Year of the Dog

This past weekend, I saw the movie Year of the Dog at the Westgate Arts Cinemas. A debut directorial for Mike White, who also wrote the scripts for School of Rock, Chuck & Buck and The Good Girl, the film was featured at this year’s Sundance Film Festival and is the story of a quirky, happy-go-lucky woman named Peggy (Molly Shannon) and her greatest love and companion, a beagle named Pencil. When Pencil meets his unexpected death in a neighbor’s yard, Peggy is completely shattered and lost. She thus begins a journey and transformation process as she searches for purpose, passion, and a greater meaning in life. In the end, she discovers her true calling in life, and a way to keep Pencil’s spirit alive.

I can’t say that I loved this film. In fact, many times I found it boring and slow, but I do think Molly Shannon gives an excellent performance–certainly very un-SNL Mary Katherine Gallagher. I was generally unhappy with the plot and script, particularly towards the end of the film. I really just wanted her to end up with neighbor Al. Instead, she becomes this scary, almost militant-like, animal rights activist that becomes completely out of touch from reality and isolated from her friends and family. Not that her friends and family were worth the trouble, nor did she have anything else interesting going on in her life, but couldn’t she have just found it in her heart to forgive neighbor Al and taken him for what he was–a kind and gentle soul, hunting knives and all? He didn’t mean to poison Pencil! But seriously, can’t a girl get a little romance and passion?