Lots of Excitement over Marley and Me
December 29, 2008 · Print This Article
  I guess I’m not the only one excited about the release of “Marley and Me”. I plan on seeing in Tuesday night, so I’ll let you know on Wednesday what I thought. (Although I’m not particularly fond of Owen Wilson, the male lead – hope that doesn’t ruin it for me.)
Anyways, here’s just a bit of the news I’ve seen recently about the movie.
The Free Lance Star has an excellent piece from Lisa Lange (of PETA) talking about how the movie shows that having a dog is a long-term commitment, even if the dog is not very well-behaved. Although I sometimes think PETA activists go too far, I have to say that this was a very well-written article. An excerpt:Â
“Unless you work at an animal shelter, you’d probably be surprised at the reasons people give for getting rid of their dogs and cats. The animals, they say, are a bother. They bark all the time, take too long to house train, have fleas, keep getting pregnant, are too aggressive, or are too timid. Countless people toss out their “pets” as they would an unwanted piece of furniture when they move or have a baby.”The American Humane Association is running a new education campaign around “Marley & Me”, hosting special screenings of the movie before its Dec. 25 opening.  At these special screenings, local shelters will have dogs available for adoption, and the association will offer pamphlets on dog training and ownership .
I gotta say, the first part of that scares me a little. The last thing you want is people coming out of a movie theater and making an impulse purchase of a new dog. Although, I guess the subject matter of the movie may prevent people from having too big of a pie in the sky attitude about what owning a dog means.
And finally, you can read another story of an insane yellow lab here.Until next time,Good day, and good dog!Â
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It will be good to hear what you think of it.
I loved the book and am looking forward to seeing it myself.
marley & me was amazing i saw it last night. i was crying so hard my mom had to tell me to breathe. it was sweet romantic loving and lots more. what made me cry even more was i have 2 dogs and it was a true story.
judging by the box office, it looks like Jennifer Aniston is giving Brad Pitt a run for his money…
I saw it tonight and while I found some of the ending to be redeeming, I was very turned off by what seemed to be a normalization, and sometimes glorification, of being unfit and hideous dog owners. Marley was constantly exposed to dangers that could end his life. From the beginning to the end. Grogan might be a caring guy, but if the film really follows the true story, he and his family, as portrayed by the film, were lousy dog owners.
I just hope people who are about to get their first dog don’t:
- buy the cheapest puppy in the litter, just because s/he’s the cheapest
- allow the dog to ingest every possible edible and non-edible item in the house
- show no real sense of how to contain the dog
- not teach the dog the essentials that could save its own life (recall, heel, stay, etc.)
Sigh.
Adrian – Thanks for writing. I really hadn’t thought it through as much as you did, but you are, of course, correct. I had a fleeting thought as I watched it – wondering why they didn’t crate the dog when they were away, but you have hit the nail right on the head with your post above. Thanks! Beth, The Dog Lady