#13 The Ugly Dachshund

Kenji: Rion! Rion!
Mark Garrison: Lion?
[Kenji points to Brutus, standing over Mr. Toyama, laying on the ground]
Fran Garrison: Brutus! Mark call him off. Mr. Toyama.
Mr. Toyama: Take away rion!
Fran Garrison: That's not a lion, that's a dog.
Mr. Toyama: [sits up] You call THAT, dog?

Plot

Mark and Fran Garrison (Dean Jones and Suzanne Pleshette) head to, what appears to be, the hospital for the birth of a child, but then you realize that they are headed to Dr. Pruitt (Charles Ruggles), who is the family vet. It was their Dachshund which was having puppies, three to be exact.

When Mark goes to pick up the three newborn pups and the mom, he sees a litter of Great Dane puppies that belonged to Dr. Pruitt. Dr. Pruitt talks Mark into raising the runt of the litter with the Dachshund puppies since their mom had more then enough milk. Mark agrees, but hides the fact that he is a Great Dane from Fran and lets her believe that he is a Dachshund.

But in no time, Fran realizes that the male dog, who Mark claimed to be a Dachshund puppy, was non-other than a Great Dane. She tells Mark that he has it take him back

Mark is devasted after giving Brutus back and is left, drawing pictures of Great Danes. But on Mark's birthday, Fran surprises him with the return of Brutus into their family. Mark is still faced with the fact that they may have to get rid of Brutus, who he has come to love and adore, because of his destructive behavior.

The Garrison's puppies cause loads of havoc in the house, yard, and studio. Yet Fran is convinced that it is Brutus, the Great Dane that thinks he's a Dachshund, that is destroying everything. But Mark continues to defend Brutus by saying how he's a great watchdog and guardian for the tiny Dachshies.

In order to prove that Brutus is special and great, Mark enters him in the dog show (which happens to be the same one that Fran has entered Chloe, one of the puppies, into). Brutus does really well, beating Chloe out, and discovers that he isn't a Dachshund, but a mighty Great Dane.

5 out 5 Star rating

#15: 101 Dalmatians

This is the classic story adapted from the book written by Dodie Smith. This story involves romance and adventure between humans and even their dogs. The love that animals have for each other shows from beginning to end. This furry movie will have you laughing and crying while you watch the best actors-both human and canine- display their colorful talent.

Plot (Caution Spoilers)

This story starts with the meeting of Roger and Anita in the park one day. Roger, played by Jeff Daniels (Dumb and Dumber, Speed) and Anita, played by Joely Richardson (The Patriot, Nip/Tuck), fall in love and get married and so do their two Dalmatians, Pongo and Perdita. Roger designed video games while Anita designed clothes for a well known fashion person, Cruella De Vil played Glenn Close (Sarah Plain and Tall, Air Force One). Cruella falls in love with a design of Anita's that would look wonderful in Dalmatian puppy fur and when she finds out that Pongo and Perdita are going to have puppies she plans on buying them. The puppies come, but Anita and Roger won't sell. Cruella gets mad and fires her and then threatens them.

One night, Roger and Anita take Pongo and Perdita for their walk and come back to find that the puppies had been stolen.. The police stated that they would do their best, but Pongo wanted to help. That night Pongo sent out the twilight bark. The next day, a message came back and they took off to find their pups. Meanwhile, some other animals are trying to help recover the pups. One dog, an Airedale Terrier, helps get them out of the mansion where they were being held, and then a Old English Sheepdog hides them in a barn.

Roger and Anita are still waiting for word on their puppies and now Pongo and Perdita. Anita realized that it had been Cruella that had stolen them for their fur. Pongo and Perdita meet up with the Sheepdog who takes them to their pups and the other 84 pups that Cruella had stolen. The police now know that they are looking for Cruella. They trace her to the barn where the puppies were at. She was trying to find the puppies, but had pigs, sheep, dogs, horses, and even raccoons trying to stop her. Pongo and Perdita start taking the pups back home. The police pick Cruella and three of her henchmen, but they were still looking for the puppies. They finally find them and took them all back to Roger's and Antia's place. They counted 101, but only 17 were theirs. None of the other puppies had identification tags and no one contacted the police about missing puppies. Anita and Roger agree to keep all the puppies.

Roger makes a video game based on the story and it becomes a best-seller. They move to a big place. The dogs have their family and Roger and Anita start their own.

5 out of 5 stars for family friendliness.