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 (Molly Shannon) is single, childless, in her forties, 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:

american society for the prevention of cruelty to animals | dog | love | 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

Did You Know?

Trivia

The website where Molly makes her card is a real website for making greeting cards.

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Quotes

Al: It can be a real addiction. You know, some people spend all kinds of money traveling the world just to find something to shoot that's new and hard to find, you know? Like leopards, rare birds, and they have tours in Africa and Asia and India... even endangered species. You know, so you can get one before they're all gone.

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Connections

Features Dick Clark's New Year's Rockin' Eve 1984 (1983)

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Soundtracks

Ciao Italia
Written by Gayle Ellett & Julien Desabrais
Performed by Studio Musicians

User Reviews

I don't have much new to add, but this film is unfortunately being overlooked

I'm a sucker for movies about people and their pets. This film stars former SNL player Molly Shannon as a secretary whose personal life revolves around her beagle, Pencil. When he passes away unexpectedly, she has to find another reason to go on. The film first hints that she'll discover the world of humans around her, particularly men, as two new ones (John C. Reilly & Peter Saarsgard) enter her life. But it smartly steers away from the obvious and veers into a more original voyage of self-discovery. My only real problem with the film is that a lot of the supporting characters are a little too caricature-esquire (notably Shannon's boss, played by Josh Pais), but writer/director White does a good job of redeeming them for the most part. A very touching, gentle film that's well worth your time.

Details

Official Sites:

Official site

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

11 May 2007 (USA)

Also Known As:

Year of the Dog

Filming Locations:

Pasadena Humane Society & SPCA, Pasadena, California, USA

Box Office

Opening Weekend USA:

$108,223, 15 April 2007

Gross USA:

$1,540,141

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$1,606,237

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