This is an often-repeated piece of advice in certain circles that co-parenting a canine companion after a breakup is ill-advised. The consensus suggests such setups prevent individuals from finding closure, cause practical headaches, lead to tension, and become annoying for everyone involved. Apparently, in a revelation worthy of a streaming movie, it also makes the dogs themselves to experience sadness.
Without minimizing the mental health of our pets – many owners speak of their profound sensitivity. To witness a standout portrayal in canine melancholy, consider recent cinema. There is little doubt that a dog of Merv's nature, a wired-hair terrier mix brought to life by the canine actor Gus, would have a hard time adapting to divided living arrangements. The idea of basing an entire Christmas romance on such a setup is sustainable seems debatable at best.Predictable Foundations
Fairness demands noting, Merv, written by its screenwriters and directed by playwright Jessica Swale, never aspires to be deeper than what it is. We have here a seasonal offering from a corporate studio – the ambitions remains surface-level. Its storyline unfolds as simple and direct: a separated couple Russ, played by Charlie Cox and Anna, portrayed by Zooey Deschanel, confronting that their own sadness is rivaled only by their dog's, embark on a therapeutic trip to a canine-centric retreat. Once there, as expected, they will surely stumble toward the idea that they belong with each other. Side characters – played by a group of comedic actors – are crafted as eccentric, underutilized, or over-the-top. Visually is reminiscent of a platform's in-house production, with a Christmas setting that is obviously artificial – exemplified by fake snow surrounding green trees as a summer location stands in for the Northeast.
The Canine Charisma
If these standard ingredients coalesce into an entertaining watch depends on the strength of the performances and the viewer's appetite for comfort viewing. Regarding the second aspect, Merv targets a specific viewer – the kind who scroll endlessly for cute animal clips. Audiences receive a wealth of scenes focused on the pet. The central draw is the canine star, and while this leads to some awkward editing between animal action and people's faces, the movie delivers on canine party antics, pet moping, and, finally, doggie joy.
The Human Element
The same praise is not earned for the romantic plot. Its style shifts uneasily between relationship drama, zany antics, predictable love story, and outright slapstick, not quite landing a single genre. This is not the actor playing Russ, who is fully game the humiliating and funny inherent in the unusual premise. His performance contains a charming humility that provides a significant portion of the appeal for this on-the-rocks couple. Her co-star Deschanel, as is her trademark, imparts a distinctive offbeat energy that will be to your taste or not. The character comes across as a bit too dry, particularly when contrasted against Cox's heartfelt sincerity. (On another note, Gus the Dog is convincing at looking despondent – while no a canine thespian of that caliber, he is still a very good boy.)
The story strives to add substance to the couple's history for sequences focusing solely on them – which is unfortunate, since Merv is easily the best part of this feel-good picture. As one might predict, it just about gets by. The cause for their original breakup would feel more grounded and mature with less exposition and less blunt explanation. As it stands, Merv is slight and sweet, fulfilling every expected note. Creating a movie on this shared-custody premise is not terrible – but it's not exactly a stroke of genius.
- Merv streams on Amazon Prime Video starting December 10.
