Best in Show (film)

Best in Show is a 2000 American mockumentary comedy film, a spoof on American dog shows, co-written by Christopher Guest and Eugene Levy and directed by Guest. The film follows five entrants in a prestigious dog show, and focuses on the slightly surreal interactions among the various owners and handlers, as they travel to the show and then compete during the show. Much of the dialogue was improvised. Many of the comic actors were also involved in Guest's other films, including "Waiting for Guffman", "A Mighty Wind", "For Your Consideration", and "Mascots". The film's score was composed by C. J. Vanston.
Plot.
"Best in Show" is presented as a documentary of five dogs, their owners, their trainers and their handlers, who travel to compete in the fictional Mayflower Kennel Club Dog Show, held in the fictional Beyman Center in Philadelphia. Segments of the documentary continuously cycle among owners and handlers as each prepares to leave for the show, arrives at the hotel, prepares backstage, handles their dog's performance, and appears in a post-show follow-up. The owners and their dogs include:
The owners and their dogs all arrive in time for the show, which is hosted by dog expert Trevor Beckwith (Jim Piddock), and oblivious "color" commentator Buck Laughlin (Fred Willard). During the first round, Beatrice is disqualified when Hamilton cannot control her, but the other four dogs advance to the final round. Just before the finals, Cookie dislocates her knee and insists that Gerry take over for her. Though the audience is initially awed by seeing Gerry's "two left feet" (the result of a birth defect), ultimately Winky takes Best in Show.
Afterwards, the film explores what each character is doing after the competition. Gerry and Cookie return home to Florida and are overcome with attention after the victory. They go on to record, in amusingly bad style, songs about terriers, but discover to Gerry's frustration that the recording engineer (Steven Porter) is yet another of Cookie's ex-boyfriends. Sherri Ann and Christy have entered into a partnership and publish a magazine for lesbian owners of purebred dogs, called "American Bitch". Harlan, after weeks of "mellow[ing] out" on a kibbutz, goes on to fulfill his dreams and becomes a ventriloquist, entertaining sparse crowds with a honky tonk song and dance number. Stefan and Scott are in the process of designing a calendar featuring Shih Tzu dogs appearing in scenes, with appropriate costume, from famous classic films, such as "Gone with the Wind" and "Casablanca". Hamilton and Meg Swan no longer have Beatrice (they do not explain what became of her), allowing them to enjoy a calmer, more loving partnership, as well as a new dog (a pug) named Kipper, which they claim enjoys watching them make love.
Cast.
Dogs.
The starring dogs listed are denoted by their registered names. All have earned the title "Ch.", indicating they have qualified for a championship at conformation shows, with most qualifying for the Canadian Kennel Club Championship—hence the prefix "Can". The "kennel prefix" of one or more breeders precedes each dog's registered name; e. g. in "Arokat Echobar Take Me Dancing", the first breeder is "Arokat" and the second is "Echobar" while the name is "Take Me Dancing". The registered name differs from the dog's "call name", which is used to talk to the animal. For example, Arokat Echobar Take Me Dancing's call name is "Peach".
Production.
The greater part of the film was improvised by the actors, with little to no planning. 60 hours of footage was filmed.
Reception.
"Best in Show" received critical acclaim. The film has a 94% approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes, based on 114 reviews, with an average rating of 7.53/10. The website's critical consensus reads, "A fine example of writer/director/star Christopher Guest's gift for improv comedy, "Best in Show" boasts an appealingly quirky premise and a brilliantly talented cast". The film also has a score of 78 out of 100 on Metacritic, based on 33 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews". It won American, British, and Canadian Comedy Awards. The film is number 38 on Bravo's "100 Funniest Movies". In 2012 "Best in Show" won a spot on Yahoo's list of the "100 Funniest Movies to See Before You Die".
The film opened to a weekend gross of $413,436 to 13 theatres with an average of $31,802 per theater. After opening to a total of 497 theaters, the film ended its run with a domestic total of $18,715,392. The foreign gross of $2,074,164 brought its total gross revenue to $20,789,556.
Legacy.
"Best in Show" was the inspiration for the National Dog Show which has aired each Thanksgiving on NBC since 2002.