This week, thanks to a free month-long gift trial, I am at last taking
the plunge into Netflix. It's one I've been contemplating for quite a
while, and now that I'm getting a taste, I suspect I won't be able to
resist hanging onto the subscription. I have a long list of movies I've
been wanting to see, and I've already added a good many of them to my
queue. While I wait for the first of my selected films to arrive, I have
the free online viewing to enjoy, and last night I decided to take
advantage of that. Dad had already gone to bed; Mom was dozing on the
couch next to me, and so as not to wake her, I slipped on the headphones
and tried to find a movie that looked mildly interesting, but not to
the point that I would feel badly about watching it on my own. After a
bit of browsing, I settled on The Dogwalker, a 1999 film I'd
never heard of full of actors I'd never encountered before and written
and directed by Paul Duran, with whom I was also unfamiliar. Would this
be a diamond in the rough?
Well, it has the rough down. The
film focuses on Jerry (Will Stewart), a down-on-his-luck schmuck who is
spared the uncomfortable situation of using his broken-down car as
lodgings when he accidentally lands himself a job as a dogwalker for the
elderly Alma (Carol Gustafson). This premise was enough to draw me in.
It was listed as a comedy, and I took its lack of a rating combined with
the potentially feel-good elements of caring for canines and little old
ladies as a sign that it would be some corny but charming
Hallmark-style direct-to-video release. Ha! Within the first few
minutes, which included copious amounts of profanity and drug use,
mostly by Jerry's lewd, loud-mouthed friend K.C. (Cress Williams), I had
adjusted my expectations for the movie considerably.
There are several aspects of The Dogwalker
that could make for an engaging film. The most promising bits involve
the intergenerational friendships that develop between Jerry and Alma
and Jerry's sensitive friend Mones (Tony Todd) and Alma's elderly
neighbor Ike (John Randolph). Unfortunately, one is insufficiently
explored, while the other leads to a scene marking an abrupt change in
an already uneven film. As for the pooch, always a welcome addition to
any film as far as this dog lover is concerned, the generically named
Lucky scarcely makes an appearance. Mom, who drifted in and out of sleep
and occasionally glanced at the screen to see what was happening though
she couldn't hear, commented to me later that in all her glimpses, she
never spotted a dog. That's a shame because ultimately, the dog is the
only one Jerry really manages to connect with.
That's not to
say he doesn't do plenty of interacting. He and his buddies, when
they're not smokin' and dopin', partake in awkwardly fun game nights
with Alma and her friends, forming a most unconventional posse. And then
there's Alma's daughter Helen (Stepfanie Kramer), who is high-strung
and obnoxious, and though she can't seem to get along with anyone,
including Jerry, she seduces him Mrs. Robinson-style, while her catty,
perpetually gum-chewing teenage daughter Susan (Nicki Aycox) comes on to
him at every possible opportunity. These scenes are much more
uncomfortable than alluring, and most of the intended comedic moments
were too crude to evoke many laughs from me.
The Dogwalker
has its moments, but they are few and far between. I suspect there was a
reason I never heard of this movie. If you come across it, I suggest
you walk the other way.
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