Must Love Dogs (2005)

User Rating:

5.9/10   

Director:

Gary David Goldberg

Writers (WGA):

Claire Cook (novel)
Gary David Goldberg (screenplay)

Release Date:

29 July 2005 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy | Romance

Tagline:

The hardest trick is making them stay.

Plot:

A forty-something preschool teacher looks to the personals for a change of pace and a relationship, with hilarious results.

Plot Keywords:

Dog | Teacher | Love | Dating | Dog Park

Awards:

1 nomination

US TV Schedule:

Sat. July 11	1:00 AM	TBS
Sat. July 11	12:45 PM	TBS

Cast

Diane Lane	...	Sarah Nolan
John Cusack	...	Jake
Elizabeth Perkins	...	Carol
Christopher Plummer	...	Bill
Dermot Mulroney	...	Bob
Stockard Channing	...	Dolly
Ali Hillis	...	Christine
Brad William Henke	...	Leo
Julie Gonzalo	...	June
Glenn Howerton	...	Michael
Ben Shenkman	...	Charlie
Jordana Spiro	...	Sherry
Kirk Trutner	...	Deli Guy
Victor Webster	...	Eric
Michael Spound	...	Marc
Will McCormack	...	Jason
Ted Griffin	...	Bill Jr.
Marylouise Burke	...	Aunt Eileen
Brad Hall	...	Stanley
Bobby Coleman	...	Austin
Emma Prescott	...	Molly
Jaden Sorensen	...	Justin
Will Rothhaar	...	Jeremy
Tony Bill	...	Walter
Patrick St. Esprit	...	Marshall
Josh Stamberg	...	Lennie
Anoush NeVart	...	Mrs. Parseghian
Krikor Satamian	...	Mr. Parseghian
Jon Lindstrom	...	Peter
Patrick Fabian	...	Donald
Steve Schirripa	...	Vinnie (as Steven R. Schirripa)
Bess Wohl	...	Rebecca
Laura Kightlinger	...	Marcia
Rubria Negrao	...	Sonia (as Rubria Martins-Negrao)
Colin Egglesfield	...	David
Suzy Nakamura	...	Mai
Jamie Denbo	...	Bertha
Miles Hull	...	Timmy
Amy Kidd	...	Jennifer
Ted Detwiler	...	Boat Guy
Kate McClafferty	...	Coxswain
Shana Hiatt	...	Hostess
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Mary Castro	...	Stripper
Mary Anne McGarry	...	Older Woman (scenes deleted)
Julie Dretzin	...	Patrice (uncredited)
Michelle Fabiano	...	Bill Jr.'s Wife (uncredited)
Darrell Geer	...	Man in canoe (uncredited)
Trevor Stevens	...	Ryan (uncredited)

Directed by
Gary David Goldberg

Writing credits (WGA)
Claire Cook		(novel)
Gary David Goldberg		(screenplay)

Produced by
Gary David Goldberg	....	producer
Brad Hall	....	executive producer
Julie Ragland	....	associate producer
Ronald G. Smith	....	executive producer
Jennifer Todd	....	producer
Suzanne Todd	....	producer

Original Music by
Craig Armstrong
Susie Suh
Vinnie Zummo

Cinematography by
John Bailey

Film Editing by
Roger Bondelli
Eric A. Sears

Casting by
Joanna Colbert

Production Design by
Naomi Shohan

Art Direction by
Kevin Kavanaugh

Set Decoration by
Kathryn Peters

Costume Design by
Florence-Isabelle Megginson
Gamila Smith

Makeup Department
Jane Galli	....	makeup department head
Rose Librizzi	....	key makeup artist
Gail Rowell-Ryan	....	hair department head (as Gail Ryan)
Laurel Van Dyke	....	hair stylist
Leah Vautrot	....	makeup artist
Candy L. Walken	....	hair stylist: Ms. Lane
Denise Wynbrandt	....	hair stylist: Mr. Cusack
Denise Wynbrandt	....	makeup artist: Mr. Cusack
Patty York	....	makeup artist: Ms. Lane

Production Management
Mark Scoon	....	executive in charge of production
Ronald G. Smith	....	unit production manager

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Paula Case	....	second assistant director
K.C. Colwell	....	first assistant director
Craig Comstock	....	second second assistant director

Art Department
Jason Bartolone	....	gangboss
Leslee Burdette	....	set dressing assistant
Gina B. Cranham	....	set designer
Judson Crowder	....	set dresser
Dupree Dial	....	set dresser
Ryan P. Dreyer	....	set dresser
Joey Genitempo	....	set painter
Donald Goodman	....	drapery foreman
Tom Hrupcho	....	paint supervisor
Laura M. O'Brien	....	set decorating buyer
June Okada	....	art department staff assistant
Joe Ondrejko	....	construction coordinator
Hope M. Parrish	....	property master
Roger Prater	....	greens stand-by
David Scheid	....	art department intern
Clint Schultz	....	graphic designer
Josh Sheppard	....	storyboard artist
Nathan A. Smith	....	set dresser
Andrew 'Pinky' Swartsel	....	set dresser
Sally Thornton	....	set designer
Kathleen Walker	....	art department coordinator
Heather L. Watson	....	co-leadman
Thomas 'Noe' Welch	....	set dresser
Fante Zamora	....	set dresser

Sound Department
Bob Beher	....	sound editor
David E. Campbell	....	sound re-recording mixer
Kerry Ann Carmean	....	sound effects editor
David Donaldson	....	sound programmer
Stephanie Flack	....	dialogue editor
Kevin Globerman	....	digital recordist
Eric Gotthelf	....	adr mixer
Mark Johnston	....	sound recordist
David Kelson	....	sound mixer
Alyson Dee Moore	....	foley artist
Mark Moseley	....	custom looping
Linda Murphy	....	boom operator
Kelly Oxford	....	dialogue supervisor
Tom Ozanich	....	sound effects editor
Troy Porter	....	adr mixer
Bud Raymond	....	utility sound technician
John T. Reitz	....	sound re-recording mixer
John Roesch	....	foley artist
Gregg Rudloff	....	sound re-recording mixer
David Stanke	....	first assistant sound editor
Jon Title	....	sound effects editor
Michael D. Wilhoit	....	supervising sound editor

Special Effects by
Al Marangoni	....	special effects foreman
Phil Notaro	....	special effects director

Visual Effects by
Hong Kim	....	digital effects artist
Monty Phillips	....	visual effects coordinator: Digital Dream
Corinne Pooler	....	visual effects producer: Digital Dream
Jerry Pooler	....	visual effects supervisor: Digital Dream
Liz Radley	....	computer graphics supervisor
Alfredo Ramirez	....	digital compositor
Chris B. Schnitzer	....	visual effects production supervisor: Warner Bros. (uncredited)

Stunts
Jack Gill	....	stunt coordinator
Patrick Kelly	....	stunts
Deborah L. Mazor	....	stunts (as Debbi Mazor)
Michelle Sebek	....	stunts
Russell Solberg	....	stunts
Sonny Tipton	....	stunts
Darlene Ava Williams	....	stunts

Camera and Electrical Department
Claudette Barius	....	still photographer
Brad Boyer	....	best boy
Brad Boyer	....	grip
Clyde E. Bryan	....	first assistant camera
Calvin Callaway	....	key camera production assistant
Brian Cantrell	....	light board operator
Alejandro J. Castillo	....	rigging best boy
Jason Cochard	....	camera production assistant
Jerry C. Deats	....	key rigging grip
Sean Devine	....	dolly grip
Tulio Duenas	....	film loader
Paul J. Giacalone	....	grip
Sam Griffin	....	set lighting technician
Chris Hill	....	video playback operator
Alan Jacoby	....	film loader: additional photography
Jeffrey A. Johnson	....	best boy grip
Pete Johnson	....	rigging grip
Matthew Moriarty	....	camera operator (as Matt Moriarty)
Mike Moyer	....	chief lighting technician
John O'Neil	....	assistant chief lighting technician
Georgia Packard	....	camera operator
Chris Pavlu	....	set lighting technician
Mark Reeves	....	set lighting technician
Arron Richards	....	set lighting technician
Eric Roizman	....	camera operator
Randy Tambling	....	key grip
Suzanne Trucks	....	second assistant camera

Casting Department
Chad Darnell	....	extras casting
Richard Mento	....	casting associate
Jocelyn E. Thomas	....	casting assistant
Julie Weissman	....	extras casting

Costume and Wardrobe Department
Tess Inman	....	set costumer
Natasha Paczkowski	....	costume manufacturing foreperson
Sanford Slepak	....	key costumer
Debbie Travis	....	costumer: Ms. Lane
Andrea E. Weaver	....	costume supervisor
Jessica Carpenter	....	costume designer trainee (uncredited)

Editorial Department
Shon Hedges	....	apprentice editor
Eric Osmond	....	first assistant editor
Megan A. Sears	....	apprentice editor
Michael A. Webber	....	first assistant editor
Lee Wimer	....	color timer
Bill Daly	....	post-production executive (uncredited)

Music Department
Pete Anthony	....	conductor
Kaz Boyle	....	music arranger
Matt Dunkley	....	orchestrator
Richard Ford	....	music editor
Brad Haehnel	....	music mixer
Jonathan Hafter	....	music supervisor
Oliver Hug	....	assistant music editor
Randy Kerber	....	orchestrator
Gary Raymond	....	music playback
Angie Rubin	....	music editor: temp
Steven L. Smith	....	music preparation
Jeffrey Potokar	....	assistant music editor: temp (uncredited)

Transportation Department
Vic Cuccia	....	transportation captain
Darrell Dubovsky	....	driver
Randy Luna	....	driver
Jim Petti	....	teamster co-captain
Dan Romero	....	transportation coordinator
Michael Sean Ryan	....	transportation co-captain
Mark Vollmer	....	driver: grip
Dean Winton	....	driver

Other crew
John Arbuckle	....	marine operator
Joanna August	....	assistant: Jennifer Todd
Michael Bilog	....	first assistant accountant
Marcin Borkowski	....	set production assistant
Ursula Brauner	....	animal trainer
Matthew B. Chamberlin	....	key assistant location manager
Jennifer Corey	....	production coordinator
Nancy Culp	....	assistant: Diane Lane
Enfys Dickinson	....	manager
Steven Eddy	....	assistant production coordinator
Arthur Edmonds III	....	assistant location manager: re-shoots
Devon Evans	....	animal trainer
Tim Fitzgerald	....	production assistant
Jason Gondek	....	production accountant
Heather Erin Green	....	assistant: Gary David Goldberg
Susan Grennan	....	accounting clerk
Mark Harden	....	lead animal trainer
Michael Kehoe	....	craft service
Steven S. Lee	....	key assistant location manager
Aurelie Levy	....	assistant: John Cusack
David Linck	....	publicist
Susan Magee	....	second assistant accountant
Lance Mancuso	....	studio medic
Rob McCabe	....	stand-in: John Cusack
Tim McGee	....	craft service assistant
Jessica Meier	....	office production assistant
Patrick Mignano	....	location manager
Chris Anthony Miller	....	swing leadman
Guy Morrison	....	assistant location manager
Boone Narr	....	animal trainer
Nicholas David Nesbitt	....	staff assistant
Jimmy O'Connell	....	marine coordinator
Kyle Oliver	....	assistant location manager
Kevin O'Neil	....	production assistant
Sally Potters	....	production assistant: re-shoots
Joanna Ray	....	assistant: Suzanne Todd
Rebecca Robertson	....	script supervisor
Deborah Ross	....	title designer
Taffy Schweickhardt	....	payroll accountant
Mark Vollmer	....	marine consultant: diver
Troy Waters	....	marine crew
Mari Wilson	....	additional script supervisor
Emma Ford	....	personal assistant (uncredited)

Production Companies

• Warner Bros. Pictures
• Team Todd
• Ubu Productions

Distributors

• Warner Bros. Pictures (2005) (USA) (theatrical)
• Fox-Warner (2005) (Switzerland) (theatrical)
• Net5 (2008) (Netherlands) (TV) (first national airing)
• Warner Bros. (2005) (Argentina) (theatrical)
• Warner Bros. (2005) (Czech Republic) (theatrical)
• Warner Bros. (2005) (France) (theatrical)
• Warner Bros. (2005) (Italy) (theatrical)
• Warner Bros. (2005) (Japan) (theatrical)
• Warner Bros. (2005) (Netherlands) (theatrical)
• Warner Bros. (2005) (Singapore) (theatrical)
• Warner Home Video (2006) (Switzerland) (DVD)
• Warner Home Video (2006) (Netherlands) (DVD)
• Warner Home Video (2005) (USA) (DVD)

Special Effects

• Digital Dream (visual effects)
• Pacific Title (opticals)

Other Companies

• Boone's Animals for Hollywood  animals provided by
• Chapman/Leonard Studio Equipment  cranes and dollies
• Epic Records  soundtrack released by
• Sony Music Soundtrax  soundtrack released by

Also Known As:

Frau mit Hund sucht Mann mit Herz (Austria) (Germany) [de]
...Y que le gusten los perros (Spain) [es]
Askla randevu (Turkey: Turkish title) [tr]
Doit aimer les chiens (Canada: French title) [fr]
La main au collier (France) [fr]
Matte söker husse (Sweden) [sv]
Partnerperfetto.com (Italy) [it]
Risô no koibito dotto komu (Japan) (alternative transliteration) [ja]
Risô no koibito.com (Japan) (alternative transliteration) [ja]
Ziteitai filozoos (Greece) (TV title) [el]

MPAA:

Rated PG-13 for sexual content.

Runtime:

98 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English | Armenian

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

DTS | Dolby Digital | SDDS

Certification:

Brazil:12 | Germany:o.Al. | Ireland:12A | Netherlands:AL | Argentina:Atp | Finland:S | Taiwan:PG-12 | Australia:M | Sweden:Btl | Czech Republic:12 | Iceland:L | Malaysia:U | South Korea:15 | New Zealand:M | USA:PG-13 | UK:12A | Canada:PG (Ontario) | Canada:PG (British Columbia) | Canada:G (Quebec) | Singapore:PG (edited for re-rating) | Singapore:NC-16 (original rating) | Philippines:PG-13

Filming Locations:

Columbia/Warner Bros. Ranch - 411 N. Hollywood Way, Burbank, California, USA

Company:

Warner Bros. Pictures

Trivia:

Gary David Goldberg's company mascot, UBU, is a Newfoundland--the same dog in the film. "Sit, Ubu, Sit. Good dog."

Goofs:

Revealing mistakes: When Sarah is swimming to Jake's boat, a life preserver is visible across her shoulders under her shirt. When she is pulled into the boat, the vest is, of course, gone.

Quotes:

[first lines]
Rebecca: The best place to meet a guy is at the supermarket. You don't need to waste a lot of time there, either. You see a guy holding a list, you know he's married. He's in the frozen food section carrying a small basket, he's single. I like to hang out by fruits and vegetables, there's a better chance of getting a guy who's healthy.

Movie Connections:

References Doctor Zhivago (1965)

Soundtrack:

Monster Mash

Flawed, but enjoyable

John Cusack and Diane Lane, two of the most interesting actors working today, make this somewhat predictable romantic comedy work. They flesh out characters from a pretty weak script, and make you want to know those characters better.

This film is not rocket science, but if you expect to enjoy a bit of romantic fluff, you will not be disappointed. The only frustrating thing is knowing how much more both of these fine actors is capable of. Given a strong script and inventive director, can you imagine what a great film they could make together?

For this viewer, the weakest part of the script was the two-dimensional nature of some the supporting characters. For example, why would a sensitive, romantic boat builder like Jake have a strip-club-loving sleazy lawyer friend as his only male pal? And while the long suffering younger brother character is amusing and well acted, his wife is non-existent. Also, why would the father become a Lothario upon the death of his wife? If he was really a great guy, wouldn't he continue to act that way?

Also, the script never seems sure whether it wants Diane Lane's character to be comical or touching. The montage showing her entering computer dating with a gusto seemed forced - it aimed for a Bridget Jones type breeziness, but missed - and the singalong to the Partridge Family theme song scene was downright embarrassing. Thankfully Cusack was not subjected to that scene!

All in all, a good one to see if you love the leads, but don't expect belly laughs. It might leave you a little wistful for a romantic comedy as fresh as "Say Anything".... (sigh)