by rick grant rickgrant01@comcast.net
B Rated PG-13
Writer/director Mike White’s droll script presents the archetypal lonely woman, Peggy (Molly Shannon), who has channeled all her lost love into her beagle, Pencil. She is a woman with no social life and seems invisible to the world. Pencil is her life. When the dog dies of accidental poisoning, she plunges into an inconsolable grief-driven depression. Desperate for companionship, she even dates her redneck neighbor (John C. Reilly) who carelessly left a poisonous substance in his garage that killed her dog. Their one date is a disaster.
At work, where Peggy labors as an office assistant, her friend Layla (Regina King) tries to cheer her up. Layla has her own problems getting her boyfriend to commit to an engagement. What’s worse, Peggy sees him wooing another woman. Layla’s efforts to boost Peggy’s spirits are unsuccessful. However, she is a true friend and backs off when Peggy doesn’t react. Layla gives her space to get over her grief on her own.
What makes this film special is White’s subtle humor, woven cleverly into this poignant drama, exploring a particular type of female consciousness–a hypersensitive person who relates to animals but finds it difficult to connect with people. She had become too content with her dog and had repressed the pain of her loneliness.
More importantly, White’s story implies that Peggy has taken up PETA’s crusade to save animals from slaughter or abuse as a way of dealing with her lack of human contact. White delves deep into her psyche to reveal a woman who overcompensates in her sad efforts to feel love, and ends up acting irrationally.
As time begins to heal her grief, she meets animal rights activist Newt (Peter Sarsgaard), who belongs to an organization that finds homes for shelter dogs. He gives her a German Shepherd with behavior issues and helps her train it. Since they have so much in common, they gradually become friends. However, for whatever reason, Newt is practicing celibacy and Peggy is shot down again.
When her new dog kills one of Newt’s dogs, he has the dog sent to the shelter to be put down. In a panic, Peggy rushes to the shelter, but it’s too late to save her dog. So, in a fit of hopelessness, she adopts all the dogs at the shelter–15 of them. Peggy has finally gone bonkers and soon the dogs wreck her house and the neighbor calls animal control to pick them up.
In a subplot, Peggy frequently visits with her sister Bret (Laura Dern), a super-mom who is overprotective of her two children. She worries about her sister Peggy. But when Peggy goes over the edge, Bret and her husband try to help her. She was in trouble at work for forging her boss’ checks and sending donations to various animal rights groups. Of course, he fires her.
Clearly, Peggy is a woman crying out for help. Her whole life becomes a crusade to save animals from being killed, even for food. She becomes a vegan to demonstrate her commitment to animals. All her energy goes into helping PETA with their protests and becoming an activist.
Viewers can’t help but feel sorry for her. She is funny, but overreacts to normal life stresses. She’s an attractive woman who has childlike qualities. Indeed, she’s got much to offer the right man, but justifiably, she just can’t relate to the dating scene. Many viewers will likely identify with her and her problems. Her relationship with Pencil was wonderful, but to treat the dog as a substitute for human love was asking for trouble. Dogs need a dominant force, a leader of the pack. Of course, many of us are guilty of over-pampering our dogs. In Peggy’s case, no matter how much she loved Pencil, it couldn’t replace her need for human contact. How she resolves this dilemma is the hook of the premise. With a strong supporting cast, Molly Shannon nails Peggy’s emotional consternation with skillful acting verve. Her big smile could light up Kansas. Yes, she deserves to meet the right guy who respects her sensitivity and love of animals. It’s a baffling conundrum that afflicts millions of women. For Peggy, Mr. Right is elusive, but out there somewhere.
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