Friday 8 January 2010

a wonderful movie for dog lovers

I saw a video of the movie 'Dean Spanley' the other night because a friend assured me that, as a dog lover, I would enjoy it.

Well, I did. I watched it again the next night, before I returned it to the shop.

I can't say too much about it, but if you like clever English comedy, turn of the twentieth-century costume drama, and think Peter O'Toole has the most gorgeous voice, you will find it entertaining. It has a fabulous cast: Art Malik, Bryan Brown, Jeremy Northam, Judy Parfitt, Peter O'Toole, Ramon Tikaram and Sam Neill

I was surprised to see it was based on a story written as long ago as 1936, published as a 14-chapter novella by Lord Dunsany. The novella was called My Talks with Dean Spanley. Given the fantasy elements, I would have thought it was quite modern, but apparently Lord Dunsany had an interest in the occult.

It's about a dog. That's all I can say without spoiling it. There's a review of it here, but if you read the review it might give away too much about the plot, in my opinion.

8 comments:

BookingAlong said...

Came to this from Jean Riva's blog. I love dogs and dog movies. What was your take on Marley and me or Hotel for Dogs or My Dog Skip?

parlance said...

BookingAlong, I didn't like Marley and Me (the book) because of the lack of empathy on the part of the owners. I thought they were unintentionally cruel to a very disturbed and needy dog. So I didn't see the movie.

I haven't seen the others, I must admit.

What were they like?

i said...

Happy & Blessed New Year!

Sounds like an interesting movie. Have you watched the one acted by Richard Gere? Think it's called Hachiko, about how the dog would wait for his master at the train station everyday. He continued waiting and died at the station long after his master died.

parlance said...

Happy, the good thing about it is that it's uplifting, and not too sad. (A bit sad, though.) I'll definitely look out for the Richard Gere one.

Noah the Airedale said...

Oh dear, I cant watch any dog movie, there is usually a sad scene.

D x

BookingAlong said...

Of all of them, I think you might like My Dog Skip. It is also based on a memoir about a very real boy and his dog. Times were tough so the movie doesn't sugar coat that part and it shows the characters as they develop.

parlance said...

D, I did cry at one stage, but it is uplifting in the end.

You might like "Lucky For Me"? an Aussie book (where the dog has a good life and is alive and well at the end).

parlance said...

Booking along, I'll put it on my to-be-watched list.