It is a widely held belief among many that co-parenting a pet following a split is a recipe for trouble. Most will argue such arrangements hinder individuals from healing, lead to scheduling chaos, spark arguments, and become annoying for all parties. As it turns out, as a development suited to a streaming movie, it reportedly leads to the canine in question to feel down.
Not to downplay the inner life of our pets – many owners attest to their deep emotional capacity. If you need standout portrayal in dog sorrow, one need only look a past film. I firmly believe that a dog like Merv, a wired-hair terrier mix brought to life by a talented dog named Gus, would have a hard time adapting to split households. The idea of basing a feature-length romcom on this conflict is sustainable remains a questionable prospect.Predictable Foundations
To its credit, Merv, written by the writing duo and under the guidance of Jessica Swale, doesn't pretend to be deeper than a light film. We have here a Christmas movie from a major tech-and-media conglomerate – the complexity remains surface-level. The plot proves to be simple and direct: exes Russ, played by Charlie Cox and Anna (Zooey Deschanel), forced to acknowledge that their own sadness is surpassed by their dog's, embark on a therapeutic trip to a canine-centric retreat. At this location, predictably, they will presumably realize the idea that they should reunite. Ensemble players – played by familiar faces – are crafted as the usual assortment of types. Its aesthetic carries the feel of a platform's in-house production, with a Christmas setting that is visibly contrived – exemplified by fake snow surrounding verdant foliage as a summer location doubles as a cold December city.
The Canine Charisma
How these familiar elements coalesce into an entertaining watch hinges on the strength of the performances and one's taste for comfort viewing. For the comfort factor, Merv hones in on a demographic – those people who seek out for cute animal clips. The film delivers a wealth of scenes focused on the pet. The primary selling point is the dog, and even if it causes some stilted moments between the pet's "lines" and the actors' responses, the movie delivers on walking sequences, canine sorrow, and, in the end, pure puppy happiness.
The Human Element
This level of success is not earned for the interpersonal drama. Its style vacillates between emotional depth, broad humor, standard rom-com beats, and physical comedy, not quite landing a consistent feel. No blame falls on Charlie Cox, who is admirably committed the absurd and awkward inherent in the dog resort scenario. Cox exhibits a endearing lack of ego that offers a significant portion of the appeal for this seemingly ideal couple. Zooey Deschanel, true to her usual style, imparts a particular brand of eccentricity that will be to your taste or not. The character can feel a touch too detached, especially when paired with Cox's genuine sadness. (On another note, the canine performer succeeds in flopping and whining – he may not be Messi from that acclaimed drama, he is still an excellent dog.)
The film attempts to give weight to the couple's history for moments when the dog is absent – which is unfortunate, considering the title character is by far the best part of this cute-aiming movie. Unsurprisingly, it just about gets by. The cause for their original breakup would feel more grounded and mature with more screen time and more subtle storytelling. In the end, Merv is slight and sweet, meeting all its marks. Crafting a story on this shared-custody premise is not terrible – but it's hardly a great one either.
- Merv streams on the Amazon platform on December 10th.
