A Dog Year: Movie Review

I’m stuck on the couch recovering from some back issues, and it just so happened that the Netfix movie that came in the mail today was A Dog Year. So after some work, I decided that this would be a good movie to entertain me while I’m feeling very immobile!

A Dog Year is based on Jon Katz' book and came out in 2009 with Jeff Bridges as the main, and nearly only, character in addition to Devin the dog. The movie starts off at the airport where Jon (Jeff Bridges) is picking up a dog that he must have adopted from someone he knew across the country, but the dog clearly has some behavioral issues. The dog gets out of the crate as Jon tries to put a leash on him and ends up darting around  baggage claim. A circle forms around the dog, and Jon rushes over, slowly gets on his hands and knees to calm the dog down, and begins telling him, “I’m Jon Katz… I’m a writer… I’m 56… I have a bad back… Devin, look--I have a treat for you!” I love that this was his way of trying to connect with this new dog in his life!

The movie follows the journey of Jon, who is taking a break from his marriage and is behind on writing his new book, as he adds the challenge of caring for this mischievous, messy border collie named Devin. He gets frustrated when the dog keeps escaping to run furiously down the road and keeps destroying his kitchen to eat all of his food. Jon calls the person he got the dog from and is ready to give up and send him back, but something clicks and instead he becomes determined to conquer the challenge.

Not a lot changes with his efforts to train Devin except for some home damage control—he tapes the refrigerator and cabinets shut with bright red duct tape! But when Jon decides to rent a house in the country to clear his mind, the locals in the small town recommend a dog trainer. He gives in and goes to see her, but when she diagnoses Jon’s own inner turmoil as the main hindrance to Devin’s training, he becomes angry and leaves. He doesn’t want help or to admit his own problems to himself, and certainly not to others. The young handy-man who had suggested the dog trainer helps Jon build a small fenced area for Devin at the house, and when they’re finished he asks, “If he’s so much trouble, maybe you should just get rid of him.” Jon replies, “I’m not getting rid of the dog. I’m not giving up on him.” And maybe he realized he’s not ready to give up on himself yet, either.

When he sits down at the computer to write again, he begins to recount his story about Devin which it opens him up to life again and brings him out of his mid-life funk. He decides to go back to the dog trainer with his new-found sense of determination and patience, and he finally makes headway in Devin’s training and their bond with each other. The trainer reminds him that you have to take it "one step at a time."

This movie will remind you that patience is always key in these kinds of situations, and you should certainly be prepared before taking in a new animal that has known behavioral issues. Through his journey with Devin, Jon finds patience with the dog but also within himself. It’s a simple movie with a simple plot line, but the feelings he encounters along his journey with Devin really ring true in so many ways and will leave you smiling at the end. I give it a 3.5 out of 5 (based on Netflix ratings of 3 “liked it” and 4 “really liked it”), for some of the corny circumstances and some missing links in the story. Overall, I recommend it as a great feel-good movie for dog lovers out there!