Best in Show, a satirical mockumentary, delves into the lives of the owners of five show dogs and their devotion to making sure their dog is the best in everything–from appearance to temperament. The film gets an A- in humor, as it plays off of many stereotypes we have on certain types of people:
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- The gays: flamboyant, cocky, cultured and with a diva flair
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- The odd, middle class couple: The awkward husband and the “looking good for her age” wife with a past
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- The chic, upper class couple: Neurotic underneath it all, therapist sessions for some of the most (as we might deem them) bizarre reasons, such as the dog watching them one night. The obsession with fashion trends, “high-end” coffee (Starbucks)
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- The redneck: The accent, the slow and monotonic speech, the questionable intelligence, hunting as a hobby
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- The gold-digging wife and the pretty much “ready to die” millionaire: Her intelligence is questionable, his ability to even breathe without help is questionable
Although the mockumentary focuses on the Mayflower Dog Show, there is a hidden message behind it as we observe what makes the characters happy and how the dog show affects them overall. This message is that what we may expect to make us happy may actually make us unhappy, and it may be surprising to find happiness in the most, unexpected ways. I didn’t really notice this message until it was brought up in class, because the film is just too “comedic”, so one has to dig deep to try and find the serious undertones behind the motives of the characters and the ending of the film. I would recommend this movie to anyone who wants to enjoy a great comedy, but I wouldn’t consider it a way to try and find out some sort of truth behind “happiness.”
I was very impressed with the dialogue of the film, because it seemed very natural, which of course added to the humor. I would not be surprised if it is all pure improvisation, because none of the scenes felt forced and the actors did a great job channelling their characters.
All in all, this is a great film to see one day with a couple of friends if you’re looking for a good laugh to end the night right.
