by Alice-Ginevra Micheli, Contributing Writer
We all have that feeling. You know the one: You finish watching a movie and something about it hits you in just the right spot.
Whether it was the theme, the story, or even the characters, there was a quality about it that almost makes you want to turn around and go back a second, third, or even fourth time!
Bar the reality of living in the movie theater for the rest of your days, you turn to the rest of pop culture and start to look for other avenues where you can find that same feeling.
Well I’m here to make this plight easier for all. Each month, I take a piece of pop culture that was prevalent in the social consciousness — whether it is a movie, TV show, or something else — and then recommend other forms of media for those who want to stay in that world a little bit longer.
Welcome to your One Stop Pop!
October is spooky season, this we know: the darkness before the lightness of Thanksgiving, and the blinding holiday cheer of Christmas. So with that often comes many tales of woe, horror, and the things that go bump in the night, and make it harder for anyone to get a good night’s sleep.
So of course, this month’s column had to center around these things, and a film that managed to surprisingly find its way onto the most anticipated lists of many a horror fan, even with the four-legged hero at its center.
Good Boy captured the hearts and fears, of many a festival fan, resulting in it quickly becoming the little film that could, and expanding from its original incredibly limited run to a wider release.
With its tension brilliant, its doggy actor considered to be giving one of the best animal performances in recent history — which is saying a lot given last year’s turn in Anatomy of a Fall — and its storytelling emotionally affecting, it’s only right that we give you some other avenues to explore this love of dogs, and their strange abilities. Shall we?
Book: The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time by Mark Haddon
A murder mystery. A young adolescent on a quest. A dog at the center of it all. Intrigued?
Our protagonist Christopher John Francis Boone is 15 years old, and very knowledgeable about a lot of things. He can recite every prime number up to 7,057, knows all the countries of the world, and can figure out almost any problem if given enough time — unless that problem has to do with people and their emotions. When his neighborhood dog suspiciously turns up dead, Boone takes it upon himself to investigate what happened, and in its investigation uncovers more about his world than he might have ever bargained for.
The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time is as classic as a relatively modern novel can get in this day and age. Coming-of-age in the strongest sense, the story not only looks at all the typical elements that come with a young man finding his footing in a brave new world, but also how being on the spectrum might affect one’s interpretation of it all, and how this individual has decided to overcome it.
Much like Good Boy, it’s a narrative told from an alternative perspective, but in one that is still empathetic, and yet also illuminating in its attempt to translate a specific way of seeing things that most might find difficult to understand at first, but will quickly grow to love. One might call it an investigation in more than the traditional sense.
TV Show: Kommissar Rex
Now, of course, the hero at the center of Good Boy is a brave and lovely dog. So let’s look at a tv show that also has a similar protagonist to follow.
An absolute classic of television, Inspector Rex, or Kommissar Rex in its original German, is a fun 10-season procedural that follows a recently divorced Austrian cop who has found himself to be disillusioned with life. He adopts a police dog, Rex, whose companion recently passed, and finds he gets more than he bargained for when Rex’s superior skills help him solve the crimes that others can’t.
It’s likely that you’ve heard of this show, even if you’re not quite sure where from before. If you haven’t, think Turner & Hooch, but with a dog that’s actually trained for police business. Like Good Boy, the show uses the well-known understanding that dogs are often able to sense at a level beyond humans, and shows just how fruitful a partnership between man and his best friend can be.
It has a certain charm to it that can’t quite be replicated nowadays, due in part to its late ‘90s and early 2000s setting, as well as the chemistry between our human and doggy protagonist.
Podcast: Working Like Dogs
As stated, dogs are good boys and girls in more ways than one. As depicted in Good Boy,it can be in a protective sense, or even in a more practical one across many different applications.
So why not move to a lighter form of entertainment, with a podcast dedicated to learning all about how our four-legged friends have helped us across an array of job titles, industries, and adventures?
Working Like Dogs interviews the most prestigious working dog leaders, trainers, handlers, researchers, authors, and even a few celebrities to see how these companions have improved human lives in ways that were heretofore more difficult, or certainly less cute.
This includes everything from police and guide dogs, to disaster relief teams, to pups who have been trained to find missing persons. With each episode, listeners also get a chance to learn about the latest topics and trends in the industry when it comes to animal ownership, such as how to keep your dog healthy, cutting edge training programs, and the latest research about working dogs.
There are also some fun episodes that champion not-for-profits that raise awareness about certain canine initiatives, as well as puppy raisers talking all about what it’s like to professionally rear, and bring to maturity the furry friends of tomorrow.
With each episode being around the 35 to 40-minute mark, this is sure to bring a little light back into any podcast fan’s day, especially if you’re normally one to delve into the depraved true-crime side that we all dabble in from time to time.
Video Game: Stray
While the previous recommendation was a nice uplift from the origin of this month’s theme, the video game of the month is one that will bring the emotion right back, and turn it up to 11 — or should it be nine. Nine lives that is…
That’s right, we turn from the dogs of pop culture, over to the cats, specifically to a small abandoned little kitty that has lost their family, and must find their way through a tumultuous city.
Stray is a third-person adventure game, where the player must get used to seeing through the eyes of a feline, in both methods of interaction, and understanding of danger. Taking advantage of a cat’s natural nimble stealth, you’re joined by a small flying drone as a key companion, wherein you both must find your way back home.
A charming story about friendship, and what it means to try again after initial heartbreak, this game is at times both uplifting and entirely devastating. More about atmosphere than adrenaline, while there are plenty of puzzles and situations that one must think their way out of, there is also something to be said about being able to enjoy the freedom of an animal brain, which is something the game designers certainly aimed to encourage with its eclectic, vibrant design.
It’s essentially a vibe piece with a little bit of heart, and a lot of cuteness to keep any animal fan glued to their screens for more. However, just like with Good Boy, there is something to be said about being ready to handle some sad animal-centric scenes throughout, and whether you can actually handle experiencing that.
We have once again come to the end of our recommendations, for the second to last time this year. We looked at a film that set many on edge, for reasons of pet ownership, as well as spookiness, this month brought out elements of darkness, and made sure that some fluffiness was also there to keep our collected spirits up. December will soon be here to reveal what on earth we might all fall for in the 11th month, but until then, thank you for visiting SiftPop’s One Stop Pop. We hope to see you again soon!
You can read more from Alice-Ginevra Micheli, and follow her on Instagram and Letterboxd