Bark!

Don't be mislead by the trailer. Sure, the film is chock full of really funny bits, but they serve to offer comic relief to a truly poignant story of a woman with a terrible mental disorder, her husband who is at the end of his tether, a statement on the treatment of mental disorders by "let's just make her a vegetable", a vet who doesn't really know where her heart is going and finds herself falling in love with the husband who comes to her for advice, a resident shrink who would rather be practicing his harp than medicine and gets himself fired for practicing psychiatry in a broom closet and on house-calls for cash, and a buddy who boasts of being fired from a job about every six weeks because he feels oppressed by "the man." Good character development. The plot has good resolution. A mix of angst, laughter, and warm fuzzies. Memorable line: The buddy tells the resident, "Stick with the harp. You can't get fired from playing the harp." Good film.

If you choose the movie Bark based on the trailer or the video/DVD box cover, you are probably going to be disappointed. The movie is only a comedy in the most traditional sense of the word: for instance, it concludes with a beautiful celebration where all the characters are gathered together. It is not a comedy of crass jokes or goofy gags. And is it a romance movie? Again, hardly in the way the promoters advertise it to be. Bark is, however, a loving look at the tragi-comedy of the human condition. Obviously, I liked this movie very much. It moved along well yet had many "timeless" moments. It did not make a big deal of itself. It depicted its characters and their troubles with warmth and kindness, yet was not sappy. I am thankful to those who created this movie, for their intelligence and tenderness toward the whole situation of mental illness. Anyone who has known someone who has "lost it" -- and really that must be all of us by now -- will appreciate this movie for its story. As for the tone, I would say that it has more in common with something like Woody Allen's Crimes and Misdemeanors -- another "romantic comedy" which was much more than that phrase generally seems to mean nowadays.

I really wanted to see this movie because it has one of my favorite actors, Lee Tergesen, in it. While he did a great job as a leading man, the movie was very slow and the plot boring. The premise could have been dealt with better, perhaps with more insight into what caused Lucy to act like a dog. Vincent DiNofrio was also very good. There were a lot of scenes in the movie that make no sense, like when Lucy's parents come to visit. The relationship between Peter and the vet (Lisa Kudrow) made no sense at all. Also, the ending leaves a giant question mark to a movie that already makes no sense. This movie isn't really worth your time, unless you want to see Lee Tergesen in a staring role.

there is this awesome movie that is circling 'Starz and Encore' right now called Bark! about this lady who has a mental breakdown and believes that she is a dog. Has a great supporting cast including D'noffrio, Hank Azaria, Lisa Kudrow, as well as leading man Lee Tergesen {better known for his role as 'beacher' on 'OZ'} It has received shitty ratings, and well it is a very low budget piece of crap, but I loved it. It was a fun idea to play with, the chick who played the nut was believable. None of the characters were cardboard 2 dimensional things just there to waste time. All these odd ball people come together, for seemingly no reason, and the weirdest reasons of all, and it some how fits. Life is like that, but this had great emotional depth by Tergesen, and I'd never seen Kudrow in a sexier role. I have nothing but good things to say about all the actors in the flick, that's my 2 cents. GO SEE IT AND MAKE UP YOUR OWN MIND IF YOU LIKE IT! DON'T LISTEN TO ME!

Lee Tergesen and Heather Morgan saved the movie. Both actors played their parts beautifully. The movie has a very intelligent, sensitive story line, comedy only in the traditional sense - no one dies. Was pleased also that it was not a traditional "happy, Hollywood" ending.

Especially loved Lee "standing up" to the Psycho MD… won't give away the rest.

Lisa Kudrow was Kudrow… Is she really that ditzy in real life, that she's always cast in absolute idiot roles?

And what was with Vincent D'Onofrio? Have never seen him before so I don't know if he's just yet another idiot. His character was such a caricature.

What were all those "lunatic" people there for? They didn't really add anything to the plot. The plot stood on it's own. The "nuts" were superfluous.

Despite all but two of the cast, the movie is worth seeing. The theme of mental illness is extremely well and sensitively portrayed.