How to Kill Your Neighbor's Dog (2000)

User Rating:

6.9/10   

Director:

Michael Kalesniko

Writer (WGA):

Michael Kalesniko (written by)

Release Date:

5 March 2003 (France)

Genre:

Comedy | Drama

Tagline:

One man's pet is another man's peeve.

Plot:

Shy, chain-smoking, insomniac Peter McGowan is an L.A. playwright with a string of hits that preceded his current ten years of failed productions...

Plot Keywords:

Dog | Neighbor | Play | Playwright | Comedy Of Manners

Awards:

6 wins

Cast

Kenneth Branagh	...	Peter McGowen
Robin Wright Penn	...	Melanie McGowen
Suzi Hofrichter	...	Amy Walsh
Lynn Redgrave	...	Edna
Jared Harris	...	False Peter
Peter Riegert	...	Larry
David Krumholtz	...	Brian Sellars
Johnathon Schaech	...	Adam
Kaitlin Hopkins	...	Victoria
Suzy Joachim	...	Allana
Brett Rickaby	...	Janitor
Lucinda Jenney	...	Trina Walsh
Derek Kellock	...	Amy's Father
Stacy Hogue	...	Babysitter
Peri Gilpin	...	Debra Salhany

Also Known As:

Mad Dogs and Englishmen (Australia) (video title)

MPAA:

Rated R for language.

Runtime:

France:107 min

Country:

Germany | USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Certification:

Iceland:L | France:U | USA:R | UK:15 | Australia:M

Filming Locations:

Los Angeles, California, USA

Company:

Cinerenta Medienbeteiligungs KG

Quotes:

Debra Salhany: So, how did you meet your wife?
Peter McGowan: She was a lap dancer, I had a pocket full of singles... No, she was a dancer. For a brief period, she gave acting a try. She came in for an audition, and the rest as they say is histrionics.
Debra Salhany: So, you employed the casting couch?
Peter McGowan: Hey, whatever works. You know that, Deborah.

Movie Connections:

References "Jeopardy!" (1984)

Soundtrack:

My Love

Our kind of movie - funny!

We caught this film on cable last week and were shocked. No, not by the title - but how did we not hear about this movie? I'll say upfront, I'm not a Branagh fan, but I do love Robin Wright Penn. But Branagh blew me away with this performance - he's finally been given a great script by someone other than Shakespeare and run with it. The writing is smart and funny, the supporting cast is just terrific, especially the girl playing Amy. When I checked here, I saw the writer/director is the same guy who wrote Private Parts, one of my favorite films.

If I try and put my finger on what touched me the most in this movie, I guess it's that the people were all so "real" and so I ended up caring very much what happened to them all. I'd love a sequel to see what happens to them after this episode in their lives!

Who should see this film: Everyone who likes smart, funny writing and acting told in an adult way; and anyone who likes something other than the typical Hollywood blockbuster.