Homeschool Happenings: Life With Dog ~ A Review

My children and I recently watched Life With Dog by Mill Creek Entertainment. The running times for this family friendly movie is 106 minutes. This film stars Corbin Bernsen, Marilu Henner, and Chelsey Crisp.

Life With Dog Movie Synopsis

The movie starts out with a hit-and-run accident between a car and a female, Alice, on a bicycle. Alice sustains injuries that take her life. Joe, her husband, of 49 years is full of grief and cannot come to grips with her death. No one is aware that Alice's death was a result of a hit-and-run until later in the movie. For a good part of the movie Joe is convinced that his wife's "accident" was actually a murder. There is a new building development going up across the street in Joe's neighborhood. Many of the neighbor's have already been bought out. Joe has no intentions of selling his home. He thinks there is a conspiracy in order to get him to sell his house and that they are actually behind Alice's death. People begin to think that Joe is going crazy. Detective's do begin to investigate.

Joe is an unbeliever and doubts God at every turn. His wife Alice and his adult daughter Zoe are both believer's. Joe went with them to church but lost his faith when he and Alice's son, Mike died at he age of 13. Joe talks about how he cried out to the Lord to spare his son's life and God did not listen. He did not understand how Alice and Zoe continued to trust in the Lord after God betrayed them by taking Mike. Again, when Alice was in the accident, Joe begged for God to save her and again Joe talks about how God yet again let him down and refused to answer his prayers. How could a loving God do such a thing?

Soon after his wife's death a mangy dog started showing up at Joe's house. Joe continually tried to shoo the dog away and the dog continued coming back again and again. Eventually, Joe takes the dog in and begins to feed him. He names the dog, Dog. Dog becomes a companion for Joe. Even though Dog does not bark he soon begins to warn Joe when a hooded stranger begins showing up at night in the front of his house. Eventually Dog leads Joe to what will give him answers, closer about Alice's death which will totally surprise you, and back to God.

Who watched this movie?

I watched with movie with my 16, 13, and 11-year-old daughter's. Overall, the movie was good. It obviously it not your Hollywood quality acting and set budget. So keep that in mind. My daughter's said that it was really slow moving and the last 10 minutes of the movie were the best. Before sitting your whole family down keep in mind that this movie is for ages 12 and above due to a gun being pulled, anger and a fist being punched through a wall several times, and then obviously death.

Overall, I thought this movie was worth watching. It taught some really valuable lessons. Life is full of trials and sometimes very difficult situations. God doesn't put us through the flames without providing us with the means to bring us through to the other side. Everything that we go through in life has a purpose and a reason. Sometimes it is just impossible for us to truly see and understand as we are going through a trial to see what God has waiting for us on the other side. Sometimes it may be helping others going through a similar trial. Maybe God has something even better for us. In this movie, we see how extremely hard the death of a loved one is. Forgiveness sometimes seems unfathomable especially when we are so personally affected. This movie does an amazing job at showing just how God can and does allow a person to get past grief, the ability to forgive, and draw near to Him.

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