This is an often-repeated piece of advice among many that sharing custody a pet after a breakup is a terrible idea. Most will argue such situations prevent former couples from moving forward, cause practical headaches, spark arguments, and prove frustrating for all parties. Apparently, in a revelation fit for a direct-to-platform film, it can even cause the dogs themselves to feel down.
Without minimizing the inner life of our pets – countless people speak of their deep emotional capacity. If you need standout portrayal in pet despair, one need only look another performance. I firmly believe that a dog of Merv's nature, a wired-hair terrier mix brought to life by Gus the Dog, would find it difficult coping with divided living arrangements. The idea of basing a full holiday film on such a setup works effectively seems debatable at best.Standard Holiday Fare
Honestly, Merv, the work of its screenwriters and directed by Jessica Swale, never aspires to be deeper than what it is. This is a holiday release from a corporate studio – the complexity remains surface-level. The narrative proves to be straightforward: exes Russ (Charlie Cox) and Anna, portrayed by Zooey Deschanel, confronting that their individual funk is surpassed by their dog's, embark on a cheer-up vacation to a canine-centric retreat. There, inevitably, they will presumably realize the idea that they should reunite. Ensemble players – played by familiar faces – fulfill roles quirky, thinly written, or broadly comic. The film's look has the quality of a platform's in-house production, with a holiday backdrop that is obviously artificial – exemplified by flurries piled on verdant foliage as a summer location substitutes for a wintery Boston.
The Dog's Domain
How these familiar elements merge into a pleasant experience depends on the execution and one's taste for comfort viewing. For the comfort factor, Merv hones in on a demographic – individuals who browse regularly for dog videos. It provides a wealth of adorable dog montages. The primary selling point is the canine star, and though it results in some stilted moments between what the dog does and human reaction, the movie succeeds in showing canine party antics, pet moping, and, ultimately, pure puppy happiness.
The Human Element
The same praise does not extend for the interpersonal drama. The tone vacillates between serious study, wacky comedy, predictable love story, and silly gags, failing to master a consistent feel. This is not Cox's performance, who is willing to embrace the absurd and awkward inherent in the bizarre setting. He brings a likable self-deprecation that provides a significant portion of the appeal for this ostensibly perfect couple. Anna's portrayer, true to her usual style, imparts a certain millennial quirkiness that will click for some but not others. Her portrayal comes across as a touch too detached, especially when alongside Cox's vulnerable performance. (On another note, Merv himself succeeds in flopping and whining – he may not be the award-winner from Anatomy of a Fall, he is still a very good boy.)
Merv tries to give weight to Anna and Russ's relationship for sequences focusing solely on them – a regrettable choice, since Merv is by far the best part of this film designed for charm. Unsurprisingly, it meets the bare minimum. The catalyst for the split might seem more nuanced with less exposition and fewer direct statements. As it stands, Merv is slight and sweet, fulfilling precisely what you anticipate. Making a film on this shared-custody premise isn't a bad idea – though it's not exactly a stroke of genius.
- Merv premieres on the Amazon platform on December 10th.
