A Movie That Will Lick Your Face

I was in NY with a free night and the weather was sticky.   I decided to rely on somebody else's air conditioning (just like when I was a kid) and I bee-bopped over to the Dobbs Ferry iPic and literally selected this movie because it was starting...well...in 15 minutes.

One of those lucky strokes of magic.   Because this movie...one I knew nothing about...was thoroughly charming and engaging.   

Yay for "Dog Days!"

Oh, it won't win any awards.   Nobody blows up in it.  There's not a Marvel superhero within reach.   There are no really big name stars.   The biggest might be Eva Longoria, the old Black guy from "This is Us," and one of the kids from "Stranger Things."   But, nevertheless, "Dog Days" is pleasant and brings you a smile and a laugh.   That's all I wanted.   Oh, yeah, and the A/C on blast.

We've seen this plot line thousands of times before.  There are six or seven disjointed stories about folks living out some personal drama in Los Angeles.  One is a Kelly Ripa-like morning host.  Another is a would-be rock musician.  Oh, yeah, there's the now obligatory Starbucks barista.  There's a bunch of others.   What brings them together in "Dog Days" is...wait for it...dogs.   Some are pets.  Others are waiting for adoption.   This production has the cutest dogs imaginable and they all know how to pose for the camera.

What the hell could be wrong with this?

As it turns out, nothing at all.   While some of the entanglements are predictable, others are not and I was genuinely surprised by some turns in the script written by Elissa Matsueda and Erica Oyama, the latter who just happens to be the wife of the director Ken Marino.   I'm guessing they got their dog in the picture, too.

And, oh, just so you know, one dog doesn't make it.   Of course, when you have a movie with a lot of pooches, you can always expect that there will be that heart tugging scene where an owner has to put his dog down.   Even that, in "Dog Days," was done in clever fashion.

Again, this one is not going to set the world on fire.   But there were some sparks ignited and I soon realized that it wasn't just the air conditioning that I was digging in this theater.

Moreover, it made me want to go home and hug my dog.  Oh, wait, I don't have one.

Maybe I should rescue one.

LEN'S RATING:  Three-and-a-half stars.

Dinner last night:  Sandwich.