Movie Star Pets

The movie The Truth about Cats and Dogs was about a lady vet who ran a radio show of the same name. A caller wanted to thank her personally for solving his dog problem and she asked her friend to stand in for her.

Which was quite alright except the caller fell in love with the lady vet over the phone and went out with her stand-in friend. Lots of twists and turns before things got sorted out.

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The Truth about Cats and Dogs directed by Michael Lehmann for Twentieth Century Fox in 1996 had Uma Thurman credited with the starring role. However it was her co-star, Janeane Garofalo, who carried the story all the way. With the able assistance of Hank, the Boxer. Boxer as in Boxer dog.

The plot was simple. At first. Abby, a lady vet who ran a radio show called “The Truth about Cats and Dogs” helped Brian who called about a problem with his dog. After Abby helped him to solve his problem, he wanted to thank her in person. So far so good.

On the spur of the moment, Abby looked at a poster on the wall and described herself quite the opposite of what she actually was. So she had to get someone to stand in for her when Brian came to see her. Abby got the help of Noelle, her neighbor who looked like what Abby described herself as over the phone. Still good this far.

Brian met Noelle. No problem. Later Brian talked to Abby over the phone and fell in love in her. That was when things became complicated. Noelle, in person, did not talk like Abby did over the phone. Noelle, in fact, was quite the opposite, live conversation-wise.

The Truth about Cats & Dogs movie went through a number of hilarious twists and turns as the three of them tried to get things sorted out.

The plot of this movie was based loosely on the dilemma made famous by Edmund Rostand in his play “Cyrano de Bergerac”. In that play a plain-looking man had his handsome friend stand in for him. In the movie, the gender was switched but the dilemma remained the same.

Hank, the dog owned by Brian in the movie, was a natural Boxer. Natural meaning his tail was not docked and his ears were not cropped. Hank made a grand entrance at the start of the movie. On roller skates, no less. It was really interesting to see Hank whizz around with roller skates on all four paws. Basically, Hank kept the forelegs rigid and propelled himself with his hind legs.

The Boxer is a dog breed originally developed in Germany from the English bulldog and the Bullenbeisser, which is now extinct. It belonged to the Molosser, mastiff group. The Boxer is stocky and short-haired with medium to large size. It is a loyal companion to it’s master.

Hank was reddish brown and large, reaching up to Brian’s shoulders when standing up. Where Brian went, Hank went, too, even into the bathroom while Brian soaked in the tub. There was a scene of Brian and Hank standing together against a fence, both with elbows on the top railing. A pose which illustrated the companionable characteristics of the Boxer very well.

Throughout the movie, Hank was unquestionably the only one not confused by the switching roles of Abby and Noelle. Perhaps Brian should have consulted Hank. Always trust a dog to see through any play acting.

That’s the truth about dogs. No idea about cats. Maybe you find out watching The Truth About Cats & Dogs DVD yourself.

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