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A Dog's Purpose
Genre:
Comedy Adventure Romance
Directed by:
Lasse Hallström
Written by:
W. Bruce Cameron Cathryn Michon Audrey Wells Maya Forbes Wally Wolodarsky
Based on:
A Dog's Purpose by W. Bruce Cameron
Starring:
Britt Robertson KJ Apa Peggy Lipton Dennis Quaid Josh Gad
Cinematography:
Terry Stacey
Editing:
Robert Leighton
Music by:
Rachel Portman
Production company:
Amblin Entertainment Reliance Entertainment Walden Media Pariah Entertainment Group
Distributed by:
Universal Pictures
Release date:
January 27, 2017
Runtime:
100 Minutes
Country:
US
Language:
English
Budget:
$22 million
Box office:
$205 million
Franchise:
A Dog's Purpose
Sequel:
A Dog's Way Home (prequel) A Dog's Journey
A Dog's Purpose is a 2017 American comedy-drama film directed by Lasse Hallström and written by W. Bruce Cameron, Cathryn Michon, Audrey Wells, Maya Forbes and Wally Wolodarsky, based on the 2010 novel of the same name by W. Bruce Cameron. The film stars Britt Robertson, KJ Apa, Juliet Rylance, John Ortiz, Kirby Howell-Baptiste, Peggy Lipton, Dennis Quaid and Josh Gad.
A devoted dog (Josh Gad) discovers the meaning of its own existence through the lives of the humans it teaches to laugh and love. Reincarnated as multiple canines over the course of five decades, the lovable pooch develops an unbreakable bond with a kindred spirit named Ethan (Bryce Gheisar). As the boy grows older (K.J. Apa) and comes to a crossroad, the dog once again comes back into his life to remind him of his true self.
Why It Deserves a Dog
The idea of making a dog live through several lives and seeing what it’s like with several different owners is pretty original.
Beautiful, amazing cinematography.
Bailey shares a touching relationship with his owner, Ethan.
Astounding performances from each and every one of the actors.
Likable and sympathetic characters.
Well-done character and story development via Josh Gad‘s narration.
Nicely said dialogue from the characters.
It captures the heartwarming tone of the book it was based on.
Several amounts of funny, serious, and tear-jerking moments are well-executed, such as the scene where Bailey grows depressed after Ethan leaves for college.
The ending is incredibly heartwarming that will leave you in tears of joy and satisfaction.
It accurately shows how much pet owners truly care for their dogs and how they should treat them with the attention they deserve.
Bad Qualities
Todd is horribly unlikable and shows a "twist villain cliche" trope where at first he is a good friend to Ethan in football, but in reality, he is a psychopath who manipulates Ethan because he believes that his father (Jim) is drunk.
Because of these actions, he believes that it was an accident before getting arrested by the police, even though he purposely burned Ethan's house after deliberately punching him in a single blow.
Ethan's father, Jim, was drunk for no good reason once Ethan was a teenager, and this shows no explanation of how he is obsessed with alcoholic drinks.
Idiotic Move: Bailey is seen digging on the ground while narrating Ethan as the only leader of the pack. Later, he shows a dead cat to Ethan's mother, causing her to freak out.
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