Abby Barnes (Janeane Garofalo) is a successful radio broadcaster; her daily show "The Truth About Cats & Dogs" helps hundreds of listeners with their pet problems, from over friendly cat's too depressed goldfish. When professional photographer Brian (Ben Chaplin) phones up with a troublesome ... Read review
One of the most memorably offbeat romantic comedies of the 1990s begins when a talk-radio ... more
veterinarian named Abby (Janeane Garofalo) takes a call from Brian (Ben Chaplin), the owner of a roller-skating Great Dane. Brian is intrigued by Abby's voice and...
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Abby, a witty veterinarian who hosts her own radio talk show, is anything but confident ... more
when it comes to men. When a smitten caller named Brian (Ben Chaplin) asks her on a date, she begs her beautiful neighbor, Noelle (Uma Thurman), to take her place. ...
One of the most memorably offbeat romantic comedies of the 1990s begins when a talk-radio ... more
veterinarian named Abby (Janeane Garofalo) takes a call from Brian (Ben Chaplin), the owner of a roller-skating Great Dane. Brian is intrigued by Abby's voice and...
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Charming and bittersweet this modern-day romantic comedy starring Uma Thurman Janeane ... more
Garofalo and Ben Chaplin explores the beguiling perils of mistaken identity. Abby a gutsy and witty veterinarian who hosts her own radio talk show is anything ...
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Comedy - Director: Gareth Carrivick - Original Language: English - Classification: 15 years and over - Starring: Kathryn Drysdale, Sheridan Smith, Natalie Casey, Will Mellor, Ralf Little
Comedy - Original Language: English - Classification: 12 years and over - Starring: Tessa Peake-Jones, Buster Merryfield, David Jason, Nicholas Lyndhurst
Comedy - Director: Richard Boden, Mandie Fletcher, Martin Shardlow - Original Language: English - Classification: 15 years and over - Starring: Hugh Laurie, Miranda Richardson, Stephen Fry, Brian Blessed, Tim McInnerny, Tony Robinson, Rowan Atkinson
Advantages: Easy to watch romantic comedy Disadvantages: Not enough to be concerend
...him through how to calm the free wheeling dog down and out of gratitude for her good advice; Brian invites her out for drinks. Self-conscious about her appearance and being only just over 5 foot, she agrees to go out but gives Brian the description of her neighbour Noelle (Uma Thurman) a tall, slim model.
When Abby explains to Noelle about the deception, she agrees to go along with the plan to help her friend out. Brian has no idea ... ...with the witty Abby on the phone and going out on dates with the beautiful Noelle, he believes he has found the perfect woman. But things start to go wrong when Noelle starts to fall for Brian and the two women start co compete for his attention.
The Truth About Cats & Dogs is a fun, lighthearted, romantic, comedy which draws on the famous story of Cyrano de Bergerac but adds to it, its own twists. Although this storyline is ... more
Abby Barnes (Janeane Garofalo) is a successful radio broadcaster; her daily show "The Truth About Cats & Dogs" helps hundreds of listeners with their pet problems, from over friendly cat's too depressed goldfish. When professional photographer Brian (Ben Chaplin) phones up with a troublesome dog on roller skates, Abby duly talks him through how to calm the free wheeling dog down and out of gratitude for her good advice; Brian invites her out for drinks. Self-conscious about her appearance and being only just over 5 foot, she agrees to go out but gives Brian the description of her neighbour Noelle (Uma Thurman) a tall, slim model.
When Abby explains to Noelle about the deception, she agrees to go along with the plan to help her friend out. Brian has no idea that he is being deceived and after long romantic conversations with the witty Abby on the phone and going out on dates with the beautiful Noelle, he believes he has found the perfect woman. But things start to go wrong when Noelle starts to fall for Brian and the two women start co compete for his attention.
The Truth About Cats & Dogs is a fun, lighthearted, romantic, comedy which draws on the famous story of Cyrano de Bergerac but adds to it, its own twists. Although this storyline is somewhat predictable, and has been used in many other more commercially successful films such as "Roxanne", this film still manages to entertain you through it's light hearted nature and it's brilliantly funny performances. What is very surprising about this film is that for a romantic, comedy it is not overly sentimental, which I found a pleasant change compared to other films in this genre.
The focus of the film is Abby Barnes the self-conscious pet expert who believes her looks and lack of height won't appeal to her date. In my opinion, she comes over as a far more attractive person than that of Noelle the model who becomes her face for the dates. A lot of the humour in this film comes from her witty repartee with her unsuspecting date, Brian. On top of this, there are some extremely visually funny scenes, starting off with Brian trying to pacify a Great Dane on roller skates. Plus the hilarious scene where Noelle, pretending to be a pet expert, has to perform a rather strange procedure on a tortoise to get it to pop its head out of its shell.
Remembering that this film is a comedy and so the boundaries of believability are always going to be pushed. The only criticism I can have is how on earth does Brian not realize that the tall, sexy Noelle is in fact not Abby. I know within the film they come up with a lame excuse for the difference in the voices, but surely he would question why the beautiful woman he dates can't string an intellectual conversation together, but can talk quite diligently for ages on the phone. This just pushed the boundaries of believability too far, even for such a good comedy.
The lead role of Abby Barnes, the radio pet specialist, is masterfully played by Janeane Garofalo (Cop Land) and a lot of the enjoyment in this film comes from her performance. The numerous witty one-liners that she delivers are excellent, and you can't help but laugh at her dry put downs. As Noelle, the good looking neighbour is Uma Thurman (Kill Bill) and although she doesn't have many funny lines, her performance as a model and wannabe news reader is brilliant. Her performance typifies the stereotypical model who is not very clever and doesn't eat anything, as demonstrated in her line:
"I don't eat anything so I can look good on the outside, but on the inside, there's nothing."
As Brian, the man caught unwittingly in the middle of the deception, is Ben Chaplin (Murder By Numbers), who comes over as handsome, tender and charming. Too be honest there isn't much too the character of Brian, except that he is very likeable and a bit shy around women. Undoubtedly Chaplin's best scene is the one where he has a 7 hour conversation with Abby over the phone, which culminates in them having phone sex. Of course the supporting cast all play important roles in keeping the film moving none more than Brian's best friend Ed played by Jamie Foxx (Ray) who advises him on his relationship.
The Truth About Cats & Dogs is directed by Michael Lehmann who has also directed "Hudson Hawk", "Heathers" and "40 Days and 40 Nights". Personally I feel that this is his best directional outing, as he has let the story take centre stage and the performances and comedy just add too it, rather than detract. Although the soundtrack is not overly special, it is full of the easy listening romantic fodder that you would expect from any decent romantic, comedy.
= The Cast =======
Janeane Garofalo .... Abby Ben Chaplin .... Brian Uma Thurman .... Noelle Jamie Foxx .... Ed James McCaffrey .... Roy Richard Coca .... Eric Stanley DeSantis .... Mario Dechen Thurman .... Bookstore Cashier
======= Technical Details =============
Certificate: 15 Length: 97 mins Originally released: 1996
======= Bonus Material =============
For such an enjoyable film, it is a huge disappointment that the only extras on the DVD, consists of the theatrical trailer for the film itself, along with a couple of trailers for other films.
======================= The Message & Christian View Point =============================
The message that this film clearly delivers is that beauty is more than skin deep. Although the character of Noelle came across as being stereotypically beautiful, the real beauty in the film came from the character of Abby. Although by no means an ugly duckling herself, she felt that because she didn't match up to the stereotypes displayed on the front of magazines and on the bill boards, that she was unattractive. In reality, her beauty was more than skin deep, as her inner kindness, fun and an interest in others made for a much more appealing package.
========== Conclusion & Rating ================
The Truth About Cats & Dogs is one of those films, that although is starting to feel dated, still manages to keep you entertained and leaves you with a feel good feeling at the end. A favourite amongst couples on its original cinematic release, I would still say it would appeal to the same demographic now. On that note I would recommend this to anyone who wants a nice film too watch with a loved one, or to anyone who is an old romantic at heart.
The Truth About Cats & Dogs is available on Amazon for £6.97 which is a bit expensive, seeing that there is a lack of any real extras. So I would recommend shopping round too see if you can get this for around the £5.00 mark.
...directed by Michael Lehmann. The plot involves a romantic triangle that emerges as a result of confusion over identities. Ben Chaplin plays Brian; a photographer who calls his local radio station after attaching roller-skates to his dog. He speaks to Abby, played by Janeane Garofalo, who manages to help him to placate the upset dog and remove the roller-skates. Ben is grateful for her assistance he offers to take her out for a drink, she agrees and ... ...model and wannabe actress.
The women are very different. Noelle is attractive although she is rather something of an airhead. Her boyfriend is an abusive agent who she remains, this is despite that fact that her appearance is said to literally stop traffic. Abby is a sassy, successful and intelligent women however she is single and possibly lonely. They become friends after Abby intervenes in an argument between Noelle and her boyfriend.
All of ...
Fantasyman 11.04.2005
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful Review of The Truth About Cats And Dogs (DVD)
Advantages: A light hearted good romantic film Disadvantages: It always makes me cry, I'm such a sap
...favourite films of all time, The Truth About Cats and Dogs, Mel xxx
• What’s it all about then?
Dr. Abby Barnes (Janeane Garofalo) is a veterinarian with a radio show. It’s title, ‘The Truth about Cats and Dogs’. Callers can call in and have their pet care worries answered live on air. Brian (Ben Chaplin) is having a bad day with a photo shoot. He’s got a dog (Hank) from the pound that morning, popped roller skates on it and needless to say the ... ...After not showing up for the date and leaving him there he then goes to her work.
Noelle (Uma Thurman) who lives in Abby’s building has a controlling manager/boyfriend and needs some confidence. Her and Abby become friends and after a conflicting argument with Noelle’s boyfriend and Abby, Abby’s bow (of her violin) gets broken. The following day Noelle goes to Abby’s radio station to give her a new bow. At that point Brian turns up and sees Noelle ...
Miss_BooBookitty 16.05.2003
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful Review of The Truth About Cats And Dogs (DVD)
Advantages: Harmless fun Disadvantages: None obvious
...Ben Chaplin as Brian - the three main and most important characters - evryone else is just incidental! The performances of all three are tight, convincing and flawless.
The film begins with Abby, a vet with a radio talk show, being chatted up by one of her callers - Brian and eventually agreeing to meet him on a date. However her insecurity sets in, as she feels she is unattractive and that he won't like her as a 5ft 2in, plain-Jane brunette so ... ...10in, slim blonde.
So the film proceeds with Abby and Noelle pretending to be who they are not unbeknown to Brian who becomes enchanted with Noelle, not realising that she is not the voice behind the radio show who he has been talking with.
Abby is intelligent and witty. Noelle is a bit dim, scatty but likeable. However, Brian is fooled and fails to notice the subtle differences between the two until the crunch point comes near the end.
He goes ...
blurbubble 18.04.2001
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful Review of The Truth About Cats And Dogs (DVD)
Advantages: a nice romance, in a rather good setting Disadvantages: under developed
...do it any favours in the cinema. That being said, this is not a particularly stunning film in any sense of the word, rather a nice, somewhat twee little flick designed to warm your cockles and give and slight quirky take on film romances.
The plot is very basic, and tells the story of Abby (Janeanne Garfolo) who, whilst starring in her very own talk show dedicated to pets, cannot find a man who understands a) her quirkiness and b) her love of all ... ...both annoying and charming at the same time), and they get more and more involved in one another (partaking in, what at the time was a very fresh concept, some rather steamy 'telephone sex'. They decide to meet, and Abby gets worried, as she is sure that Brian will not want to go for her small, petite and dumpy build. Abby thus enlists the help of her neighbour (the gorgeous Uma Thurman) a ditzy down town chick called Noell, who agrees to stand in ...
r-rackham 15.06.2001
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful Review of The Truth About Cats And Dogs (DVD)
Advantages: Simple plot, very funny storyline Disadvantages: None, this film is great.
...and Ben Chaplin as Brian, the poor unsuspecting male upon which the deception and crisis is dumped!
Abby has a self image complex, whereby she thinks she is fat and ugly. Noelle is made out to be tall, blonde and beautiful with men falling at her feet. I actually think Abby (Janeane) is far more attractive than Noelle (Uma), as she has a far more womanly figure and is much prettier! Perhaps they should have changed the characters round rather than ... ...and ask for advice on the cats and dogs (hence the name of the film just in case you were wondering)! One particular day she happens to help Brian find his true love (Hank the rollerskating dog) and he asks her on a date. Abby is very lacking in self confidence and when he asks her what she looks like so that he can spot her when they meet, she describes herself as tall and blonde. Being petite and brunette, Abby either has to meet him herself and ...
lynsey82 16.03.2003
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful Review of The Truth About Cats And Dogs (DVD)
A modern-day romantic comedy which explores the perils of mistaken identity. A young female veterinarian, who hosts her own radio talk show, is anything but confident when it comes to love. In fact, when a male caller asks her for a date, she persuades her tall, blonde neighbour to assume her identity...
Release details
DVD Region
DVD
Studio(s)
20th Century Fox Home Entertainment; Deluxe Video Service - Fox
Original Theatrical Trailer, Scene Access, Interactive Menus
Aspect Ratio
1.85 Wide Screen, 16:9 Anamorphic Wide Screen
Sound
Dolby Digital 5.1
Dubbing Sound
Dolby Digital 5.1 English
Professional reviews
Review
"...[Garofalo] comes into her own as a romantic star..." -- Rating: B+ (Entertainment Weekly, pp.34-5, 26/04/1996)
"...Directed with steady laughs and disarming comic finesse....Ms. Garofalo shows a look of resignation that's truly and unexpectedly heartbreaking..." (New York Times, p.C8, 26/04/1996)
"...[Garofalo forges] the path for a newfangled cinematic heroine..." (Premiere, p.34, 01/04/1996)
"...Its spirited banter cleverly disguises its critique of the cultural importance of physical appearance....[Garafalo gives] a rich performance..." (Sight and Sound, p.54, 01/07/1996)
"...Uma Thurman proves she's equally adept at goofy and gorgeous..." (USA Today, p.4D, 26/04/1996)
"...Charming performances....Garofalo has quickly established herself as a real presence with a perfectly droll delivery, while Thurman is shown off to good effect..." (Variety, 08/04/1996)
DVD Description
In this modern variation of CYRANO DE BERGERAC, Abby (Janeane Garofalo) is a savvy, witty veterinarian who hosts a radio show about pets. She and a caller named Brian (Ben Chaplin) are drawn to each other while talking during her show, but when Brian asks Abby to describe herself, the average-looking woman cannot resist offering a description of her statuesque, gorgeous, and slightly dim-witted neighbor, Noelle (Uma Thurman), instead. Later, Brian makes a surprise visit to the radio station just when Noelle also happens to be there--and naturally thinks she's Abby. Scared of what might happen if Brian learned the truth, Abby asks Noelle to continue the masquerade. To complicate matters more, Brian is such a wonderful guy that both women fall for him. Will Abby--or Noelle--fess up to Brian
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