the_lady_lily | Filmography

Best In Show

This is another one of Christopher Guest's (of Spinal Tap fame) mockumentary pieces, this time focused upon an American dog show, the Mayflower competition. The show follows five dogs and their owners to the show and through the process of getting to the competition and the competition itself, and then the aftermath. It is, of course, entirely tongue-in-cheek, full of ridiculousness, and adorable dogs.

Frankly, I don't know why

yvesilena hasn't been doing monthly showings of it for the uneducated populace as an educational outreach program, but that might just be me.

Actually, it probably is me.

Anyway, the film is just what you'd expect of a Guest mockumentary - it's funny, it's on point, the script is great, there's a lot of unspoken visual comedy. There's a lot of play on the idea of a dog looking like its owner and vice versa in some quite clever, reasonably understated ways - and then not-so-understated but still very funny ways. The acting is good, the script is funny, the jokes are pitched comparatively high. I enjoyed it in a giggling cheering-up sort of way, but it's not amazing world-changing drama.

It does, however, have adorable dogs. Four stars.