Must Love Dogs DVD Review:

John Cusack is the king of romantic comedy. It isn’t that he has made more romantic comedies than other actors, although he has made more than most, but ever since Say Anything he has the persona that fits perfectly with the image that these films are trying to portray. Let the romance novels flaunt large muscled men with a cleft chin, but romantic comedies are better suited for the flawed but lovable characters that Cusack plays. Must Love Dogs doesn’t have the material to make it a great film, or even as good as others these actors have made, but the charm and ease that Cusack and Diane Lane are able to carry the film makes it more bearable than it might have been in other hands.

Sarah Nolan (Lane) is a pre-school teacher who is recently divorced and lonely. She has no hope of any romance in her life, until her sister puts her photo on a dating service online. This brings an onslaught of men into her life, including Jake (Cusack), a romantic and lonely boat builder who was also forced into online dating. Sarah lets Jake go when she has the opportunity to date a parent of one of the kids at her school, but when she realizes that she may have made the wrong choice the audience is dragged through many romantic hoops as we wait to see if the right people will end up together.

Aside from the online dating part of the film, which tries the audience’s patience with the usual jokes that include her being set up on a date with overly sensitive men, strange men, and even her father, Must Love Dogs is fairly cute. Cute is about the only word which can be used to describe it because there is very little at stake. We know from the very beginning what the outcome will be. We know from the cover pf the DVD which has Cusack and Lane sitting on a park bench together that they will work it out, but the journey is still cute.

The DVD is as light and fluffy as the film itself, with a cheerful menu and happy looking cover. The special features are light as well, with very few perks to add to the film. There is a gag reel, which is rather funny, and a few extra scenes, which are also available with commentary. The only other feature is a theatrical trailer. It would have been nice to have a commentary track with John Cusack and Diane Lane, but they probably weren’t jumping to do it since the film received only mediocre success.



Ryan Izay

Divorced and single for eight months, Sarah’s (Lane) family decide to step in and get her back in the dating game. Jake’s (Cusack) divorce papers have just gone through and best friend Charlie (Shenkman) wants to introduce him to his new freedoms. Both interfering friends and families decide to use the new source of dating the Internet but even with modern technology, the path to new love is still a difficult one.

The romantic comedy has always been the domain of the younger generation but Hollywood has discovered a whole new age demographic to cater for.

Even though the British film industry has know this and exploited it for a long time now, Hollywood has only just discovered that the over 35s are also single and dreaming about finding love. This is a lucrative and untapped market in the US as the country has one of the highest divorce rates in the world so there are many single women and men dreaming of having new romance in their lives. Now Hollywood has realised that this is a growing market that has money to spend but have really not been catered for on the silver screen but can ‘Must Love Dogs’ tap into that demographic?

The movie revolves around that new dating tool, the Internet. This is a phenomenon that is sweeping the dating world and it is the thirty-five plus generation that are really exploiting it. Based on the novel by Claire Cook, the film shows you how difficult it can be to be single again after been married. Revealing how divorcees have to rejoin the dating the game and the mishaps that these people endure as they rejoin the single populace using the Internet to help them back into the game.

This is interesting plot device is bought to the big screen by two actors that are no strangers to the romantic comedy genre. Diane Lane is becoming the go-to-girl for filmmakers when it comes to casting a 35+ female lead in a romantic comedy and she is becoming very attuned to the role. She is becoming a skilled rom-com actress who displays the right about of haplessness and vulnerability to capture the essence of the role so that she will appeal to the film’s target audience. John Cusack can play this type of role in his sleep and he has become an expert at it. The man still oozes cool and makes Jake a man that most of the male audience can connect with. Cusack has always had the ability to play these roles quite convincingly but this is hardly a film that pushes his talents.

The supporting ensemble cast is also filled with actors quite accustomed to the genre. Elizabeth Perkins is very good as Sarah’s interfering sister Carol. Christopher Plummer and Stockard Channing bring some class to the proceedings as Sarah’s dad Bill and his new girlfriend Dolly. There are also good performances from Dermot Mulroney, Ali Hillis and Ben Shenkman.

‘Must Love Dogs’ should ring true with the 35+ single demographic that it is aiming to cater for. With some fun moments and not too much sentimentally to make the movie too sickly sweet, the film is made all the more enjoyable by the performance of the two leads and there supporting cast and you don’t have to like dogs to like it.

Star Rating = * * *

PICTURE & SOUND

Presented in Anamorphic Widescreen 2.35:1 with Dolby Digital 5.1 surround sound, the movie is presented well.

BONUS FEATURES

Additional Scenes with Commentary by screenwriter/director Gary David Goldberg (8.25 mins)
Entitled ‘Roger’s Testimonial’, ‘Sister’s Talking’, ‘Brady Bunch’ and ‘Michael Collins’, these deleted scenes show more the good chemistry amongst the cast.

Pass the Beef – Gag Reel (1.00 mins)
Watch Elizabeth Perkins throw the beef at John Cusack, not very well.

Theatrical trailer (2.19 mins)
Watch the full trailer that promoted the movie in cinemas

Trailers
A preview of ‘Charlie and the Chocolate Factory’

OVERALL

The DVD treatment of ‘Must Love Dogs’ is very lacklustre. While the additional scenes have a commentary track, the feature doesn’t which is a real puzzle. The lack of any making of featurette is also a shame, making this a real let down for fans of the film.

Jamie Kelwick