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Back Shelf Beauties
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The Shaggy Dog When I first saw the trailer, I started to loathe the night I would have to see The Shaggy Dog and be treated to series of jokes about butt sniffing. A funny thing happened when I saw the movie. It kept the butt sniffing and potty jokes to a minimum, and raised the volume on plot and funny humor. It turns out The Shaggy Dog is not a dog of a movie in any way. It's a wonderful, funny and sweet movie the family can enjoy without guilt. Tim Allen stars as Dave Douglas - an overworked father of two and the assistant district attorney prosecuting his teen daughter's, Carly (Zena Gray), favorite teacher. The teacher, actively involved in animal rights, is accused of arson when a local drug company's lab is set ablaze. Many of the animal rights crusaders in town think the company is engaging in animal testing, something Carly and her pal, Trey (Shawn Pyfrom), are trying to prove when they sneak into the lab and find a dog in the middle of his escape. They bring the dog home, and name him Shaggy, but are not familiar with his unique background. Shaggy is a mystical, magical and highly intelligent 300-year old dog the drug company was conducting experiments on to create a serum that would make humans live up to 7 times longer. Shaggy senses he needs help to save his animal buddies and stop the evil head of development at the company, Dr. Kozak (Robert Downey, Jr. - a guy who knows something about drugs), so he bites Dave, which causes him to display canine traits and temperament, and, periodically, turn into a dog at the worst moments you can imagine. Will Dave discover the truth behind the drug company? Will his family ever believe he is turning into a dog? Director Brian Robbins (former star of TV's Head of the Class and uber-succeessful producer) does an amazing job pulling together several sub-plots to create a moving, funny, family friendly and well-written film. On the one hand, The Shaggy Dog is a hilarious, kooky physical comedy requiring Allen to act like a dog by growling at those who upset him, itching fleas, chasing cats and giving us an internal monologue of his dog-like thoughts, complete with a perfectly excitable and sunny reaction to the actions that make dogs happy. On the other hand, Robbins expertly weaves the various stories together to keep the audience interested and challenged as we watch Dave try to solve the mystery, while trying to convince his family and boss he isn't going crazy. On yet another hand, Robbins knows how to pull at our heartstrings as Dave learns more about his family and how he has been letting them down in pursuit of his dream job (this movie is very handsy, like a high school boy on prom night). The Shaggy Dog always seems to hit the right emotional button at every turn, and does so in a way that doesn't feel forced, phony or contrived. The movie always has a great deal of heart and caring, no matter how crazy the plot might be, and Allen helps make The Shaggy Dog one to watch. If it's possible, Allen has played a man turning into a dog in the most subtle and understated way possible. He eschews a visual assault on good taste to slowly work his canine transformation in each scene, adding little nuances in each scenario Dave finds himself in, whether he is starting to have trouble with fleas, lapping his morning coffee like a dog, or willing to chase after every ball and stick in town. Because he does not oversell any crazy behavior, like broader comedians such as Jim Carrey might, the audience believes Dave is confused about what is happening to him, and quite embarrassed by it, which makes it funnier and compels the audience to worry about the hero, a perfect combination of feelings to make the audience pay attention and follow the plot as closely as possible. Further proving to us that Robbins refuses to dumb down the movie, Allen and his co-stars add depth to their characters. Kristin Davis is wonderful, and possibly a bit underused, as Dave's loving wife, Rebecca. She gives her a sense of great sadness as the marriage seems to be falling apart, and she longs for the days when Dave was much more involved with the kids and the marriage. Downey, Jr. is able to make Dr. Kozak into a menacing figure, sometimes a little too scary for the smallest of kids, and excels when the tables are turned and he becomes a more comical figure. Throw in Danny Glover as the boss to give the movie some gravitas, and a nice performance from Gray, who makes Carly into a smart, passionate kid instead of a know-it-all brat, and you have a fine ensemble. The Shaggy Dog could use some help in the CGI department by providing a much cooler morphing effect to show Dave turning into a dog, but most of the graphics are well done, especially the odd traits each of the animals at the lab have acquired. The only other problem with the film is use of Tim Allen's famous line from Toy Story as doggie Dave yells, "To Infinity and Beyond," during a climactic scene. It feels disrespectful to a cherished and historical movie, and it's too obviously done to be cool or funny. I wish Disney would stop with stuff like this. Anyone who saw the Oscars and the blatant, yet, out of place insertion of Chicken Little knows what I am talking about. The Shaggy Dog is one of the biggest surprises of 2006. 3 ½ Waffles (Out Of 4) Copyright 2006 - WaffleMovies.com
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