Best in Show (2000)

You won't be disappointed!

Undescribable Perfection

Really Surprised!

It’s not bad or unwatchable but despite the amplitude of the spectacle, the end result is underwhelming.

No dogs were harmed during the making of this film. In fact, never has there ever been a film where dogs stayed so stoic in the face of a ton of foolishness. Best in Show, while on the surface a Christopher Guest mockumentary about competitive dog owners and over-the-top prestigious dog pageants, makes a particular comment on humans in comparison to animals. The humans make stupid decisions, overreact at things that don't matter, argue, scream and fight tooth and claw to win the blue ribbon, while the Dogs sit peacefully, seemingly unaware, or totally aware and choosing to ignore it.Best in Show is a hilarious movie. The entire time, I had a big smile on my face. Guest has a knack for taking average situations and dissecting every peculiar aspect to poke fun of. He also knows the effortlessly unique qualities of middle Americans and how funny they actually are. Yes, these are seasoned improv comics portraying middle Americans, but in everyday life, you've seen these kind of people before. Take for instance, Harlan Pepper (played by Christopher Guest), a southerner who owns a fishing bait/tackle shop and talks incessantly about what he knows including every kind of nut in existence. Or, how about my personal favorite, the Flecks. Cookie Fleck (played by Catherine O'Hara) is the dutiful wife of Gerry Fleck, whose apparently slept with hundreds of men, quite literally, in fact, every man who comes in contact with her recognizes her. Her husband, Gerry Fleck (played by Eugene Levy) is the perpetual cuckold with two left feet, big bucked teeth and midwestern "aw-shucks" sensibility that everyone around him, especially his own wife, takes advantage of. Eugene Levy is the runaway stealer of the entire show. He's laugh-out-loud funny without even trying to be. He's the most natural improv comic in that he's entirely real in his delivery and knows how to react to awkward situation as we all would.Best in Show is less about the dog's competing, as it is about the people. Guest puts them on display for us to decide who receives the blue ribbon. But dog lovers won't be disenfranchised, as the film proudly displays it's affection for these perfect creatures and how they never leave the side of their owners no matter how flawed they might be.

Christopher Guest could point his camera at almost any group and find absurdity within their ranks. In 1984 he was the lead for the rock band Spinal Tap, who though they were leagues better than they actually sounded. In his self-directed Waiting for Guffman, he turned to a group of delusional, small-town hicks who compared themselves to the Kennedys and had aspirations for Broadway. And here he focuses on a niche group that seems so perfectly ripe for comedy it is a wonder that no one has noticed them before. Anyone who has owned a dog will know that we all get a little weird around them. We adopt a baby-style talk, and address them as if they could understand our every word. The owners who enter their darlings into dog shows take this behaviour a step further, with some hilarious results. The film, like Spinal Tap and Guffman, is shot in the mockumentary style, with text on the bottom of the screen to introduce us to our peculiar cast, and a faux-haphazard camera that follows behind their every step. Guest is good enough not to simply let the script dictate the laughs - the first scene is a serious therapy session between two couples, talking about the supposed trauma of one of their kids, and only after holding the tension for as long he can does Guest pan over to the bored-looking Weimaraner in the third chair. The swivel is slow and incredulous, mimicking the audience's own disbelief and effectively pulling off the bait and switch. Later when the Flecks joke about Gerry's lack of coordination, they camera just ever so slightly drifts downwards to reveal his two left feet. It's the sort of joke that is dumb and obvious once you've seen it, but through the format Guest forces laughs out of us that have no business being there, by creating a persona behind the camera that is continually exasperated and shaking its head. The intimacy of the talking head is a huge asset here, because all of the characters are inherently stereotypes. In a conventional film it would be funny enough to observe them from a distance, with all their actions and dialogue pre-planned, but it would eventually be a bit tiring. Guest's format seemingly allows them a chance to defend their reputation, and thus he creates more humour by instead making their attempts collapse into themselves. There is Jennifer Coolidge in her usual blonde bimbo role, as the trophy wife of a near catatonic sugar daddy who can barely even pretend to have similar interests as her husband outside of soup, the outdoors, frozen peas and talking. The Swans are upper-class yuppies, so of course they met in a Starbucks, but they reveal it was actually two different stores across the street from each other (they of course live in a neighbourhood where this is the norm) and are not the slightest bit aware of the ridiculousness of this little detail. One half of the gay couple has already packed six kimonos for a two day trip, so when his partner protests, he realises he may need a few more. And there is Guest himself, lovingly showing off his ventriloquy dummy like a kid on show and tell day. Best in Show never descends into mean-spirited territory because beyond the gags, we recognise that these character's eccentricities are ultimately channeled through a love for their dogs, however unresponsive the dogs themselves may actually be. When the Swans enter the airport, they push their trolley of luggage along, but they also drag Beatrice's dog crate, which is larger than all their own belongings combined. Later when Meg is desperately trying to find a replacement stripy, squeaky bee toy for her, every attempt of logic on the shop owner's part flies hopelessly past her. They have their own crazed logic; Meg shouts at her husband that Beatrice is not listening to him, not because she is a dog, but because she is freaking out about her lost toy, all while the camera focuses once again on her bored face. The Flecks are likewise obsessed. They sing duets about Terriers with harmonies so bad they end on completely different keys, and their reaction to their baby being held hostage up on a shed roof is as if the world is ending. Eugene Levy has the natural ability to be flustered before it is even appropriate; he starts a sentence, talking about the weather on the drive-up, and has not thought on how to end it (A little cloudy coming up through West Virginia. But once we get into Pennsylvania...it's still, uh, still overcast."). And of course their card is overdrawn - they are every bit the couple to spend more on their dog than themselves, and we chuckle and love them for it.

The mockumentary form by Christopher Guest: it's something I'm quite fond of - and I've seen a few. This is the second time I've seen 'Best in Show', and this easy going, but filled to the brim with funny little details semi-roadmovie is well worth a watch.Lots of dialogue, lots of tricky relationships and individuals that are put under the looking glass, and with the clever writing of Guest, they all come up a little or more off, but that's the whole point of it.Well played by Guest himself (I really thought he must have gone on doing 'The Cleveland Show' after that bit in the woods) and many of the mock-regulars, such as Levy, O'Hara (in 'For Your Consideration' she does a great 'botox', here she wags her leg like no other), Posey, Willard (an imprudent commentator once again) and Coolidge.Good fun was had by all. 7 out of 10.

Christopher Guest and his regular cast of improv legends tackle another unsuspecting target in this wild-eyed send up of the competitive dog show circuit. It's a bit more all-audiences than Spinal Tap, while completely skipping the emotional hooks of A Mighty Wind or Waiting For Guffman, but still delivers enough legit snickers to validate a simple retirement as late-night cable network filler. The straight-ahead plot never shows much interest in progressing beyond simple character-driven adventure, and while each member of the cast is good for a smart punchline or two, the roles themselves are universally shallow, narrow caricatures. Fine as a background flick, thrown on to fill the air when your focus will be frequently elsewhere, it will never quite reach the same level as its siblings.