Product Details

• Actors: Carrie Aizley, Lewis Arquette, Bob Balaban, Jehshua Barnes, Jay Brazeau
• Format: Closed-captioned, Color, NTSC
• Rating: PG-13 (Parental Guidance Suggested)
• Number of tapes: 1
• Studio: Warner Home Video
• VHS Release Date: May 15, 2001
• Run Time: 90 minutes
• Average Customer Review: 4.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (322 customer reviews)
• ASIN: B00005BK5V
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #28,092 in Video (See Bestsellers in Video)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com

Christopher Guest, the man behind Waiting for Guffman, turns his comic eye on another little world that takes itself a bit too seriously: the world of competitive dog shows. Best in Show follows a clutch of dog owners as they prepare and preen their dogs to win a national competition. They include the yuppie pair (Parker Posey and Michael Hitchcock) who fear they've traumatized their Weimaraner by having sex in front of him; a suburban husband and wife (Eugene Levy and Catherine O'Hara) with a terrier and a long history of previous lovers on the wife's part; the Southern owner of a bloodhound (Guest himself) with aspirations as a ventriloquist; and many more. Following the same "mockumentary" format of Spinal Tap and Guffman, Best in Show takes in some of the dog show officials, the manager of a nearby hotel that allows dogs to stay there, and the commentators of the competition (a particularly knockout comic turn by Fred Willard as an oafish announcer). The movie manages to paint an affectionate portrait of its quirky characters without ever losing sight of the ridiculousness of their obsessive world. Almost all of the scenes were created through improvisation. While lacking the overall focus of a written script, Best in Show captures hilarious and absurd aspects of human behavior that could never be written down. The movie's success is a testament to both the talent of the actors and Guest's discerning eye. --Bret Fetzer

From The New Yorker

Christopher Guest reunites much of the cast of "Waiting for Guffman" for another mock documentary; the target this time around is the cloistered world of championship-dog breeding. Guest directs and scripts with a loose, improvisational style (no dialogue was written down), and while some of the scenes glide along with a quick-witted tempo, others are awkward. The dogs themselves are splendid, and when the satire works the laughs are plentiful. Best-in-group awards go to Parker Posey and Michael Hitchcock as an uptight suburban couple whose courtship involved adjacent Starbucks franchises, John Michael Higgins as a preening owner who outshines his shih tzu, and Fred Willard as a chipper commentator who showers ASINine comments on the proceedings. If Guest has a trademark style, it's the airtight earnestness he demands of his cast-there's not one wink in the entire film. -Michael Agger
Copyright © 2006 The New Yorker

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

27 of 28 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars "Thanks a lot, you stupid hotel manager!" (4.5 stars), October 11, 2003

By	Michael Crane (Orland Park, IL USA) - See all my reviews (TOP 500 REVIEWER)

This review is from: Best in Show (DVD)

Christopher Guest's "Best in Show" is a wildly hilarious satire that pokes fun at people who are overly obsessed with their pets. So obsessed that they would take their pets and put them in a type of "beauty pageant" in order to get awards and recognition. It's funny and unrelenting because you see it as an everyday occurrence in society. People like this really do exist, and that is why it's so humorous. The characters are all out of their minds and are a joy to watch in this very entertaining and unpredictable film.

I had no idea what I was going to experience when I popped this into the DVD player. At first, it didn't seem like anything that would interest me. However, almost every single person I know had seen it and encouraged me to watch it. I'm glad I did give it a chance, because I ended up really liking it. The satire is outrageous and subtle at the same time (something that's VERY difficult to accomplish unless the project is in the right hands). The actors are hilarious and very animated, but at the same time you know that these types of people really do exist! Eugene Levy was my favorite person in the film. He's so subtle and clever when it comes to humor. Overall, everybody was fantastic in their roles.

The DVD has some really cool extras. It has very good picture and sound quality. Extras included are deleted scenes, feature length audio commentary by Christopher Guest and Eugene Levy, theatrical trailer and more. The deleted scenes are pretty interesting to watch. Tons of special features for those who love the extra "bells and whistles."

"Best in Show" is great satirical comedy in top form. Not a wasted second is present in the movie. If you're looking for something a little less ordinary, this may be the choice for you. Christopher Guest has done an excellent job of orchestrating this very entertaining and clever film that gives us 90 minutes of fun and laughs.

24 of 26 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars "...In some countries, these dogs are eaten.", May 15, 2001

By	Greg White (The Forbidden Zone) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Best in Show (DVD)

This was a funny, funny movie, to say the least. I've never seen "Waiting for Guffman", but "Spinal Tap" still makes me laugh to this day. My main attraction to this movie was Fred Willard(known lately for his hilarious "conversations" with Jay Leno on the Tonight Show). This man does wonders when it comes to improv, and this movie just displays that so well.

The film polks fun at Dog Shows(one event in which it's participants take itself WAAAAAAAAAY too serious). This is best displayed when Fred Willard, playing a commentator for the show, asks his partner if he could guess how much Fred benched in his prime. Also to mention his hilarious anecdote for dressing up a bloodhound in a Sherlock Holmes uniform, in order to "get the crowd pumped".

I liked this movie, and anyone a fan of mellow humor, rather than gross-out humor(Farrely Bros, etc.) should check this out. It's more of a comedy for people in their 30's and up, but I'm 15, and got a tremendous kick out of it. I won't touch down on the characters, because I'm sure you've read plenty on that already. But, if your in the mood for one hell of a comedy, or just a plain old Fred Willard fan like myself, this is definitely worth a view.

22 of 24 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars I Give It 5 Dog Biscuits!!, July 9, 2001

By A Customer

This review is from: Best in Show (DVD)

I don't even remember if this movie made it to the theaters in my town. This is the kind of small gem that slips past critics and moviegoers and either finds an audience in the video market, or passes away into obscurity. Those viewers who enjoyed the improvisational comedy of Christopher Guest's previous efforts (This Is Spinal Tap, Waiting For Guffman) will love Best In Show. It features a wonderful cast that includes Michael McKean and John Michael Higgins, the flambouyantly gay owners of a prize winning shih tzu, a yuppie couple (Parker Posey and Michael Hitchcock) whose Weimaraner is as neurotic as they are, Christopher Guest as the proud owner of a Bloodhound named Hubert who also fancies himself a ventriloquist, and Catherine O'Hara as a former nympho who keeps running into old boyfriends (she's had hundreds of them), much to the chagrin of geeky husband Eugene Levy. They are all competing for Best In Show at the prestigious Mayflower Kennel Club dog show. Their ridiculous and outrageous behavior is captured in a documentary style. Fred Willard chews the scenery hilariously as a commentator who seems to know nothing about dogs or anything else for that matter. Don't let this one pass you by, it's well worth the price. The DVD also comes with some very funny deleted scenes and a commentary by Guest and Levy.