By Jennifer Merin

Sleeping Dogs Lie

Directed by Bobcat Goldthwait

At the very start of the movie, when all-American schoolteacher Amy (Melinda Page Hamilton) reveals that she gave her dog a blowjob while in college, don’t get disgusted and walk out of the theater. Beyond that initial intentionally shock-jock ploy, Sleeping Dogs Lie isn’t a bit salacious. In fact, it’s a completely charming romantic comedy that considers the question of whether complete honesty in a relationship is a good thing or will cause disastrous confusion and hostility between lovers.

When Amy’s betrothed, John (Bryce Johnson), suggests they share their darkest secrets with each other, Amy’s mind races to her intimate encounter with her canine pal Rufus. Does she dare confess her shameful lapse into the sticky realm of bestiality? This question propels the plot into some quirky twists and goes a long way in redifining relationships at different phases of life—between young lovers; children and their parents; and moms and dads.

Hamilton and Johnson are delightful as the young couple, and Bonita Friedericy and Geoff Pierson (as Amy’s mom and dad) reveal that love struggles persist well after age 30. And, in case you’re wondering, Rufus is pretty cute as well.

Writer and director Bobcat Goldthwait spins a warm, honest and heartfelt story with engaging characters who’re dealing with issues common to all who fall in and out of love (well, maybe not the canine angle). In fact, it’s a doggone good movie. Funnyman Goldthwait still delivers the laughs, but in Sleeping Dogs Lie, his surprisingly sophisticated and sensitive handling of compelling relationship issues raises his career to a new level of maturity.