Dog (2022)

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     This fucking movie almost made me cry. And the dog does not die, just getting that out there.

     Channing Tatum plays a combat veteran with physical and emotional issues tasked with bringing a former fellow Ranger's also physically and emotionally damaged combat dog, Lulu, to the Ranger's funeral. It's a road movie along the Pacific coast with some wacky hijinks but overall leans toward how to heal wounds.

     Tatum continues to be one of the most underrated actors of his generation. Sure, he can move as Magic Mike and looks like an action figure without the kung fu grip, but the man can dig deep and use his physicality in a variety of ways. This movie has slapstick humor, silly sex romps, an oddly dark near-torture scene, and the effects of trauma on the human body. Tatum shows, doesn't tell, often expresses humor and drama in almost every scene. 

     One could compare this to Turner and Hooch, where the straightlaced guy meets the wild dog and they form a bond, but that's reductive. Both Tatum and Lulu the dog are damaged and riddled with anxiety. For a lot of the run time they pull against one another, coming up with scenarios to highlight the destructiveness they both bring to their lives. By the end, though, when Tatum comforts Lulu during the funeral's gun salute and Lulu lays on Tatum as he suffers a seizure on a bathroom floor… You do not see this type of emotional catharsis in dog movies. Moments of bonding not as man and dog or soldier to soldier, but just two lonely abused beings filling in the broken parts.

     I'm writing this on Veteran's Day where the United States celebrates our soldiers. This movie goes beyond that and reminds us to care for them. To help them care for themselves and offer them support. The movie champions the rar-rar nature of war but it also shows the heavy cost. It's not really a story about doing things for the country or celebrating the military, but about how those "warriors" we send out to do horrific jobs come back broken. 

     And it does it with humor and empathy, which is often the sugar coating for a good message about care and kindness for yourself and others.