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by Terese Henry
This movie is appealing on several fronts. You'll like this movie if you love dogs so much that you like to watch and/or attend dog shows, but you'll like it even more if the idea of spending loads of time, money and energy on a canine strikes you as supremely ridiculous. If you enjoy a smart satire which continuously hits its marks with searing accuracy, or if a screwball comedy filled with sight gags tickles your funny bone, you'll love this film. Did you like This is Spinal Tap? Did you feel Drop Dead Gorgeous was a little too dark? Well, Christopher Guest and his old SCTV gang, the creators and stars of such "mockumentaries," are back with their best attempt yet, which amazingly, was almost entirely improvised. My husband and I, both of whom usually don't care for comedies, loved this fast-paced, laugh out loud romp.

We meet five pairs of dog owners traveling from all parts of the country to compete with their pooch in the Mayflower Dog Show, a thinly veiled representation of the "Granddaddy of them all" Westminster Dog Show. Eugene Levy, whom I usually don't like, is great as the goofy husband of the flamboyant and formerly promiscuous Catherine O'Hara. His cheesy white shoes are spotlighted early in the movie as he confesses that he, literally, has two left feet. You will find yourself cheering for this couple, a younger version of the Ropers on "Three's Company" as they and their Norwich terrier Winky battle their decidedly upper class competition.

John Michael Higgins and Michael McKean are completely convincing as the fiercely flaming, outlandishly dressed homosexual couple preening over their Shih Tzu, Miss Agnes. The funniest and most annoying competitors are two high strung yuppie lawyers played by Michael Hitchcock and Parker Posey, a married couple who met at different Starbucks on opposite street corners, and their neurotic Weimaraner. In a role modeled after Anna Nicole Smith and the like, Jennifer Coolidge, a filthy rich trophy wife, employs super trainer Jane Lynch to help her standard poodle gain an edge in the competition. Finally, Guest himself plays a slow-talking ventriloquist and owner of a both a bait shack and a champion bloodhound who journeys to the big city from the Carolina pines. As expected, these five couples win their respective groups and face off in the best in show finale.

As an avid watcher of the Westminster dog show, I was blown away by the on- target spoof of the tiniest details, from the tackily dressed dogs' trainers to Fred Willard's caricature of tv color commentator and former jock Joe Garagiola, whose idiotic attempt at banter constantly stuns both viewers and dog professionals alike. He glibly asks his ultra-serious co host, "Take a guess at how much I can bench press" and "In some countries, aren't these dogs eaten?"

This movie is an excellent example of an often missed gem in the barrage of mediocre blockbusters. It appeals to both men and women, but would fly over the heads of most children. Unless a good laugh is a turn on, the get lucky factor is low, as is the Of Mice and Men factor. The Seven factor is high only because the ridiculous characters and one-liners will stick with you.

Reviewer Betsy Bozdech says it best, "No bones about it - if Best in Show doesn't leave you howling, it just might be time to put you down."
Terese Henry

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Screen formats: Widescreen anamorphic

Subtitles: None

Sound: English (Dolby Digital 5.1)

Other Features: Color; region 1 encoding; interactive menus; scene access; feature length audio commentary by director/co-star Christopher Guest and other co-stars; deleted scenes with optional director commentary; K-9 Corner: visiting various dogs and their owners; cast/filmmaker career highlights; TV spots; original theatrical trailer; closed captioned.



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Complete Cast:

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