Year of the Dog (2007)

A secretary's life changes in unexpected ways after her dog dies.

Director:

Mike White

Writer:

Mike White

Stars:

Molly Shannon, John C. Reilly, Peter Sarsgaard

1 win & 1 nomination.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Molly Shannon	...	Peggy
Laura Dern	...	Bret
Regina King	...	Layla
Tom McCarthy	...	Pier (as Thomas McCarthy)
Josh Pais	...	Robin
John C. Reilly	...	Al
Peter Sarsgaard	...	Newt
Amy Schlagel	...	Lissie
Zoe Schlagel	...	Lissie
Dale Godboldo	...	Don
Inara George	...	Holly
Liza Weil	...	Trishelle
Jon Shere	...	Pound Employee
Christy Moore	...	Al's Girlfriend (as Christy Lynn Moore)
Audrey Wasilewski	...	Audrey

Storyline

Peggy is single, childless, in her 40s, a lonely executive assistant in a friendly office. Her dog Pencil is the love of her life, and when he dies after eating some sort of toxin, Peggy's life spins out of her control: a friendly neighbor invites her for dinner; a friendly staff member at her vet's calls with an abused dog he recommends she adopt - she does, and also finds herself attracted to this fellow. She becomes a vegan, supports animal-rights causes, and embroils her brother's young children in these concerns. Saving dogs and other animals become such a passion that her mental health and her job may be in danger. Are regaining control and finding love beyond her reach?

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Plot Keywords:

dog | love | animal | office | neighbor | 

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Taglines:

Has the world left you a stray?

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Genres:

Comedy | Drama

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG-13 for some suggestive references

Details

Official Sites:

Official site

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

11 May 2007 (USA)

Also Known As:

El año del perro

Filming Locations:

Altadena, California, USA

Box Office

Opening Weekend USA:

$108,223, 13 April 2007, Limited Release

Gross USA:

$1,540,141, 28 June 2007

Company Credits

Production Co:

Black & White Productions, Plan B Entertainment, Rip Cord Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

97 min

Sound Mix:

DTS Dolby Digital SDDS

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The screenplay for this film was featured in the 2006 Blacklist; a list of the "most liked" unmade scripts of the year.

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Quotes

Newt: ...and... well, we have a dog here who needs a home... and this dog, Valentine is his name... uh, has some behavioral issues and I just thought that maybe you might fall in love with him; it's a shot in the dark here, but I'm just desperate because I don't want to see him die... but no pressure.

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Connections

References Spider-Man 3 (2007)

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Soundtracks

Steady State
Written by Simon Jeffes
Performed by the Penguin Cafe Orchestra

User Reviews

How to become a pet-obsessive in 10 easy lessons.

This was probably not a good movie for me to watch. I have had to put two dogs down and one just died on me. If you are out digging a grave at 5.am., bawling your eyes out, then you know what someone goes through when they lose a pet.

So, I could empathize with Peggy (Molly Shannon) and see how she could be easily swayed by Newt (Peter Sarsgaard). She was vulnerable and was easily pushed over the deep end.

It is unrealistic to think that friends, family, and co-workers will be so understanding. That only happens in the movies.

But, it was nice to see her follow her passion. That was the plus of the movie that focused just a bit too much on animal abuse.