Am I the audience for this? Certainly not the intended audience. The intended audience is women who harbor deluded fantasies of how life should be. Their fathers told them they were princesses deserving of kingdoms, and only a White Knight (Rich, White Guy), approved by Dad, could give them their "entitlements". In this ultra-cynical nonsense, the traditional White Bread Couple (Owen Wilson and Jennifer Anniston) decide to adopt a dog, Marley. The dog turns out to be a nightmare. In the real world where most of us live, the dog would be incredibly irritating. If you didn't end up shooting it, you'd end up depositing it on a farm somewhere where it could spend the rest of its days tearing up the fields and chasing livestock. In the world of this Hollywood product, Owen and Jennifer take a mostly laid back attitude to this psycho dog and behave totally selfishly when it's around others. For example, when Owen goes to visit an open house, he lets the dog run inside without a leash and plunge into the backyard pool -- even though he knows the dog is a big problem, he doesn't care that his dog may upset other people. That's the kind of guy he is. Unfortunately, such arrogant pigs -- who come with a smug smile -- are commonplace these days. Watching one on screen would be fun if he was being chased by people with knives! This thing is predictable and puerile. It knows its audience and it gives them the brainless pap they expect -- cute dog, cute kids, and a cute subplot about a guy (Wilson) who gets everything he wants, but still remains a self-centered whiner. "Marley and Me" is based on a true story (and novel) by John Grogan (played by Wilson) and is another nail in real cinema's coffin. It's product. Nothing more. Enjoy it, ladies.
Review of Marley & Me
