A Dog's Purpose

Steve Williams

Site Founder, Site Owner, Administrator
A Dog's Purpose - Official Trailer (HD)


Saw this one last night On Demand. If you are a dog lover, this movie as schmaltzy as it was will get to you. It shows the the life of people through the eyes of a several times reincarnated dog.This is a comedic drama with emphasis on tugging at ones emotions.

My entire family watched last night and we loved it even though it failed miserably at Rotten Tomatoes 39% and a 53% on MRQE.com

Cast: Dennis Quaid, Britt Robertson, K.J. Apa, Bryce Gheisar, Kj Apa, Juliet Rylance, Luke Kirby, Peggy Lipton, Pooch Hall, Gabrielle Rose, John Ortiz, Michael Bofshever, Logan Miller, Kirby Howell-Baptiste, Nicole LaPlaca, Primo Allon
Director: Lasse Hallström
Writer: W. Bruce Cameron, Cathryn Michon, Audrey Wells, Maya Forbes, Wally Wolodarsky
Running Time: 120 min.


The blemish on the movie was the release of footage of a German Shepherd dog being placed into cold running water for the film and showing the dog absolutely petrified. It was terrifying to watch that footage

Here is a detailed synopsis of the movie from Wikipedia

In the 1950s, a feral puppy named Toby is whisked away to the dog pound and quickly euthanized, wondering if "fun" truly is life's purpose.

His strong spirit is reborn and reincarnated as a newborn Retriever puppy in 1961. Toby leaves his cage at a puppy mill and is found by two garbage men who plan to sell him for their own profit. They leave to drink and Toby is spotted locked inside their pick-up truck by a young boy named Ethan and his mother, who rescue him from the brink of death by heatstroke. After they convince Ethan's father, the dog is allowed to stay and renamed Bailey.

Bailey and Ethan bond quickly, especially over the summer when the family visits Ethan's maternal grandparents' farm, and Bailey now believes Ethan alone is his purpose. Years pass and after several attempts at advancing in his job failed, Ethan's father has become a deadbeat alcoholic, though teenage Ethan still tries to respect him – inviting him to a football game now that he has been named starting quarterback.

Over the summer, Ethan goes to a fair with Bailey and meets Hannah, who he quickly begins dating, with Bailey referring to her as "part of the pack". Ethan and Hannah spend their summer happy together though their senior years are upcoming, but they plan to go to the same school; popular Ethan getting a football scholarship and Hannah following him on an academic one. When he goes home one night though, Ethan's father is drunk and shouting at Ethan's mother. He turns on Ethan then and when his mother tries to keep them separated, he shoves her to the ground. Ethan orders his father to leave and never come back, and becomes "the leader of the pack".

Later, at a game watched by scouts, Ethan is offered a full 4-year scholarship to Michigan State, but that night a vindictive classmate named Todd throws a lit firecracker into Ethan's house as a prank, which unintentionally results in a house fire. Bailey alerts Ethan, who goes to save his mother. Unable to get out of the door, they head out through his mother's bedroom window upstair. Ethan first lowers her with her sheets to the neighbors below, then Bailey, however he drops his rope and is left with no other way to exit but to jump. But when Ethan jumps out of the window, Ethan badly fractures his leg, ending his dreams of an athletic scholarship. Bailey attacks Todd, who is apprehended and arrested by the police when firecrackers fall out of his pocket. Now, Ethan must go to an agricultural school where he will learn to take over his grandparents' farm. Falling into depression, self-pity and bitterness, Ethan grudgingly breaks off his romance with Hannah before leaving for college. Sometime afterwards, an aged Bailey slowly expires at the veterinarian's office after sharing an eleventh-hour teary goodbye with Ethan.

Bailey reincarnates into another dog life, a female German Shepherd police dog named Ellie, sometime in the late 1970s/early 1980s, while possessing full memories and experiences of his past lives. Ellie is partnered with a widowed officer named Carlos from the Chicago Police Department, and works hard at "seeking" and "finding", now seeing the job as life's purpose. The two form a close relationship which ends after Ellie jumps into a rushing river and saves a kidnapped girl from drowning, and is then fatally shot during a struggle with the armed kidnapper who was a moment away from killing an unsuspecting Carlos.

Reborn again in the mid-1980s as a Pembroke Welsh Corgi, he forms a bond with an Atlanta college student named Maya who names him Tino. Maya is lonely, which Tino, having bonded closely with the girl, realizes, and makes his purpose to find her some happiness. She starts a relationship with another classmate named Al who she begins seeing after Tino falls for Al's dog, a black and white Landseer named Roxie, and allows her to open up to him. Maya and Al marry and have 3 children who all love the Corgi. In love with Roxie (though she does not seem to reciprocate the romance), Tino is permanently heartbroken when one day she does not return from the vet. As he lies dying of old age in the late 1990s, Tino thanks Maya for giving him one of his best lives.

Bailey is again reborn and reincarnated, this time, as a St. Bernard-Australian Shepherd mix, sometime during the next decade, only to be taken in by an abusive and neglectful urban couple who name him Waffles. Waffles is eventually dumped in an abandoned lot and reluctantly sets off in search of a new life. Walking past a dog park and remembering how long it had been since he played, Waffles meets a dog and her human who hold a familiar scent to him, though he knows neither of them. He gradually makes his way to the country area where he spent summers as Bailey without even realizing at first where he is headed. He joyfully reunites with his old master Ethan, who is now somewhere in his 50s, living a lonely life and apparently broken in spirit at his grandparents' old farm, which he now owns and runs. Ethan, of course, initially has no idea who this wandering dog really is and hands him over to the local animal shelter. But he soon has a change of heart and reclaims him, naming him Buddy. Buddy, sensing that he has finally found the true purpose of life that has long evaded him, finds a way to reunite Ethan with a widowed Hannah, and they eventually get married.

Buddy finally convinces Ethan that he is his beloved childhood pet by performing some tricks and responding to key phrases that were known only to the two of them all those many, many long years ago. The dog in voiceover tells the viewer that life is about having fun; saving others; not getting caught in the past or regrets; finding someone to be with; and living for today


I think you can tell my family are all dog people :)
 

Priaptor

Member Sponsor
Jan 28, 2012
929
19
0
FL
A Dog's Purpose - Official Trailer (HD)


Saw this one last night On Demand. If you are a dog lover, this movie as schmaltzy as it was will get to you. It shows the the life of people through the eyes of a several times reincarnated dog.This is a comedic drama with emphasis on tugging at ones emotions.

My entire family watched last night and we loved it even though it failed miserably at Rotten Tomatoes 39% and a 53% on MRQE.com

Cast: Dennis Quaid, Britt Robertson, K.J. Apa, Bryce Gheisar, Kj Apa, Juliet Rylance, Luke Kirby, Peggy Lipton, Pooch Hall, Gabrielle Rose, John Ortiz, Michael Bofshever, Logan Miller, Kirby Howell-Baptiste, Nicole LaPlaca, Primo Allon
Director: Lasse Hallström
Writer: W. Bruce Cameron, Cathryn Michon, Audrey Wells, Maya Forbes, Wally Wolodarsky
Running Time: 120 min.


The blemish on the movie was the release of footage of a German Shepherd dog being placed into cold running water for the film and showing the dog absolutely petrified. It was terrifying to watch that footage

Here is a detailed synopsis of the movie from Wikipedia

In the 1950s, a feral puppy named Toby is whisked away to the dog pound and quickly euthanized, wondering if "fun" truly is life's purpose.

His strong spirit is reborn and reincarnated as a newborn Retriever puppy in 1961. Toby leaves his cage at a puppy mill and is found by two garbage men who plan to sell him for their own profit. They leave to drink and Toby is spotted locked inside their pick-up truck by a young boy named Ethan and his mother, who rescue him from the brink of death by heatstroke. After they convince Ethan's father, the dog is allowed to stay and renamed Bailey.

Bailey and Ethan bond quickly, especially over the summer when the family visits Ethan's maternal grandparents' farm, and Bailey now believes Ethan alone is his purpose. Years pass and after several attempts at advancing in his job failed, Ethan's father has become a deadbeat alcoholic, though teenage Ethan still tries to respect him – inviting him to a football game now that he has been named starting quarterback.

Over the summer, Ethan goes to a fair with Bailey and meets Hannah, who he quickly begins dating, with Bailey referring to her as "part of the pack". Ethan and Hannah spend their summer happy together though their senior years are upcoming, but they plan to go to the same school; popular Ethan getting a football scholarship and Hannah following him on an academic one. When he goes home one night though, Ethan's father is drunk and shouting at Ethan's mother. He turns on Ethan then and when his mother tries to keep them separated, he shoves her to the ground. Ethan orders his father to leave and never come back, and becomes "the leader of the pack".

Later, at a game watched by scouts, Ethan is offered a full 4-year scholarship to Michigan State, but that night a vindictive classmate named Todd throws a lit firecracker into Ethan's house as a prank, which unintentionally results in a house fire. Bailey alerts Ethan, who goes to save his mother. Unable to get out of the door, they head out through his mother's bedroom window upstair. Ethan first lowers her with her sheets to the neighbors below, then Bailey, however he drops his rope and is left with no other way to exit but to jump. But when Ethan jumps out of the window, Ethan badly fractures his leg, ending his dreams of an athletic scholarship. Bailey attacks Todd, who is apprehended and arrested by the police when firecrackers fall out of his pocket. Now, Ethan must go to an agricultural school where he will learn to take over his grandparents' farm. Falling into depression, self-pity and bitterness, Ethan grudgingly breaks off his romance with Hannah before leaving for college. Sometime afterwards, an aged Bailey slowly expires at the veterinarian's office after sharing an eleventh-hour teary goodbye with Ethan.

Bailey reincarnates into another dog life, a female German Shepherd police dog named Ellie, sometime in the late 1970s/early 1980s, while possessing full memories and experiences of his past lives. Ellie is partnered with a widowed officer named Carlos from the Chicago Police Department, and works hard at "seeking" and "finding", now seeing the job as life's purpose. The two form a close relationship which ends after Ellie jumps into a rushing river and saves a kidnapped girl from drowning, and is then fatally shot during a struggle with the armed kidnapper who was a moment away from killing an unsuspecting Carlos.

Reborn again in the mid-1980s as a Pembroke Welsh Corgi, he forms a bond with an Atlanta college student named Maya who names him Tino. Maya is lonely, which Tino, having bonded closely with the girl, realizes, and makes his purpose to find her some happiness. She starts a relationship with another classmate named Al who she begins seeing after Tino falls for Al's dog, a black and white Landseer named Roxie, and allows her to open up to him. Maya and Al marry and have 3 children who all love the Corgi. In love with Roxie (though she does not seem to reciprocate the romance), Tino is permanently heartbroken when one day she does not return from the vet. As he lies dying of old age in the late 1990s, Tino thanks Maya for giving him one of his best lives.

Bailey is again reborn and reincarnated, this time, as a St. Bernard-Australian Shepherd mix, sometime during the next decade, only to be taken in by an abusive and neglectful urban couple who name him Waffles. Waffles is eventually dumped in an abandoned lot and reluctantly sets off in search of a new life. Walking past a dog park and remembering how long it had been since he played, Waffles meets a dog and her human who hold a familiar scent to him, though he knows neither of them. He gradually makes his way to the country area where he spent summers as Bailey without even realizing at first where he is headed. He joyfully reunites with his old master Ethan, who is now somewhere in his 50s, living a lonely life and apparently broken in spirit at his grandparents' old farm, which he now owns and runs. Ethan, of course, initially has no idea who this wandering dog really is and hands him over to the local animal shelter. But he soon has a change of heart and reclaims him, naming him Buddy. Buddy, sensing that he has finally found the true purpose of life that has long evaded him, finds a way to reunite Ethan with a widowed Hannah, and they eventually get married.

Buddy finally convinces Ethan that he is his beloved childhood pet by performing some tricks and responding to key phrases that were known only to the two of them all those many, many long years ago. The dog in voiceover tells the viewer that life is about having fun; saving others; not getting caught in the past or regrets; finding someone to be with; and living for today


I think you can tell my family are all dog people :)

Well Steve as one of the ultimate dog lovers, I can tell you I loved that movie. We recently lost our Jeter, on Jan 2 a beautiful, wonderful and delicious all white Golden. We still have two, and 8.5 year old "regular" Golden named Koufax and English Cream Golden named Magic who is almost 10. Before we had three other Goldens Tyson, Jake and Riley.

There is nothing like a great dog except multiple great dogs.

This house, with the exception of my listening room is literally for the dogs and they literally own it. If you saw my "beautiful home" and how the dogs literally own it you would laugh your ass off.

A quick story about Jeter who I miss more than you can imagine. When our first English Cream passed at the young age of 5, Riley, I decided to get a dog that was a little older (6 months) that was already trained as we were just too distraught over losing our Riley to go through the puppy phase and I thought this would be good. Found a breeder GoldenMeadows in CA. We met the dog, he was so smart. When he came to my home, I never saw anything like it for a young dog. He wouldn't come inside until you told him it was OK, never jumped on the furniture, etc etc. Truly remarkable. Well the problem was, he was so smart, that within one week, he figured my wife out perfectly. He had her trained in less than a week. Instead of him responding to her commands, she responded to his command and it was like that till the day he left us. It was actually a hysterical interaction.
 

Steve Williams

Site Founder, Site Owner, Administrator
“Boss Dog” as he was in the movie


I can’t imagine a life without a dog


Presently we have none other than being frequent care givers to our sons dog who just turned 4. He rescued him from a no kill shelter when the dog was 11 months. The dog is a Pointer Terrier mix who was given up to the shelter where he was found to be a special needs dog. He was adopted only to be returned several weeks later. The dog has had one seizure and is now being weaved from phenobarb. When he and my son had eye contact in that shelter it was an instant bond. My son is away a lot as he is in the film industry. It is not unusual for us to care for join 7-10 days a month. He has bonded with me as well but I’m clearly in the 2 slot. He will follow me everywhere, go on walks etc but the moment my son opens the door my time is up.

Like the older dog you got ours was 11 months. Most obedient dog I’ve ever had. Never went on chairs sofas etc but he learned very quickly. He too is Boss Dog.

The movie was made for people like us as we loved it. I was surprised to see the low ratings.
 

Priaptor

Member Sponsor
Jan 28, 2012
929
19
0
FL
“Boss Dog” as he was in the movie


I can’t imagine a life without a dog


Presently we have none other than being frequent care givers to our sons dog who just turned 4. He rescued him from a no kill shelter when the dog was 11 months. The dog is a Pointer Terrier mix who was given up to the shelter where he was found to be a special needs dog. He was adopted only to be returned several weeks later. The dog has had one seizure and is now being weaved from phenobarb. When he and my son had eye contact in that shelter it was an instant bond. My son is away a lot as he is in the film industry. It is not unusual for us to care for join 7-10 days a month. He has bonded with me as well but I’m clearly in the 2 slot. He will follow me everywhere, go on walks etc but the moment my son opens the door my time is up.

Like the older dog you got ours was 11 months. Most obedient dog I’ve ever had. Never went on chairs sofas etc but he learned very quickly. He too is Boss Dog.

The movie was made for people like us as we loved it. I was surprised to see the low ratings.

I understand. My daughter is a Vet and every dog she sees, she wants to adopt. In fact when she was in the Turks and Caicos doing some research before Vet school, they have what they call "potcakes" many of which are abused. So, of course she rescued this abused tiny puppy, named him Kaiko which of course spent more time in my house then hers and has been for the last few months as she settles in up in NY. She also adopted another dog named Sugar a rescue. Biggest problem is they terrorize my big Goldens. It is very funny to watch.

I think one of the reasons it go low ratings was because there was a rumor that they used "unorthodox methods" to get the German Shepherd to do his thing. I loved the book and loved the movie but as you say, we are dog people. Actually I wish people were more like dogs.
 

Priaptor

Member Sponsor
Jan 28, 2012
929
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It’s easy to understand how Barbra Streisand has cloned her dog several times

https://mobile.nytimes.com/2018/02/28/science/barbra-streisand-clone-dogs.html


I have to say why I can understand it would just be too weird for me.

The other aspect to loving dogs, a subject which you bring up regarding the cloning, is how much we spend on them.

I used to live in Boca Raton but moved a little north as we realized we weren’t country club people but dog people so we moved from the country club life to a horse place with more land for the dogs. The dogs here I refer to as “Boca Retrievers” that will only sleep on marble, ride around in big Lexus SUVs, eat the finest cuisine etc. It’s actually funny to pass a bus filled with dogs on their way to doggie daycare. I have learned not to be amazed by anything anymore after having loved in Boca from 87-2005
 

DaveyF

Well-Known Member
Jul 31, 2010
6,129
181
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La Jolla, Calif USA
I saw this movie with the family...everyone loved it. Interesting story line and a little bit of a tear jerker. The overall subject probably doomed it on the big screen, but it sure plays well on the small screen.
 

Folsom

VIP/Donor
Oct 25, 2015
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Eastern WA
I enjoyed the movie. But I would love to see it without the inner monologue of the dog, I think it would be much more moving. And I hsve to tell you that while I do not know about humans, my father who would never make up a story had an experience with dog reincarnation when I was just a baby. Whether I like the idea or not, there is no amount of possible coincidence to ever make the story possible.

Right now I don't have a dog. But my whole childhood was basically never without one. I love dogs, and wish I had one, and have some stories about them. I think I would even sleep better if I had one.
 

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