This is a tender, generous movie that likes its characters and presents them as real people, full of flaws and strengths.

Good films always raise compelling questions, whether the format is fiction or documentary fact.

The best films of this genre always show a path and provide a takeaway for being a better person.

It is neither dumb nor smart enough to be fun, and spends way too much time with its boring human characters.

Amiable lawyer Wilby Daniels (winningly played by Dean Jones) is running for district attorney. Wilby once again gets stricken by the Borgia ring curse which causes him to transform into a large shaggy sheepdog at inopportune moments. His shady and crooked no-count rival John Slade (a marvelously hearty'n'huffy portrayal by Keenan Wynn) tries to get his hands on said ring so he can fix the election. Director Robert Stevenson, working from a blithely silly script by Don Tait, relates the loopy story at a constant zippy pace, maintains a good-natured and innocuous tone throughout, and stages the expected zany slapstick with considerable panache (a wild pie fight and an equally crazy car chase rate as the definite sidesplitting comic highlights). Moreover, the top-rate cast play their parts with infectiously zesty aplomb: Jones is totally engaging in the lead, Tim Conway is in peak goofy form as eager beaver ice cream man Tim (the scenes with Tim trying to convince other people his dog Elwood can talk are hilarious!), Suzanne Pleshette brings some class to her role as Wilby's supportive wife Betty, Wynn grouches it up with growly gusto as a deliciously broad heavy, plus there are neat supporting contributions from Jo Anne Worley as brassy, chipper lunch lady Katrinka Muggelberg, Dick Van Patten as Slade's obsequious partner Raymond, Vic Tayback as fearsome crime boss Eddie Roschak, Richard Bakalyan as bumbling hoodlum Freddie, and John Fiedler as jolly dog catcher Howie Cummings. Buddy Baker's bouncy score, Fred V. Phillips' sharp cinematography, the nifty make-up f/x, and the jaunty theme song all further enhance the sweetly inane charm of this immensely enjoyable hoot.

Attorney Wilby Daniels (played by Dean Jones) and his wife Betty (played by Suzanne Pleshette) return to their home and find out that it has just been robbed. After the robbers return a second time to take everything else that they had left, Wilby decides to run for District Attorney so he can clean up the town and lock up the criminals for good.Meanwhile, the same robbers who broke into his house have also stolen the famous Borgia ring from the local museum. Unfortunately for Wilby, every time someone reads the inscription, he turns into a sheepdog again. This of course, happens at the most inconvenient times, and the result is a silly, family-friendly comedy.The Shaggy D.A. is a sequel to the 1959 Disney film, the Shaggy Dog. Though it's not quite as funny as the original, there still is a lot to like about this version of the story. The acting is pretty much on par with what we've come to expect from these Disney films, and the characters are pretty interesting, even if they are one-dimensional. The transformation from human to dog doesn't seem to work as well here as it did in the 1959 film, for some reason, but it's fine. If I had a complaint about this movie, it's that it goes a bit long and the same gags are used a few times too many. Other than that, it's nice to find a film that doesn't resort to 7th grade humor that seems to be in every "family" film these days.The bottom line is this is a decent movie if you'd like to have a good time with the kids, but adults will be a bit bored from it fairly soon. It's not as good as some of the other Disney comedies from the 1960s and 1970s.

This is not a true sequel to the 1959 original starring Tommy Kirk as a teen-aged Wilby Daniels. By that I mean it doesn't continue the same story line. This time, Dean Jones is the adult Wilby Daneils. When his house is robbed-not once-but twice-he decides enough is enough and decides to run for DA.From the outset Wilby is faced with two problems-first, is to try to defeat the incumbent DA-Honest John Slade(Keenan Wynn). John Slade is anything but honest-he is allowing crooks off the hook by not prosecuting them or letting them off easy. One of these crooks is Eddie Roschak(Vic Tayback-in a much more realistic portrayal of a bad guy than in "No deposit, no Return").Wilby's Second and much more serious problem-is that the "Borger" ring has been stolen from the museum-and whenever someone reads the inscription on the ring-Wilby is transformed in to a shaggy dog-that belongs to "Tim-the ice cream man"(Tim Conway). THe dog's name is "Elwood" Wilby's Wife is Betty(Suzanne Pleshette)and they have a son, whom I call the wisecracking "Brian"(Shane Sinutko). His wife becomes his campaign manager.John Slade gets hold of the ring and tries to blackmail Daneils out of the race by threatening to keep reading the inscription on the ring over & over again to keep Daniels as a dog. Of course he ignores the warning the museum curator gives-if you read the inscription too many times-you may turn into a dog your self.Wilby, Brian & Tim are on a mission to get the ring back from Slade and his gang of crooks. Do they succeed? You will need to see the film to find out.The pie fight is so funny. There are plenty of funny moments and gags in this movie. This is one of the better comedies offered by Disney in the 70's.So, why do I vote 8 instead of 10? Well-the movie doesn't answer the questions I have: 1. Why is it that Wilby Daneils is turned into a dog himself? Why not someone else? 2. Does Daneils descend from the Borger Family, and is he a victim of a family curse? I know that in the 1959 original-Daneils finds the ring and he reads the inscription and turns into a dog. That maybe the answer-but the fact remains-not everyone who reads the inscription turns into a dog. I think there must be something else-a family trait or curse or something that only happens to Daniels and no one else.Overall, this is a real good movie with a fine cast and directed by Disney's Ledgendary director Robert Stevenson.

Just kidding (As if anyone could not figure out-- whether they've seen the movie or not-- how it will turn out).Like one of the other people who commented above, I was a kid (6) when this movie came out, and for some reason this is one of the movies that sticks in my mind along with Gus, Boatniks, and the '66 Batman, when I think back on the movies I saw at that age. So Shaggy DA has a built-in nostalgia factor as far as I'm concerned, and maybe for others my age, but anyone else would probably be bored to tears. The pie-fight had a little spark of energy, but watching this now mainly just serves to remind what low standards "family entertainment" had in the 70s. It's really amazing, today, to look back on this kind of stuff-- Shaggy DA, Pete's Dragon, that "Goin Cocoanuts" thing the Osmonds put out-- and think: Good Lord, was that really the best they could do?