Marley & Me (Exclusive Series)

Initial release date: December 25, 2008

Studios: 20th Century Fox/Fox 2000 Pictures/Regency Enterprises/Dune Entertainment

Tagline: Heel the love

Plot: Newlyweds John and Jenny Grogan leave behind snowy Michigan and move to Florida, where they buy their first home and find jobs at competing newspapers. Soon afterward, the Grogans adopt Marley, an adorable yellow Labrador pup. But Marley soon grows up to be a mischievous handful. Still, even while he’s destroying the furniture and failing obedience school, he always manages to bring out the best in John, Jenny and their growing family.

Cast

Owen Wilson (Disney Plus’ Loki) - John

Jennifer Anison (Netflix’s Murder Mystery) - Jenny

Eric Dane (Burlesque; Valentine’s Day) - Sebastian

Kathleen Turner (Netflix’s The Kominsky Method) - Ms. Kornblot

Alan Arkin (Netflix’s Spenser Confidential) - Arnie Klein

Nathan Gamble - Dolphin Tale 2) - Patrick (Age 10)

Haley Bennett (Netflix's Hillbilly Elegy) - Lisa

Ann Dowd (Hulu’s Handmaid’s Tale) - Dr. Platt

Finley Jacobsen (Olympus Has Fallen) - Conor (Age 8)

Writer(s): Scott Frank (Netflix’s The Queen’s Gambit; Logan; The Wolverine)

Don Ross (The Other Woman)

John Grogan (book)

Director: David Frankel (Collateral Beauty; Hope Springs)

Rated PG for thematic material, some suggestive content and language (115 min)

‘Marley & Me’ is a humorous and heart-warming movie that all families and dog lovers will really enjoy.

There are quite a few moments, especially when Marley was a puppy, that are extremely hilarious. Actor Alan Arkin, who plays John’s editor, also has a few hilarious quips in a few of his scenes.

When Marley gets older, the heart-breaking moments begin to come into play. The end of the movie is really emotional and is quite tear-jerking. It’s one of those endings that most pet owners go through at the end of their beloved pet’s life.

You can rent ‘Marley & Me’ through YouTube, Google Play, Apple TV and Vudu.

Here are a few interesting tidbits for ‘Marley & Me’:

• 22 different dogs were used to play Marley.

• Owen Wilson’s real life parents played his parents in the movie. His mother’s biggest problem was remembering not to call him Owen.

• The ``Sun-Sentinel” and “Philadelphia Inquirer” office scenes were filmed on location.

• The dogs enjoyed filming scenes in which they swam, and nearby trainers closely monitored them. The Labs in these scenes were very good swimmers and were accustomed to the water.

• The film was shot on location in Florida’s West Palm Beach, Fort Lauderdale, Hollywood, Miami, and Dolphin Stadium, in addition to Philadelphia and West Chester in PA.

• The film opened at 3,480 screens in the US and Canada on Christmas Day 2008. It grossed $14.75 million on its first day of release, setting the record for the best Christmas Day B.O. surpass the previous high of $10.2 million achieved by ‘Ali’ in 2001 (the record was broken the following year by ‘Sherlock Holmes’). It grossed a total of $51 million over the four day weekend and placed No. 1 at the box office, a position it maintained for two weeks.

• The film ended its run having grossed $143,153,751 in the US and $99,563,361 in foreign markets for a worldwide total of $242,717,113.

• A prequel to the movie, ‘Marley & Me: The Puppy Years,’ was released direct to DVD on June 1, 2011.