Best in Show (2000)

Christopher Guest, the man behind Waiting for Guffman, turns his comic eye on another little world that takes itself a bit too seriously: the world of competitive dog shows. Best in Show follows a clutch of dog owners as they prepare and preen their dogs to win a national competition. They include the yuppie pair (Parker Posey and Michael Hitchcock) who fear they've traumatized their Weimaraner by having sex in front of him; a suburban husband and wife (Eugene Levy and Catherine O'Hara) with a terrier and a long history of previous lovers on the wife's part; the Southern owner of a bloodhound (Guest himself) with aspirations as a ventriloquist; and many more. Following the same "mockumentary" format of Spinal Tap and Guffman, Best in Show takes in some of the dog show officials, the manager of a nearby hotel that allows dogs to stay there, and the commentators of the competition (a particularly knockout comic turn by Fred Willard as an oafish announcer). The movie manages to paint an affectionate portrait of its quirky characters without ever losing sight of the ridiculousness of their obsessive world. Almost all of the scenes were created through improvisation. While lacking the overall focus of a written script, Best in Show captures hilarious and absurd aspects of human behavior that could never be written down. The movie's success is a testament to both the talent of the actors and Guest's discerning eye. --Bret Fetzer Amazon.com

Best In Show

This is the best movie ever. I have watched it over and over and over again and never get sick of it. It is so hilarious that you have to buy it because you will want to see it again and again. October 9, 2008

excellent

Excellent, if you have dogs, then this is the movie for you. It's hilarious and funny.
Some of the couples you can relate to in every day life. We sure did!
Gotta get it! September 28, 2008

"Best In Show" Maybe not Quite the Best In Show

While I find nothing wrong with Christopher Guest's mocumentary films, and most times even find them incredibly funny, "Best in Show" missed its mark. Guest continously puts his characters in awkwardly funny situations that should make the audience chuckle and laugh, but I just don't see it. The film took itself seriously, which is what most audiences loved, but I just couldn't get into it. The characters are well-rounded and developed, the cinematography is great, but the plot just doesn't go anywhere. The film follows a group of dog show contestants on the road to, and during, a national dog show competition, and that's it. There's no twists. There's no punch lines. There's no relief factor. Just ninety minutes of owners and their dogs. I could have easily gotten the same thing on Animal Planet. September 24, 2008

No Fleas In This Improv

Take a North Carolina country boy, a Midwest suburban (bipolar) couple, a nerd with two left feet and his former nymph wife, two rather flaming beauty salon operators, a gold-digging wife and her lesbian dog trainer, mix in some interesting canines (who, ironically, are the only stable beings in sight), plug them all into the high stakes tension that is the (fictitious) Mayflower Dog Show, and you've got BEST IN SHOW. Christopher Guest, who has made comedic improv "mockumentaries" an art form, hits the funny bone yet again with his ensemble cast of lovable loons who take competitive dog showing just a tad too seriously.

Improvisational comedy takes a special talent, so Guest employs several Second City veterans to wing it in front of the camera (including Eugene Levy, Catherine O'Hara, Michael McKean, and Fred Willard). While Guest's character (whose name is Harlan Pepper, a classic) and Fred Willard (an empty suit TV announcer) tend to get annoying, the rest of the cast improvs and interacts in pure comedic camaraderie. In particular, McKean and John Michael Higgins chew up every scene they're in as two very gay boutique operators and dog show enthusiasts; yes, they stumble over every gay stereotype in the book, but they do so with tongue-in-cheek good humor.

Special features. This edition includes commentaries by cowriters Guest and Levy; both comics basically go through the motions and offer little insight behind the scenes. Several deleted scenes are available; once viewed, it becomes readily apparent why they were not included in the final cut. Special feature disappointments aside, BEST IN SHOW is pure, tight, improvisational bliss--a howler in a good way.
--D. Mikels, Author, Walk-On August 27, 2008

Funny!

Dog lovers will enjoy this movie, with it's adult situations and humor. The dog show commentary is especially funny. July 28, 2008

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