This week, Kate Knibbs at The Ringer had a very simple request: If Your Movie Has “Dog” in the Title, It Should Have Dogs in the Movie. Indeed, if you’re going to see “War Dogs” this weekend expecting canines, you’ll be sorely disappointed. Well, the good news for Knibbs is that “A Dog’s Purpose” doesn’t just have a dog; it’s the lead character.
The schmaltzy-looking, Lasse Hallström-directed family movie is somehow credited to five screenwriters (W. Bruce Cameron & Cathryn Michon and Audrey Wells and Maya Forbes & Wally Wolodarsky) for what is a pretty simple story of a dog whose soul is reincarnated into different canine forms, all of whom touch various lives. Here’s the synopsis:
Based on the beloved bestselling novel by W. Bruce Cameron, A Dog’s Purpose, from director Lasse Hallström (The Cider House Rules, Dear John, The 100-Foot Journey), shares the soulful and surprising story of one devoted dog (voiced by Josh Gad) who finds the meaning of his own existence through the lives of the humans he teaches to laugh and love.
Starring Dennis Quaid, Peggy Lipton, Britt Robertson, K.J. Apa, Juilet Rylance, Luke Kirby, John Ortiz, Pooch Hall and Josh Gad, “A Dog’s Purpose” will lift its leg on movie theaters on January 27, 2017.
