Marley & Me Leaves Me Cold
Written: Dec 27 '08 (Updated Dec 29 '08)
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Product Rating:
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| Bang For The Buck |
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Pros: Cute dog. Decent acting.
Cons: Not a comedy, sex, miscarriage, drinking, main character funeral, post-partum depression
The Bottom Line: You cannot pay me enough to sit through this depressing moving again.
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| pkmom's Full Review: Marley & Me |
My family and I went to see the movie Marley & Me on Christmas day. Like many others we wanted a fun family movie. This one was advertised as a comedy film for families. The poster features an adorable big eyed puppy. That was too tempting for this pet-loving family to pass up. Soon, we were on our way to see Marley & Me and later, we were wishing we never had.
Warning, this movie review will give away plot details.
My rating on this film is a C- because it was such a disappointment. It clearly is not the comedy it was advertised to be. Neither was it a family film. The film carries a PG rating. In my opinion the film would have been better off with a PG-13 rating and advertised as a drama instead of a comedy.
Marley and Me is a movie based on the book by John Grogan.
The film is about John and Jennifer Grogran. When Jennifer (Jennifer Aniston) starts to get the yearning for motherhood John (Owen Wilson) is urged by his friend Sebastian (Eric Dane) to get a dog. John surprises Jennifer with a trip to the breeder to select a puppy.
A few weeks later, the puppy is old enough to come to his new home. Jennifer has to work out of town. The guys somehow muddle through a few days alone. When its time to pick Jennifer up from the airport, a very inexperienced John Grogran sticks Marley in a cardboard box and leaves the dog unattended in the garage. There is no food or water. The couple is shocked when they return to find the garage in pieces.
From there, the film snowballs downhill. There was very little comedy. Instead, the film is laced with sexual innuendos. By the end of Marley and Me, Jennifer has delivered three children. Although there is no actual nudity, the film does manage to let you know how each of the pregnancies happened.
Then, the worst thing the could happen in the film does. Marley becomes old and feeble and has to be put down. The scene with the vet is the longest part of the film.
We watch as the vet pushes the plunger on the IV cocktail that slowly drips into the dog and eventually carries Marley to doggy heaven. Then, we watch as each of the children say their goodbyes when Marley is buried in the front yard. The gut wrenching funeral scene left most of the audience in tears and needing pet therapy.
Marley & Me is not necessarily a bad film but it is marketed all wrong. This is not a comedy film and it should never have been given a PG-13.
Plus, Marley's antics are not truly the focus of the movie. If it had been more accurately marketed it would have left the audience feeling less cheated. It is about a maturity, growth and dealing with adult midlife crisis.
There is talk in the movie that an exhausted Jenifer, struggling to stay home with two kids and an untrained dog, might be suffering from post-partum depression. Instead of trying to dig in and help her John wonders if he should leave.
John and Jennifer also deal with a miscarriage. In a later scene when Jennifer is pregnant again she is openly drinking alcohol.
Recommended:
No
Movie Mood: Serious Movie
Viewing Method: Other
Film Completeness: Looked complete to me.
Worst Part of this Film: Duration
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Epinions.com ID:
pkmom
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Reviews written: 96
Trusted by: 6 members
About Me:
Married Mom of two teens.
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