The Shaggy Dog is a 2006 American science fantasy family comedy film. It is directed by Brian Robbins. It is written by Geoff Rodkey, Jack Amiel, Michael Begler, Cormac Wibberley and Marianne Wibberley. It is a remake of the 1959 live-action film of the same name by Charles Barton and loosely based on the 1923 novel The Hound of Florence, produced by Felix Salten. The original film had a character named Wilby Daniels transforming into an Old English Sheepdog after putting on a magic ring. Whereas the remake presents a character named Dave Douglas transforming into a Bearded Collie after getting bitten by a sacred dog. It stars Tim Allen, Robert Downey Jr., Kristin Davis, Danny Glover, Spencer Breslin, Jane Curtin, Zena Grey and Philip Baker Hall.
The Shaggy Dog released on March 10, 2006 by Walt Disney Pictures. It received negative reviews from critics and it grossed $87 million against its $50 million budget, which become a box office flop.
Cast
Tim Allen as David "Dave" Douglas/The Shaggy Dog
Robert Downey Jr. as Dr. Kozak
Kristin Davis as Rebecca Douglas
Danny Glover as Kenneth "Ken" Hollister
Philip Baker Hall as Dr. Lance Strictland
Zena Grey as Carly Douglas
Spencer Breslin as Joshua "Josh" Douglas
Bess Wohl as Dr. Gwen Lichtman
Jordyn Colemon as Tracy
Jarrad Paul as Larry
Jane Curtin as Judge Claire Whittaker
Rhea Seehorn as Lori
Shawn Pyfrom as Trey
Cole as Khyi Yang Po/The Shaggy Dog
Martin Sru as Bin Bag
Joel Moore as a dog pound employee
Crystal the Monkey as Monkey
Jane Hajduk as a news reporter
Adam Hicks as a quarterback
Reception
Box office
The Shaggy Dog grossed $61.1 million in the United States and Canada and $26 million in other territories for a worldwide total of $87.1 million, against its budget of $60 million.
In its opening weekend the film made $16.3 million, finishing second at the box office behind Failure to Launch ($24.4 million).
Critical response
On Rotten Tomatoes, the film has an approval rating of 26% which is based on 105 reviews. It is an average rating of 4.4/10. The site's critical consensus reads, "This Disney retread has neither inspiration nor originality, but may please moviegoers under the age of ten." On Metacritic, the film has a score of 43 out of 100 which is based on 25 critics, indicating "mixed or average reviews". Audiences polled by CinemaScore gave the film an average grade of "B+" on an A+ to F scale.
Variety Chief Film Critic Justin Chang noted: "its occasional lump-in-the-throat moments are almost effortlessly achieved, thanks to strong work from [Kristin] Davis and Spencer Breslin in particular."
Soundtrack
The soundtrack to The Shaggy Dog was released on March 14, 2006. The entire score is by Alan Menken.
"Big Dog" - 3:38
"Man's Best Friend" - 3:06
"Atomic Dog" - 4:43
"Every Dog Has Its Day" - 2:52
"Somethin' About You" - 3:18
"Woof! There It Is" - 3:02
"It's A Dog" - 2:40
"Tibet" - 2:33
"First Signs" - 3:00
"Transformation" - 4:04
"Magic Lab" - 2:19
"Breaking Through" - 2:50
"Kozak Gets A Tail" - 2:34
"Meditation" - 1:06
"Escaping the Lab" - 4:42
"To The Rescue" - 4:54
"Family Time" - 1:20
Home media
The film was released on DVD on August 1, 2006.