural love for junk food; their reaction to the soy cupcakes is an indicator of Peggy's future). "Year of the Dog" should've gone in a direction more organic to its "Wait Until Dark"-like scene of near-violence, but this barbed comedy is still a pretty grim affair, made all the more sadder by Peggy's heart-on-a-sleeve optimism.… Expand

1 of 1 users found this helpful

MarkB.May 8, 2007

With all due respect to Lassie, Rin Tin Tin and Benji, the greatest movie canine of all time could hardly be anyone other than Toto from The Wizard of Oz. Consider: millions and millions of moviegoers, both committed and casual, recognize With all due respect to Lassie, Rin Tin Tin and Benji, the greatest movie canine of all time could hardly be anyone other than Toto from The Wizard of Oz. Consider: millions and millions of moviegoers, both committed and casual, recognize him by name from his one and only film, and Judy Garland sings "Over the Rainbow" (considered by the American Film Institute and many fans to be the greatest movie SONG of all time) specifically to him. And yet, for the ten minutes (or less) that he's onscreen, Year of the Dog's Pencil the beagle offers Toto some very fierce competition! Pencil is the light in the life of Peggy (Molly Shannon), a sweet, kindhearted, eager-to-please but somewhat socially awkward homebody who's not much more than a background figure in the lives of her relatives, coworkers and friends. (In fact, if a movie had been made about Peggy's numbers-obsessed boss Robin, her husband-hungry buddy Layla or her smug sister Bret and family, Peggy wouldn't even qualify as a supporting character; she'd only appear in one or two expository scenes and what we'd mostly see of her would be the back of her head.) Pencil is the center of Peggy's universe, and vice versa; when Pencil dies accidentally early on, it's no surprise at all that Peggy's life will be totally shattered, because Peggy is for the first time forced to realize what she was only peripherally aware of before: that without Pencil, Peggy really HAS no life. (When, later on, she relates her discovery that a certain very specific word is the first one she's heard that truly describes her, lumps simultaneously grow in throats all throughout the arthouse.) I've always really liked Shannon, whose strangely endearing nervous energy made her SNL movies A Night at the Roxbury and Superstar a lot less of a viewing chore, but she's phenomenal here: without begging for sympathy or striking a false note, she negotiates all the steps from ripping your heart out to just plain scaring it out of you. Shannon's work is to 2007 what Maggie Gyllenhaal's portrayal of a paroled substance abuser trying to reclaim her child was to Sherrybaby in 2006: a remarkably subtle, nuanced interpretation of a terrific woman's role that nevertheless could have, with the wrong actress, lent itself to all kinds of showboating and scenery-chewing but absolutely never does here. (And unfortunately, the Motion Picture Academy will undoubtedly pay as much attention to Shannon's work as it did to Gyllenhaal's. C'mon, Oscar: Shannon manages to be utterly believable here in spite of the fact that in real life she's allergic to dogs! Doesn't she deserve some recognition for sacrificing for her art?) Mike White's script and direction are completely worthy of his lead actress: he satirizes the people in Peggy's world without ever demonizing them (even the boorish hunter who's her next door neighbor); he charts Peggy's journey from despair to emptiness to social involvement to fanaticism to madness to ambiguity with a mathematical precision that only seems casually observed...and his much-criticized "let's have everybody seem to talk to the audience" method of staging and camera placement isn't an indie affectation at all, but the absolutely perfect means to depict Peggy's relationship and status with her acquaintances: except in a handful of shots in which others share the frame with her, Peggy is perpetually isolated. While her devotion to a cause is certainly admirable up to a point, it's hard not to wonder if (as is often the case with people who join extremist groups or religious cults) Peggy would've immersed herself so deeply into veganism and animal rights if, at the time she needed them so desperately, Layla, Bret or anyone else had taken an afternoon off to spend with her, or let her cry on their shoulder as long as she needed to, or just really listened to her. The beauty of Year of the Dog is that even though its central themes largely and necessarily deal with how we treat or mistreat animals, at the end of the day it really made me want to treat PEOPLE with more kindness.… Expand

1 of 1 users found this helpful

JimmyR.May 5, 2007

I loved this little movie. It offers so much more than one might expect. Laura Dern (& the guy who plays her hubby) are both dead-on hilarious. I'm a private tutor and I work w/clients like these people daily. I had to avert my eyes I loved this little movie. It offers so much more than one might expect. Laura Dern (& the guy who plays her hubby) are both dead-on hilarious. I'm a private tutor and I work w/clients like these people daily. I had to avert my eyes during their scenes, it was too painful. Sarsgaard and Shannon both do excellent work, and Josh Pais (the boss) is scarily hilarious. I strongly recommend.… Expand

0 of 1 users found this helpful

TracyB.May 1, 2007

Great film- a story I have never seen told and in a very unusal manner, very entertaining.

0 of 1 users found this helpful

AaronL.May 6, 2007

Thought provoking; not afraid to intermix issues; real; and very enjoyable, cute and fun. This was a great movie.

0 of 1 users found this helpful

NicoDaFlagburnaDec 11, 2010

The tone of the film is ambient and static, as fashioned by Jared Hess in Napoleon Dynamite, and the uniquely tongue-in-cheek observation of Los Angeles society is contrasted with the more serious theme of death. The toxic poisoning of herThe tone of the film is ambient and static, as fashioned by Jared Hess in Napoleon Dynamite, and the uniquely tongue-in-cheek observation of Los Angeles society is contrasted with the more serious theme of death. The toxic poisoning of her pet dog seems to be a catalyst for evolution and exposes the film as a medium for humility in which vegans and pro-animal activists are cast as socially detached. In fact humans are generally seen as undeserving of any sustained screen time. On a subconscious level White's satire questions the role of communication and whether what you stand for should define you as a person. In a sense it is anti-human but it also offers redemption through the medium of change.… Expand

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FlicbuffOct 29, 2015

Watched this 07 film just before it was zapped off Netflix. Shannon was excellent until the plot goes off the deep-end, I salute the film for presenting many issues which are never broached in films outside of documentaries. However, theWatched this 07 film just before it was zapped off Netflix. Shannon was excellent until the plot goes off the deep-end, I salute the film for presenting many issues which are never broached in films outside of documentaries. However, the caring, methodical character she portrayed was not someone who would have forged checks or adopted multiple animals without a plan to find them homes. While the enormity of the issue of animal abuse can make one ditsy, her meltdown was disingenuous. She was aware of the many rescue groups in her area and would immediately have been placing those 15 dogs instead of destroying her home and means of earning a living for them. She could have started her own sanctuary. This film, built on good premises and engaging characters ends up leaving the impression that smothering your conscience and going along with the norm, however hurtful, is the only sane choice.… Expand

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