Wow! Such a good movie.

Great visuals, story delivers no surprises

The film may be flawed, but its message is not.

Story: It's very simple but honestly that is fine.

This movie really made me feel good about being a pet lover and owner. Hope other's take time to watch it to the end.

Amazingly brave and brilliant approach to subjects that many would rather not even think about, let alone to find humorously amusing. The main characters are about perfectly constructed to examine the emotionally charged issues of pound euthanasia, animal activism, trophy hunting, factory animal farms, vegans, and more in a story of enlightenment that is fantasy, allegory, myth, and then some.On an emotionally charged issue, the best chance to see the other side is to have some other perspective presented by some trusted source. The film walks the fine line of neutrality, by presenting the absurdity and ignorance of both sides of these disturbing issues, and thus unfortunately fails the partisan test required for the authoritarian viewers to question irrational beliefs. But it did bring up these important issues and got many people thinking differently too.What I got out of this movie, is an uplifting tall tale of a soul's firm placement on the path out of bestiality and ignorance and into compassionate action.Many reviewers take the view that this modern society is sane and that this person, Peggy, goes off the deep end, and so that this movie was not comically amusing or good entertainment. It's too much of a stretch for them to be able to imagine the perspective that society could be insane, that it has almost no place or tolerance for compassionate saints and the heartbroken. That those most touched by the suffering have a very difficult time just surviving in a cruel and apathetic world, but do actually have a magic bus gathering souls and momentum together.

"Year of the Dog" is a quirky yet poignant comedy. It's not memorable for its laugh-out-loud moments (the few there are), but more for Molly Shannon's terrific and seemingly effortless performance as a woman who has spent her whole life trying to please everyone around her. It's when she finds a cause she believes in that she gradually learns that it's impossible to please herself and everyone else.Shannon is Peggy, a single, milquetoast, unassuming office worker who lives a quiet existence with her dog. You see from the beginning of the film that she has acquaintances, not friends. The camera shows people talking to her in the direct center of the shot, and therefore her eyesight. When the camera cuts back to Peggy, you normally see her just politely smiling and nodding, not responding.Peggy does not seem to mind this style of living. It's only when her dog dies of apparent ingestion of rat poisoning that her life spins out of control.You see Shannon crying a lot during these scenes, and she's very believable. Any person who has ever had a dog for a pet can understand how heartbreaking it is to move on from such a tragedy.From there, the story progresses well as Peggy finds herself going on a date with slovenly next door neighbor Al (John C. Reilly), only to find an open bag of rat poison in his garage that look like a dog went through it. She then gets to know Newt (Peter Sarsgaard), an animal shelter worker who keeps three misfit dogs at his home because he didn't want them to be put down. One of those dogs, by the way, rendered a smaller dog paralyzed. He, however, just doesn't want to see another dog die.Peggy apparently agrees, and begins a self-administered quest to live a vegan life. She brings vegan cupcakes into her office, has fellow workers sign petitions to ban lab testing, and even adopts every dog that is to be put down at her local pound.This film tells very little, and shows a lot, which gives it a lot of depth. The camera shots that represents Peggy's vantage points work amazingly well, considering how simple they really are. When Peggy, while at Newt's house, silently ponders photographs of Newt, one where he is with a woman, and one where he is with a man, no words really need to express what she is thinking. After all, the audience wonders the same thing.You also really feel for Shannon as her well-meaning acquaintances (Laura Dern, Regina King) gradually react to her newfound poli-social stance as if she's on drugs. You also understand the feelings of those who are not quite as sympathetic, such as her boss Robin (Josh Pais).In fact, Pais plays this role with a permanent sneer on his face, as if he's smelling something awful throughout the entire movie. He's one of those actors whose name is not well known, but you've seen him in other things. Still, after seeing this film, you will not be able to get his facial expression out of your memory.The extremes to which Shannon's character goes to protect as many animals as possible are just that: extreme. You can't help but feel for her as she tries to do as many right things as she can, only to find her life falling apart around her. The tragic irony surrounding this film is that she's not an alcoholic or a drug addict, but suffers similar consequences as a result of adopting too many dogs at one point.Of course, you don't blame her for wanting to save those dogs. After all, I'm a dog lover, and I hate to think about dogs dying simply because no one has adopted them. Then again, one dog is a responsibility, and the pet population, as you've probably heard Bob Barker say, needs to be controlled.The film does well balancing the empathetic with the slightly insane, as screenwriter Mike White tends to do with his more independent films ("Chuck and Buck" (2000), "The Good Girl" (2002)). White makes his feature directorial debut with this movie, and provides a great story with images that tell more than most CGI special effects. Even if you don't like dogs, you can't put this film down.

I am a fan of funny movies, idie movies, even mumblecore movies....but this movie is terrible. Not one scene in this trash even amused me. How can anyone see this as funny?I suffered through this movie with 5 other friends. Not one person, one time laughed. I was embarrassed to have bought this movie to show to them. Comments on the film:"A happy go lucky woman who has many friends who appreciate her and a job that utilizes her skills. She Has a nice home and she has her beloved dog Pencil. Presently, she chooses to be single. Then something happens that sends her into the dog eat dog world of searching for love."really? is this for the right movie? *meh