Marley & Me (2008)

Marley & Me is a wonderful family movie that apparently doesn't fit some people's expectations for audience, category, or content. For want of a better category, it is loosely labeled as a comedy because it's funnier than a drama and there's no category for that bittersweet or tragicomic thing we call real life. Death is part of life and sadness is the other side of joy, which is precisely the point of this heartwarming and true story written by newspaper columnist John Grogan. I have it on the best authority (until I read it myself) that the book is better -- so read it if you are inclined -- but we are talking about a movie, which is a different art form than a novel and allowed its own artistic license. Before you let children younger than a mature 11 see Marley & Me, please rely on more than the cute puppy scenes in the commercials and read the parental notes to the left (always a good idea) that clearly state this movie is not written for children younger than 13 because of tastefully treated mature themes like love, marriage, and death. Fundamentalists, please note that the movie is rightly rated PG because of two scenes of canine humping (a fact of life if you have a non-neutered dog), Jennifer Aniston's bare back, four bedspring creaks in the dark, a few come-hither looks, and a few utterances of "crap" or "damn." (If you think this amounts to a PG-13, you don't understand ratings and should not watch this movie. Your loss but our gain in one less cranky complaint.) Fair warning: Do not see this movie if you have recently lost a dog or a loved one! Marley & Me is an alternately hilarious and deeply moving tapestry about the marriage of two journalists -- the ever-affable Owen Wilson has a comfortable chemistry with Jennifer Aniston -- as seen through the metaphor of the husband's birthday gift to his wife: Marley aka Clearance Puppy aka "the worst dog in the world." Marley's tremendous spirit shows in his boundless energy and a lifetime of relentless chewing. Clearly the movie played up Marley's rebelliousness -- The Dog Whisperer this is not -- but if you don't know why a couple would keep such a destructive dog then you have never loved a dog. (Does a parent disown a child?) The deep love and faithfulness of the Grogans for each other and for Marley is incredible -- and precisely the ultimate moral of the story: In the end, we love each other not because we are perfect but because of and in spite of our flaws. Memories and joy are made not from tidiness but the tumult of life. 4.5 stars.